AUSTIN, MN – In the first ever meeting of the two franchises, the defending national champion Bismarck Bobcats shut out the expansion Austin Bruins 3-0 Friday at Riverside Arena behind 25 saves from Bobcat netminder Ryan Faragher.
“Coming off last week’s [5-2] win over Alexandria, I had a lot more confidence [Friday],” said Faragher, who tied for second in the NAHL in 2009-10 with four shutouts. “It took me a little while to get into the groove this season but after the last few games I’ve had I feel like I’m getting back to that midseason form.”
After battling to a scoreless tie through one period of play, the Bobcats got the drop on the Bruins early in the second when second-year forward Brett Bower grabbed a partially blocked Tyler Richter shot and beamed it through the legs of Austin goalie Keegan Asmundson to boost the visitors to a 1-0 lead just 1:28 into the middle frame.
Just under two minutes later Charlie Mosey extended the Bobcats’ lead, dekeing through the Bruin defense before poking his own rebound past Asmundson for a 2-0 Bismarck lead with 16:38 left in the period.
The Bobcat defense locked down from there, holding the Bruins to long, easy-to-see shots that Faragher was able to steer aside for his fourth win of the young season.
“The ‘D’ gave me a great look, almost to the point that the shots seemed to be coming in super-slow-motion,” added Faragher. “And when Austin tried to get physical in the crease, they were right there to get in their face and get them out of there.”
Matt Gates added the finishing touches for the Cats, slamming home an empty net goal with 34 seconds left for the final 3-0 margin.
Asmundson was the hard-luck loser, stopping 36 shots but slipping to 1-4-0 on the year.
The Cats and Bruins wrap up their two-game series Saturday with a 7:05 PM rematch.
The contest will be broadcast locally on the radio home of Bobcat Hockey, Super Talk 1270, KLXX-AM, and worldwide at http://nahl.fasthockey.com/. Pre-game coverage will begin at 6:35 PM CT.
Season tickets are now on sale for the 2010-11 season! Call the Bobcat Hockey office at (701) 222-3300 or email gobobcathockey@aol.com for more information on reserving your seats for the entire season as the Bobcats look to defend the Robertson Cup!
BOBCAT HOCKEY
2010 ROBERTSON CUP CHAMPIONS