Bobcats Foiled by Wenatchee Charge
September 29, 2012 - North American Hockey League (NAHL)
Bismarck Bobcats News Release
BISMARCK, ND - The Bismarck Bobcats' special teams gave up three unanswered goals as the Cats fell 3-1 to the Wenatchee Wild Friday at the VFW Sports Center, halting their home win streak at two games.
Leading 1-0 after the first period, the Bobcats' penalty kill had trouble clearing their zone on back-to-back penalty kills, leading to a Chris Kerr mid-air tap-in of a Jacob Barber rebound, tying the game at one 2:03 into the second.
Mid-way through the third, the Bobcats were awarded their third power play of the night when Wild forward Trace Redmond was called for interference. On the ensuing power play, a miscommunication at the Bobcat blue line led to a 3-on-1 rush for the Wild that Kerr was able to cash in on a centering feed from Lance Carney to give Wenatchee their first lead of the night at 2-1.
Things went from bad to worse 17 seconds later when a neutral zone turnover became a breakaway for league-leading scorer Jono Davis. Davis went five-hole on Bobcat goalie Bryan Nies to boost the Wild to a 3-1 edge.
"We found a lot of ways to give them points [Friday]," conceded Bobcats head coach and general manager Layne Sedevie, "making mental mistakes in big spots. We played great for one period then stopped working hard and playing smart. You can't do that against a team as good as Wenatchee.
"Between this game and Port Huron [4-3 loss on September 13], that's two games giving up two shorthanded goals. That's two games we could've won, four points left on the table."
The Bobcats endeavored to get back into the game, but were repeatedly repelled by Wild goalie Robert Nichols and, when Nichols couldn't make the save, his posts helped him out; Dan Kovar rattled the left post in the late stages of the game on a sustained Bobcat forecheck.
Wenatchee's trapping forecheck stymied the Bobcats over the final minute-plus and made the final margin of 3-1 stand up, giving the visitors a league-best seventh straight win and keeping the West-leading Wild undefeated on the year.
It was the Bobcats, though, who took the lead in the first period on the forecheck as Joe Giordano launched a 45-foot shot from the left boards that Nichols never saw thanks to a Shane Omdahl screen with 11:21 to go in the opening frame.
Through 20 minutes of hockey the Bobcats outshot the Wild 11-2 but could not sustain their furious start, thanks primarily to four penalties in the first 22 minutes of play interrupting the early momentum.
"We've got to stay out of the box," assessed Sedevie, whose team ended up having seven penalties to kill on the night. "Our discipline got away from us, there, and it ended up wasting a great start for us."
The Bobcats will try to bounce back Saturday with the second of their two-game set with the Wild scheduled for a 7:15 PM puck drop.
Saturday's series finale will be broadcast locally on the radio home of Bobcat Hockey, Super Talk 1270, KLXX-AM, and worldwide on the official internet television partner of the NAHL, FASTHockey, at b4fc0f&id277fcf37de&e43c657e6ea. Pregame coverage gets under way at 6:45.
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North American Hockey League Stories from September 29, 2012
- Gimme Five: Texas knocks off Wildcats, moves to 5-0-0 - Texas Tornado
- Jacks Tumble in Amarillo, 5-1 - Odessa Jackalopes
- Wild Claw Back to Win, 3-2 - Wenatchee Wild
- Corpus Christi Edged by Topeka 3-1 - Corpus Christi IceRays
- Bruins Win Home Opener - Austin Bruins
- Kalamzoo loses first end of home and home - Kalamazoo Jr. K-Wings
- Bulls 2012-2013 Home Opener Faces off Tonight vs Odessa - Amarillo Bulls
- Bobcats Foiled by Wenatchee Charge - Bismarck Bobcats
- Special teams pivotal in Wenatchee's 7th straight win - Wenatchee Wild
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