BISMARCK, ND–Aaron Nelson (Bismarck, ND) stopped 37 shots Friday night, but it was not enough.
Eric Brenk rebouned a Nick DeCenzo shot with 10.8 seconds left in regulation to push the Brookings Blizzard past the Bismarck Bobcats 2-1 at the Larson Ice Center in Brookings, SD.
The victory was the first of the year for the Blizzard (1-7-3, 5 points NAHL Central), while the Bobcats (7-3) lost for the first time in six tries.
Stanislav Dzakhov (Moscow, Russia) scored the lone goal for the Bobcats just 1:17 into the, wheeling and cleaning up a Brendan Harris (Las Vegas, NV) miss for a 1-0 Bobcat lead. The tally was Dzakhov’s eighth goal and 11th point this season.
But Bismarck’s skates went flat throughout the latter first and second periods, being outshot, at one point early in the third, 33-17 by the Blizzard. Brookings’ Jared Goudreau scored on the power play at 15:02 to tie the matchup, and the late heroics of Brenk ended the Bobcat winning streak.
Bismarck returns home Saturday night, hosting the Blizzard in the final game of the three-game series. The puck drops at the VFW Sports Center at 7:15 p.m. Tickets are still available at the Bobcat ticket office by calling 222-3300.