Bobcats Welcome Magicians for the First Time
Matchup: Bismarck Bobcats (4-5-0, 5th Central) vs Minnesota Magicians (3-7-1, 6th Central)
Games: Friday, October 23, 7:15pm; Saturday, October 24, 7:15pm
Place: VFW Sports Center, Bismarck, N.D.
Last Year: Magicians won regular season 1-0-0
All-Time: Magicians lead Bobcats 1-0-0
Radio: SuperTalk 1270 AM, SuperTalk1270.com and the radioPup smartphone app, 6:45pm, both nights
Internet TV: http://NAHL.FASTHockey.com, 6:45pm, both nights
BISMARCK, ND – For the first time in 20 days, the Bismarck Bobcats return to the friendly confines of the VFW Sports Center as they host the newest member of the Central Division, the Minnesota Magicians, for the first time ever.
In the changing landscape of the NAHL in 2015 triggered by the league’s shift toward the east coast, the Magicians—a league member since 2013—shifted from the Midwest Division into the hyper-competitive Central.
A playoff entry in 2014-15, the Magicians won their only meeting with the Bobcats last season by a count of 4-2 at the NAHL Showcase.
The two sides enter the weekend series in the capital region following starkly different results the week prior: the Bobcats snapped a five-game losing streak with convincing 5-2 wins at Aberdeen and Brookings; Minnesota faltered in three straight against Brookings and their in-state rivals the Wilderness.
Halting their longest slide since early 2014 taught the Cats some important lessons.
“When we weren’t winning, we weren’t the little things we had to do to score goals,” assessed Bobcats head coach and general manager Layne Sedevie. “You look at last weekend: eight of our 10 goals were scored by guys going to the net and putting in loose pucks and rebounds. So the message all week has been to go to the net, pay the price to get to the tough areas and finish off our scoring chances.”
Their 10 goals in just the two contests against Aberdeen and Brookings eclipsed the nine goals they managed amid the five-game skid.
Minnesota carries a balanced attack into their first visit to Bismarck/Mandan, with eight players with four or more points at this early juncture in the season; second-year forward Connor Bucsis leads the Magicians with six points on two goals and four assists, while Michigan Tech commit Travis Brown has chipped in four goals and an assist.
Tickets are now on sale for the Cats’ first divisional go-round with the Magicians: fans can buy & print tickets online 24 hours a day at BismarckBobcats.com or Monday-Friday during normal business hours at 222-3300.
Friday’s interstate clash will be broadcast live on locally SuperTalk 1270 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—with pregame coverage starting at 6:45pm.
Season tickets are now on sale for the 2015-16 campaign; if you want to beat the rush of 40,000 fans for this season, now is the time! Call 222-3300 today to reserve your seats.