Bobcats Return Home after Five Games Away
Matchup: Bismarck Bobcats (9-7-1) vs Minnesota Wilderness (8-9-1)
Game: Saturday, November 12, 7:15pm
Venue: VFW Sports Center, Bismarck, N.D.
2015-16 Season Series: Series tied 2-2-0
All-Time: Series tied 7-7-2
Radio: SuperTalk 1270 AM, SuperTalk1270.com and the radioPup smartphone app, 6:45pm
Internet TV: http://NAHL.FASTHockey.com, 6:45pm
BISMARCK, ND – For the first time since October 22, the Bismarck Bobcats will be back at the VFW Sports Center Saturday when they take on the Minnesota Wilderness—the newest members of the Central Division—for a 7:15pm contest.
“We’ve played well in our own barn this year, and we know our fans will come out and back us 100 percent,” noted Bobcat defenseman Tanner Breidenbach. “We learned some tough lessons on the road over the past couple weeks, now we need to take what worked and make the adjustments to what didn’t because [Saturday] is a big game for us.”
With a 5-4 win at Minot on Thursday, the Cats halted a four-game road skid (0-3-1) before heading home.
One big area to be addressed in advance of Saturday for the Bobcats is their play in the second period, in which they have been outscored 8-1 since November 4.
“You look at the stat breakdowns and you see that we’ve been great in the first period, decent in the third and really struggled in the second,” explained Bobcats head coach and general manager Layne Sedevie, whose team saw a 3-0 lead after one turn into a slim 4-3 edge after two on Thursday. “The crazy part is that we’ve had the lead in a lot of our second periods, so it’s been a problem of intensity.
“What we want to see, I think, is our guys to play with the urgency of being behind by a goal or two even if they’ve got a big lead.”
Rookie forward Pavel Mikhasenok—originally drafted by the Bobcats in the 2016 NAHL Entry Draft but immediately traded to Minnesota for two subsequent draft picks—has been red hot for the Wilderness, netting goals in four straight games while also chipping in two assists.
With a helper on the power play Thursday, Bobcat winger Parker Mismash extended his active point streak to seven games, in which his contributed four goals and five assists. Mismash’s 22 points (9g, 13a) and Tobias Fladeby’s 21 (9g, 12a) stand as the top two point totals in the Central Division and are tied for third and fifth, respectively, league-wide.
Saturday’s game will be Military Date Night, where all active duty and veteran military members can buy $5 tickets and $5 tickets for one guest per service man or woman. There are 100 tickets available for Military Date Night; those interested can lock in their seats by emailing gobobcathockey@aol.com.
Non-military tickets are on sale 24 hours a day at BismarckBobcats.com; fans can charge by phone starting at 8:00am at 222-3300.
Saturday’s divisional tilt will be broadcast locally on the radio home of Bobcat Hockey, Super Talk 1270 AM, and worldwide on HockeyTV.com–the web television partner of the North American Hockey League–with pregame coverage starting at 6:45pm.
Season tickets are now on sale for the Bobcats’ landmark platinum anniversary campaign fans can get more information or reserve their seats for all of Season Twenty now by calling 222-3300.