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NAHL Austin Bruins

Comeback Comes up Short in Game 1

April 24, 2015 - North American Hockey League (NAHL)
Austin Bruins News Release


This is familiar territory for the Austin Bruins. Similar to last year, the Bruins find themselves down 1-0 in a best-of-five playoff series against the Minot Minotauros after a 3-2 loss Friday at Riverside Arena in Austin in Game 1 of the Central Division Finals.

After the teams exchanged early scoring chances, Minot struck first late in the opening period when Nate Pionk (Hermantown, MN) found John Snodgrass (Eagan, MN) crashing the net, and Snodgrass slid the puck past an out-stretched Jake Kielly (Eden Prairie, MN). Kielly stopped six of seven Tauros shots, including a flurry late. Minot goalie Atte Tolvanen (Vihti, Finland) finished the period with 11 saves in keeping the Bruins off the board.

The Tauros buried a quick goal in the second period on a 2-on-1 rush, when James Mathias (Ontario, CA) tapped in a pass from Jacob Howie (Grand Blanc, MI) to give Minot a 2-0 lead. Snodgrass made it 3-0, when Pionk wrapped around the Bruins net and fed a pass back through the crease for the tap-in.

Austin capitalized on its first power-play later in the frame to get on the scoreboard. A Minot clearing attempt ricocheted off the stanchion on the glass above the half-wall and bounced back into the slot where Derek Olmschenk (Lino Lakes, MN) rifled a shot by Tolvanen. The Tauros carried the 3-1 lead into the final period.

With the teams skating 4-on-4, Josh Wilkins (Cary, NC) carried the puck into Minot s zone on a 2-on-1 and fired a wrist shot past Tolvanen on the short side to get the Bruins to within one just 51 seconds into the third stanza. Austin put the heat on with a strong comeback effort the rest of the way, but the Tauros hung on for dear life to preserve the win, stealing home ice advantage away in the series.

Game 2 of the series is Saturday at Riverside Arena at 7:05pm. The game will be streamed live on fasthockey.com and aired on 1480AM KAUS in Austin.

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