GO DRAGONS GO!
The Drumheller Dragons’ foe for the second round of the AJHL playoffs was made official on Tuesday night when the Okotoks Oilers beat the Olds Grizzlys in game five of their series.
The Oilers victory means they will take on the Camrose Kodiaks and the Dragons will face the number one Junior A team in Canada; the Brooks Bandits.
The Dragons head to Brooks tonight for game one and stay overnight for game two. Game three will be held Monday, March 18, at the Drumheller Memorial Arena at 7:30 p.m.
The Dragons have a tough series ahead of them. In six meetings between the two teams in the regular season, the Bandits won all six. The Bandits went 53-4-3 on the season, earning 289 goals with only 113 against. They handily took first place in the AJHL southern division and had a break for the first round of playoffs.
To be successful against the Bandits, the Dragons will have to control the number of penalties they receive. The Dragons’ first round victory against the Eagles was aided by some remarkable penalty killing, especially in several 5 on 3 situations.
However, the Dragons can’t afford to give the Bandits those chances.
To give the Dragons some added incentive to win, Mayor Terry Yemen and Brooks Mayor Martin Shields have agreed to a jersey swap should their respective team lose.
“The gauntlet has been thrown down. Mayor Shields has agreed to wear a Dragons Jersey and make a declaration that Drumheller is the best town in Alberta when the Drumheller Dragons defeat the Brooks Bandits in this next round of the playoffs. If, by chance, Brooks were to win, I will be required to do the same,” said Mayor Yemen.