Dhane Smith scored a shorthanded goal with 2:24 left in the fourth quarter to give the Buffalo Bandits an 11-10 win over the Halifax Thunderbirds at Scotiabank Centre on Saturday. The victory ended a four-game losing streak for the Bandits.
Smith finished with seven points, leading his team in scoring. His only goal of the game came after Halifax tied the score at 10-10 with a shorthanded goal from Jason Knox late in the fourth quarter.
The Bandits had nine different players score goals. Ian MacKay contributed six points, including one goal and five assists. Josh Byrne and Tehoka Nanticoke each scored twice to help secure Buffalo’s win.
Buffalo improved its season record to 4-5, with 13 players earning at least one point in the game. Goalie Matt Vinc made 41 saves, including several key stops late in the match.
For Halifax, Randy Staats and Clarke Petterson each recorded seven points. Staats added five assists.
The Bandits started strong, scoring just 38 seconds into the game with a transition goal from Kyle Buchanan. Clay Scanlan followed up less than five minutes later to make it 2-0. After two goals from Staats tied it up for Halifax, Nanticoke responded with two consecutive goals—one while shorthanded—to give Buffalo a lead at the end of the first quarter.
A run of five unanswered goals extended Buffalo’s advantage to 7-2 midway through the second quarter. During this stretch, Ryan Benesch scored once and Matt Spanger netted his first goal since returning from injury earlier this month.
Halifax goalie Warren Hill was replaced by Drew Hutchinson after allowing seven goals on 21 shots; Hutchinson stopped 24 of 28 shots for Halifax.
Buffalo’s power play success continued as MacKay scored on a man-up opportunity to push their lead to 8-3. Cody Jamieson answered quickly for Halifax with two goals in under a minute before halftime, narrowing Buffalo’s lead to three at intermission.
Halifax rallied in the third quarter with four straight goals—including two more from Petterson—to cut Buffalo’s lead to one. Byrne ended Buffalo’s scoring drought late in the third period as they entered the final quarter ahead by two.
Cam Wyers added his first goal of the season early in the fourth period after serving a penalty. Despite being outscored during much of the second half, Buffalo held off Halifax’s comeback attempt thanks to Smith’s decisive late-game effort.
