BISMARCK, ND. – Two weeks removed from the first matchup, which saw Bismarck sweep Austin at the VFW Sports Center, the Bobcats and Bruins clash yet again, this time from Riverside Arena in another heavy-weight Central Division bout.
Both teams are coming off rather disappointing weekends: for the Bobcats they earned their 10th win of the season but it was a weekend that resulted in a split against the last-place St. Cloud Norsemen.
After a blistering start to the season, Bismarck’s power play has cooled off considerably, converting on just 16.7% of its opportunities in October. The penalty kill, meanwhile, has gone in the opposite direction, continuing to establish itself as one of the Bobcats’ biggest strengths..
A short-handed unit that had 28 consecutive kills until late Saturday night helps make for the best defensive team in the NAHL, giving up just 21 goals across 13 games so far.
Bismarck has surrendered three goals just twice so far this season, while the Austin Bruins have seen their scoring dry up with just three goals in the past four contests.
Those games have been close however for Austin, with three straight one-goal losses, first to Bismarck then getting swept by Minot this past weekend.
The drought sees the Bruins in the midst of a four-game losing streak, their worst streak since December of 2023, and in desperate need of a shakeup.
That shakeup will need to come on the man-advantage for Steve Howard’s squad, which has seen the power play numbers dip to 10.2%, 34th in the league, including an 0-for-13 mark when these two teams faced off earlier this month.
Austin will be coming right off a five-game road trip, including a contest this Thursday against the Norsemen in a rare three-game weekend for the black and gold.
For Bismarck, the challenge will be finding a way to get its power play back on track while continuing to lean on the defensive structure that has made the Bobcats one of the league’s toughest teams to score against. Against an Austin team searching for answers offensively, special teams could once again prove to be the difference.
The Bobcats will look to build on their earlier sweep of the Bruins and keep pace near the top of the Central Division, while Austin enters the weekend looking to snap its losing streak and get its season back on track.
Bismarck and Austin will meet Friday and Saturday night at Riverside Arena, with puck drop scheduled for 7:05 p.m. on Friday and 6:05 p.m. Saturday. You can catch all the action on nahltv.com or on SuperTalk 1270.