BLAINE, MN – The Bismarck Bobcats got in trouble early as a big first period from Traverse City carried the North Stars to a 4-1 win over the Bobcats in each team’s NAHL Sherwood Showcase finale Saturday. All four of Traverse City’s goals came in the opening frame.
Andy Huff opened the scoring right off the bat for the North Stars, swatting home his own rebound just 1:15 into the contest for a 1-0 Traverse City lead.
Less than three minutes later, Sean Burke followed up with a rebound goal of his own, cleaning up the leftovers from a Bo Jacobs effort at the 15:53 mark of the first for a fast 2-0 advantage for the North Stars.
Josh Miller continued the Traverse City scoring tear when he rolled a low shot in transition past Bobcat netminder Ryan Faragher to extend the North Stars’ lead to 3-0.
With 2:45 left in the first, Eric Rivard turned an Eric McClintock centering feed off a Bobcat turnover into his first goal of the year, capping the Traverse City scoring on the day.
Starting the second period, Bobcats head coach Byron Pool called on goalie Ryan Massa; Massa responded by stopping all 20 North Star shots he faced in the remaining 40 minutes of play.
Both sides went scoreless in the second period, with the Bobcats holding a 13-10 edge in shots during the middle stanza.
Ryan Jacobson got the Bobcats on the board halfway through the third, firing a transition wrist shot under the glove of Traverse City keeper Drew Strandberg for the final margin of 4-1.
Strandberg finished the day with 27 saves, improving his record to 3-1-0 on the year.
Faragher made 12 saves and was charged with the loss for the Bobcats, falling to 0-1-1 in 2009-10.
The Bobcats return to action when they open their home schedule on Friday, September 25th, with Coors Light Opening Night when they host the Alaska Avalanche at the VFW Sports Center at 7:15 PM.
The game will feature a pre-game “Party in the Parking Lot,” including free samples of Russell’s Reserve Ribs from Cloverdale Meats and a live radio remote from Cumulus Media.
The game will be broadcast locally on the radio home of Bobcat Hockey, Super Talk 1270, KLXX-AM, and worldwide at BismarckBobcats.com via B2 Networks. The pre-game show will begin at 6:45 PM.
You won\’t want to miss any of the games this season, so order your Season Tickets, Family Packs and Group Night’s today by calling the Bobcat Hockey Office at 701-222-3300 or by e-mailing the office for more information at gobobcathockey@aol.com.
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