The Cranbrook Bucks dropped another two games in the BCHL over the weekend, falling 3-2 to the Penticton Vees and 4-3 in a shootout on Sunday to the Trail Smoke Eaters.
Entering the weekend on a high note, the Bucks had handed the Vees just their second loss of the season with a 1-0 shootout victory on Wednesday. Penticton would get revenge on Saturday, however.
Tyler Ho and Liam Malmquist opened the scoring for the Vees on Saturday. Cranbrook would respond in the second period as Fernie native Nikolas Sombrowski would score a pair of goals for the Bucks, drawing the game even. In the third, the Vees would take a 3-2 in the early part of the period thanks to a goal from Jacob Quillan, eventually skating away with the victory.
The Bucks outshot the Vees 27-24 in the loss.
Nikolas Sombrowski’s first in the @BCHockeyLeague! pic.twitter.com/7FKC1sD56K
— Cranbrook Bucks (@CranbrookBucks) April 25, 2021
Might as well get your second goal too!
Sombrowski gets another ?
2-2 pic.twitter.com/fJWcA02DFW
— Cranbrook Bucks (@CranbrookBucks) April 25, 2021
Nik Sombrowski post game following a 3-2 loss to the Penticton Vees ?? pic.twitter.com/4G0yUXGwkR
— Cranbrook Bucks (@CranbrookBucks) April 25, 2021
Right back in action on Sunday, Cranbrook would take on their new Kootenay rivals, the Trail Smoke Eaters.
Continuing his hot streak from Saturday, Sombrowski would net this third goal of the weekend for the Bucks to open the scoring in the first. Both rivals would exchange goals in the second, with Nathan Fox and Cameron Kungle both finding the back of the net for the Bucks. The period would end in a 3-3 tie and with a scoreless third period, the game needed overtime, and eventually a shootout.
Nik Sombrowski gets his third goal in two games to give the Bucks a 1-0 lead? pic.twitter.com/29IZ7AzbAx
— Cranbrook Bucks (@CranbrookBucks) April 25, 2021
Nathan Fox gets his second of the season to give the Bucks a 2-1 lead ? pic.twitter.com/ImDB1L1n6L
— Cranbrook Bucks (@CranbrookBucks) April 26, 2021
Cameron Kungle’s third goal of the season ?? pic.twitter.com/wt8kaeaC8G
— Cranbrook Bucks (@CranbrookBucks) April 26, 2021
Although Cameron Lowe and Nikolas Sombrowski would both score in the shootout for Cranbrook, Trail would convert on all three attempts. Smoke Eaters netminder Cayden Hamming would stop Cam Reid on Cranbrook’s third attempt, securing the 4-3 shootout victory for Trail.
The Smoke Eaters outshot the Bucks 40-35 in the contest, as Hamming made 32 saves. Cranbrook Bucks starter Nathan Airey made 37 stops in the loss.
Nathan Fox post game following a 4-3 shootout loss to the Trail Smoke Eaters ?? pic.twitter.com/2uQZHnNRRe
— Cranbrook Bucks (@CranbrookBucks) April 26, 2021
Now 2-10-0-2 in the Penticton Pod, the Bucks remain at the bottom of the standings. Trail (6-6-0-0) and Penticton (11-1-0-1) round out the standings of the three-team pod.
Cranbrook has three games this week, returning to the ice on Wednesday against the Smoke Eaters at 8 p.m. MT. The Bucks will then faceoff with the Vees on Friday and the Smoke Eaters again on Saturday.
Below are the full slate of BCHL highlights from the weekend:
The action on the ice was heating up on Saturday night! ???
It was another full slate of games, so get started catching up on all of the highlights!#BCHLTonight | @saveonfoods pic.twitter.com/tgJdXPfBoV
— BCHL (@BCHockeyLeague) April 25, 2021
Another weekend is in the books! Oh what a day it was for the goaltenders. Time to get caught up on the highlights from Sunday! #BCHLTonight | @ChevroletCanada pic.twitter.com/R8VItrIwFD
— BCHL (@BCHockeyLeague) April 26, 2021