Weekend Recap November 7-8
NAHL Minot Minotauros

Weekend Recap November 7-8

Published on November 9, 2025 under North American Hockey League (NAHL)
Minot Minotauros News Release


Amid a Central Division race that is growing tighter by the week, the Tauros and Norsemen squared off for the second straight series as Minot looked to build on last weekend's sweep in St. Cloud.

Entering the weekend, the Tauros were looking to leapfrog the Norsemen in the standings as the previous weekend's sweep in St. Cloud closed the gap to a mere two points between the two teams.

The action picked up early on Friday night as Tauros' forward Mario Fate was able to tuck home a second-chance effort in front of the Norsemen net to put Minot ahead just 25 seconds into the action.

Assisting on the opening goal for Fate was Braeden Jockims and Artem Prima, as they picked up their second and seventh assists on the season, respectively. The goal for Fate marked his fourth of the year.

Despite the quick start, Fate's goal would be the only goal of the period as the 1-0 Tauros' lead would hold into the first intermission.

After twenty minutes of play on Friday night, Minot held the shots on goal advantage 14-11.

A quick cross-checking penalty in the second period would provide St. Cloud with an extra-man advantage less than two minutes into the middle frame.

The Norsemen would take advantage as Gabriel Bugeaud would find the back of the net, beating Tauros' netminder Devin Rustlie blocker-side to pull the game even at aces.

Nearly seven minutes later, it was the Tauros answering to restore the lead. It was Chase Pavlesich in his first game as a Tauro lighting the lamp, feeding a backhanded shot into the cage from close quarters to make it 2-1.

The Tauros would once again take a lead into the dressing room as the second period horn would sound with Minot leading by one.

Shots through two periods of play favored St. Cloud, 27-20.

Minot would pick back up right where they left off as Dominic Pajkic would find nylon on a power play with 16:53 remaining in regulation to extend the Tauros' lead to 3-1. Pajkic's goal would mark his second of the season, with assists from Prima and Fate.

Just about halfway through the third period, it was Brady Zugec adding another for the men from the Magic City as he was able to redirect a shot from Solominsky into the net to extend the Tauros lead to 4-1.

With 10:28 remaining in regulation, chaos would ensue as Ori and Shaw would drop the mitts, leading to a slew of penalties both ways.

The Norsemen would be the ones seizing momentum following the scrum as William Esterbrooks would net one on the power play to cut the Minot lead in half.

Esterbrooks' goal would be his fifth on the season and 18th point of the year as the Tauros' lead was cut down to just two goals.

Minutes later, it was newly acquired forward Samuel Misak navigating through traffic and burying one five-hole into the back of the net to bring the Norsemen back within a goal with 7:40 left to play in regulation.

The Tauros defense would hang on, keeping the Norsemen scoreless through the final minutes of play to seal a 4-3 victory for Minot. The win would mark the Tauros' third straight and bring Minot even with the Norsemen in the standings, tied at 15 points.

Getting the win in net was Devin Rustlie for his fourth of the season. Rustlie saved 30 of 33 shots faced to improve his record to 4-2-2 on the year.

Saturday night provided the Tauros an opportunity to take sole possession of fifth place in the division and get back to the .500 mark going into the off-week next weekend.

It was Lucca Ori getting the party started in the series finale as he fired one past Norsemen goaltender Wesley Jefferson-Swint II glove-side through traffic on the extra-man advantage to give the Tauros a first-period lead with 7:43 remaining in the opening stanza.

Prior to the period's end, St. Cloud responded courtesy of a Tanner Hunt goal that snuck by Brian Cooke to pull the game even at 1-1. The goal would mark Hunt's fifth of the season to tie the contest up entering the first intermission.

St. Cloud would carry that momentum into the second frame as Tyler Geyer would thread one to Bugeaud to the open side of the net for a tap-in goal for Bugeaud's second of the weekend, giving the Norsemen their first lead of the season against the Tauros.

It wasn't until the waning moments of the second period when the Tauros would find nylon again.

It was Zugec finding his eighth goal of the season and fifth against the Norsemen as he dragged one past the St. Cloud defense and fired it into the left side of the net to tie the game heading into the second intermission.

At the break, the Tauros held a 21-17 edge in shots.

A tightly contested first two periods would give way to a dramatic finish down the stretch in the Saturday night affair.

The third-period scoring would start just 1:10 into the frame as Brady Zugec would snag his second of the night and ninth of the season, putting one past Jefferson-Swint II to take back the lead for Minot.

Just over three minutes later, it was Jakub Habla adding on for the Tauros on his fourth of the year with assists from Ty James and Dane Ramirez to make it a 4-2 game with 15:03 remaining in regulation.

Despite a swift momentum shift, St. Cloud wouldn't go down easily.

Wyatt Farrell would slice the Tauros' lead in half as he swept a loose puck home from in front of the net to get the Norsemen back within striking distance with over 13 minutes still left to play.

Less than a minute later, Minot would have a response.

This time, it was Briggs Knott going backside, finding the open half of the net for his first of the season in Minot to restore the two-goal lead. Assisting on the goal was Habla and Cap Priem, as Habla would notch his second point of the night.

St. Cloud would add one by way of Avery Shaw, but it would prove to be too little too late as the Tauros would hang on for the 5-4 win in the Magic City, marking their fourth straight win in a row.

The win completed a second straight weekend sweep over the Norsemen for the Tauros as they now sit in sole possession of fifth place in the Central Division.

The Tauros will head into the off-week with a 7-7-3 record, with a series against the third-place Austin Bruins awaiting them on the other side.

That series will take place on November 21st and 22nd on the Pepsi Rink at Maysa Arena. Tickets for those games and all Tauros' home games can be purchased on the Tauros' online ticketing site.

For those who cannot make it, as always, all Tauros' games are broadcast live on NATV along with a free live audio broadcast on the Tauros' YouTube, Facebook, and Mixlr pages.

To stay up to date with the Tauros over the off-week, make sure to tune into Tauros All Access Monday-Thursday at 3 PM with Preslie Davis and Olivia Tosto on YouTube and Facebook.

Check out the Minot Minotauros Statistics

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North American Hockey League Stories from November 9, 2025


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