Monday Roundup: Bobcats Help Team Central Dominate on Day One, Faragher Gets Big First
Last Week:
Friday, February 20: Blizzard 4, Bobcats 3
Saturday, February 21: Wings 3, Bobcats 2 (SO)
This Week:
Friday, February 27: Bobcats vs. Wilderness, VFW Sports Center, 7:15pm
Saturday, February 28: Bobcats vs. Wilderness, VFW Sports Center, 7:15pm
Dominant Start
ANN ARBOR, MI – Bismarck Bobcats Jared Spooner and Tanner Salsberry each picked up points as Team Central cruised to a 4-1 tournament opening win over Team North Monday at the Ann Arbor Ice Cube.
Salsberry had the secondary assist on Central’s first goal of the day, courtesy of Minot’s Johnny Walker.
In the second, Spooner picked up a helper when Rio Grande Valley’s Cam Bleck struck to push the lead to 3-0.
The Cats’ other Central representative, Cullen Willox, led all skaters with six shots on goal. At the half-way point of the second, Willox had outshot the entire North side by a count of five to three.
Winger Jared Turcotte did not factor into the scoring and finished with an even plus/minus rating for the NAHL Selects team in a 4-1 loss to Team Midwest in the day’s second game.
Team Central will wrap the all-star week Tuesday with a 3:00pm date with Team South, while the NAHL Selects will clash at 6:00pm with the U.S. National Team Development Program U17 squad.
Honored to be Nominated
Despite a tough weekend on the road, Willox and Alex Bitsakis and still secured honorable mention for the NAHL’s Central Division Star of the Week award Monday.
One week after earning the division’s top weekly honor, Bitsakis made 55 saves in two nights–including a number of highlight-reel stops–to keep the Cats within striking distance on both Friday and Saturday.
Willox scored a goal Friday and added an assist on the overtime-forcing tally Saturday, giving the veteran winger six points (5g, 1a) in his last six games.
Going Big
Former Bobcat goalie Ryan Faragher picked up a major career milestone Sunday, making 27 saves to pick up his first AHL win, pacing the Norfolk Admirals to a 3-2 win over the Bridgeport Sound Tigers Sunday. The St. Cloud State alum also appeared in Friday’s 5-2 loss to Worcester, stopping six of seven shots but not factoring into the decision. In all, he put together 33 saves on 36 shots.
At the college level, alum Bob Kinne (2012-13) became the third former Bobcat to net MIAC Player of the Week honors in the last four weeks, unloading six points (3g, 3a)–including a hat trick Saturday–for St. Mary’s in a weekend sweep of Hamline to give the Cardinals the second seed in this week’s MIAC Tournament.
2010-12 forward Frankie DeAugustine also jammed the scoresheet for UMass-Boston, contributing two goals and and three assists to help the Beacons to a dominating 11-1 victory over Skidmore to open the ECAC East Tournament.
Blake Schammel also had a huge weekend, tallying a pair of goals and adding two helpers for Gustavus Adolphus in MIAC action.
Dominic Panetta, a key cog in the Cats’ 2010 Robertson Cup run, scored twice for Ferris State in a two-game brooming of Alabama-Huntsville in WCHA play.
Adam Knochenmus and Patrick Moore, members of the 2011-12 and 2012-13 Bobcat squads, each had a goal and two assists to pace Wisconsin-Eau Claire to a two-win weekend that lifted the Blugolds to a #2 seed in the upcoming WIAC Tournament.
Other former Bobcats to contribute collegiate points included: Corbin Chapman (Augsburg, 1g, 2a); Joe Giordano (Connecticut College, 2g); Stanislav Dzakhov (Niagara, 1g, 1a); Charlie Mosey (Dartmouth, 2a); Danny Ray (UW-Stout, 2a); George Malliaras (St. Norbert, 2a); Don Olivieri (Nazareth, 1g); Nate Flynn (St John’s, 1g); Sam Rendle (Bemidji State, 1a); Nate Repensky (Yale, 1a); John Furgele (New Hampshire, 1a); Matt Pohlkamp (Bowling Green, 1a); Mike Dockry (St. Thomas, 1a); Mike Fazio (UW-River Falls, 1a); Buster Hebda (Concordia WI, 1a).
Coming Up
The Bobcats will open a seven-game home stand with Friday and Saturday contests against the Midwest Division-leading Minnesota Wilderness.
Over the course of both nights, the Bobcats will be auctioning off their game-worn black away jerseys from the 2014-15 season.
Tickets are on sale right now for both games: fans can buy and print tickets online 24 hours a day at BismarckBobcats.com or charge by phone at 222-3300.
Live coverage of Friday’s weekend opener will begin at 6:45pm locally on SuperTalk 1270, KLXX-AM, the radio home of Bobcat Hockey, and worldwide online at NAHL.FASTHockey.com, the official web television partner of the North American Hockey League.
Though the 2014-15 season is entering its home stretch, pro-rated season tickets are still available for the last run of home games; fans who want to lock in their seats for the remainder of the campaign should call the Bobcat office at 222-3300 today!