NAHL Bismarck Bobcats

Bobcats Rally Past Ironmen for Opening Day Win

Published on September 12, 2012 under North American Hockey League (NAHL)
Bismarck Bobcats News Release


BLAINE, MN - A second-period goal by the Jamestown Ironmen woke up the Bismarck Bobcats, who rallied for three straight scores and a 3-1 win over the Ironmen on opening day at the Combat Hockey NAHL Showcase at the Schwan Super Rink.

Neither team was able to break through the goaltending of Bryan Nies for the Bobcats and Tim Shaughnessy of the Ironmen in the first period, as the two combined for 12 saves to keep their sheets clean through 20 minutes.

Nies made the save of the game mid-way through the first, ranging from right to left to deny a 2-on-1 opportunity by Ross Pavek.

"Bryan played well and did exactly what you want your goalie to do in a close game: keep you in it and give the team a chance to win," lauded Bobcats head coach and general manager Layne Sedevie. "He made a couple big saves in the first when we could've gone down early."

It was the Ironmen, however, who struck first when forward Elliot Tisdale ripped a centering pass from Matthew Crockett over Nies' blocker just 3:16 into the second to post Jamestown to a 1-0 lead.

Tisdale's marker seemed to shake the Bobcats out of the doldrums of a morning start, however, as 1:40 after the Ironmen took the lead, Bobcat captain Adam Knochenmus evened the score when he pulled the puck out of a battle in front of the Jamestown net and fired it home between Shaughnessy's legs.

Five minutes later, the Bobcat power play notched its first tally of the 2012-13 season when Shane Omdahl found a soft spot in the Ironmen penalty kill, turning and beaming a wrist shot over Shaughnessy's glove from six feet out to post the Cats to a 2-1 lead.

"[Dan] Kovar made a nice play to draw in their "˜D' to the far post and then get it over to me," noted Omdahl, who had two preseason goals for the Cats, as well, "I saw a lane to walk out from the corner and I ended up with a lot of space to get the shot off."

Patrick Moore put an exclamation point on the Bobcats' second-period surge, crushing a low one-timer from Kevin Becker that Shaughnessy could not recover to stop, pushing the designated visitors out to a 3-1 lead with 4:20 left in the second.

Nies and Shaughnessy held firm again in the third period, making nine and seven saves, respectively, as the two sides' defenses clamped down in the final frame.

Tempers flared with just under seven minutes to go, as a scrap between Kovar and Tisdale led to 14 combined penalty minutes, but both teams maintained their composure to battle until the clock read 0:00 and the Cats secured their first win of 2012-13.

In net, Nies stopped 20 Jamestown shots on his way to his first win at the junior level after piling 53 career victories with Red River High School in Grand Forks. Shaughnessy took the loss despite 25 saves.

The Bobcats will get back at it Thursday at 1:45 PM with a pool-play rematch from the 2012 Robertson Cup Tournament against the Port Huron Fighting Falcons.

Thursday's contest 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 http://nahl.fasthockey.com. Pregame coverage gets under way at 1:15.

Showcase action continues Friday at 1:30 PM, the Bobcats take on the Fairbanks Ice Dogs for the first time since shutting them out 3-0 in the 2010 Robertson Cup Finals. The Bobcats will wrap up the Showcase with a 3:30 PM showdown against the South Division powerhouse Topeka Roadrunners.

Season tickets for the 2012-13 season are now on sale-and going fast! Call the Bobcat Hockey office today at (701) 222-3300 to reserve your seats for another great season of Championship Entertainment.

Check out the Bismarck Bobcats Statistics

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North American Hockey League Stories from September 12, 2012


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