FRISCO, TX – The Bismarck Bobcats will begin their quest for their second national championship in three years when they kick off their Robertson Cup Tournament schedule against the North Division champion Port Huron Fighting Falcons on Thursday at Dr. Pepper Arena, starting at 3:30 PM.
Port Huron’s run to the national tournament is the culmination of their rags-to-riches story that saw head coach Bill Warren turn around a franchise that earned a mere six wins in 2010-11 and lead them all the way to the North Division title in their second year as a franchise.
“Bill and his staff have done a great job turning that program around in just one year,” credited Bobcats head coach and general manager Layne Sedevie, whose own team improved 14 wins over their 2010-11 season. “The Fighting Falcons work hard and have a lot of really talented players. When you add in goalies like [Peter] Megariotis and [Max] Milosek, it’s no coincidence that this is a team with a shot at the national title.”
The goaltending tandem of Megariotis and Milosek, along with Port Huron’s imposing defense, have keyed the Falcons’ run through the playoffs, where they have allowed a stingy 1.88 goals per game—third-best among all playoff teams.
It will be a strength-on-strength battle Thursday, as the Bobcats scored a league-high 34 goals in the divisional playoffs and lead the league on the power play with an eye-popping 37.2% efficiency.
On the eve of the team’s third Robertson Cup appearance in four years, the Bobcats were not letting pressure or outside factors creep into their mindset.
“Guys are excited, sure, but we know that the most important game we play in Texas is always the next one,” offered Bobcats assistant captain Castan Sommer, who leads the league in playoff goals (7) and points (12). “We can’t worry about college scouts at the tournament or how other teams in our pool do; all we can control [Thursday] is how we play against Port Huron.”
The Bobcats will be the top seed in Pool “B,” which also includes the Fairbanks Ice Dogs and Texas Tornado; Pool “A” comprises the Fighting Falcons, Amarillo Bulls and St. Louis Bandits. The top two teams in pool play will advance to Monday’s national semifinal.
Port Huron advanced to the national tournament by closing out the Kalamazoo Jr. K-Wings in four games while the Bobcats got back to the Robertson Cup Tournament by taking the Central Division Finals in four over the Austin Bruins.
The Bobcats will be the top seed in Pool “B,” which also includes the Fairbanks Ice Dogs and Texas Tornado; Pool “A” comprises the Fighting Falcons, Amarillo Bulls and St. Louis Bandits. The top two teams in pool play will advance to Monday’s national semifinal.
Thursday’s tournament opener, along with all Bobcats games at the Robertson Cup, will be broadcast locally on the radio home of Bobcat Hockey, Super Talk 1270, KLXX-AM, and worldwide on the official internet television partner of the NAHL, FASTHockey, at http://nahl.fasthockey.com. Pregame coverage gets under way at 3:00 Thursday. Fans can watch Thursday’s game—and all away contests—live at Reza’s Pitch at Third and Front in Bismarck, the official away game home of Bobcat Hockey.