ALEXANDRIA, MN – Fresh off a big home win over first-place Coulee Region, the Bismarck Bobcats hit the road for a one-off away weekend against the Alexandria Blizzard Friday night at the Runestone Center.
The Bobcats are 1-1-0 against the Blizzard—with both games in Bismarck—losing to the Blizzard 3-1 in their home opener before a 5-2 win over Alexandria two weeks later. Friday’s contest will be the Cats’ first trip to Alexandria for the 2010-11 season.
“We know what to expect from Alexandria this weekend, but that doesn’t make it any easier,” said Bobcats forward Matt Gates. “They’re really skilled but also very physical. They’ve got good goaltending and one of the best power plays in the league.”
Veteran forwards Nardo Nagtzaam (6 G, 11 A), Alex Altenbernd (3 G, 8 A) and Steve Zierke (6 G, 4 A) help pace the Blizzard attack while Williston native Jordan Nelson has come on strong of late, posting five points in his last six games for eight goals and three assists. In net, Jacob Meyers is 3-3-2 with a 2.27 GAA and a .899 SV%.
The Blizzard are looking to snap a three-game losing streak, including suffering a two-game sweep at the hands of the resurgent Aberdeen Wings last weekend.
“We know they’ll be coming out desperate in their own barn, so we can’t afford a slow start,” said Bobcats head coach Layne Sedevie. “Their crowd is going to be rowdy, as usual, so we need to take the fans out of the game and try to shake their defensive confidence early.”
The Bobcats recently snapped their own three-game skid with a 3-1 win on Saturday over the frontrunning Coulee Region, forcing their way back into a first-place tie with the Chill atop the Central Division.
“We learned a lot from the Coulee Region series,” added Gates, who had Saturday’s game-winning goal. “Our effort was maybe the best we’ve had all year and even though we didn’t win both games, we feel like we dominated six periods of hockey. So now we need to try and carry that forward against other teams in the division—starting Friday.”
Charlie Mosey leads the Bobcats’ charge offensively with six goals and ten assists while Dartmouth recruit Ryan Faragher is sixth in the league with a 2.09 GAA between the pipes, sporting a .920 SV% and a 6-4-1 record.
Friday’s game gets underway at 7:30 PM from the Runestone Center.
The game will be broadcast locally on the radio home of Bobcat Hockey, Super Talk 1270, KLXX-AM, and worldwide at http://nahl.fasthockey.com/. As with all away games during the 2010-11 season, fans are encouraged to view the game at Reza’s Pitch—the official away game Home of the Bobcats—at the corner of Third and Front in Bismarck. Pre-game coverage will begin at 7:00 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