By: Ken Oda, minotauroshockey.com
Bismarck, ND – The Minotauros closed out 2014 with another strong road game picking up their eleventh consecutive road win topping the Bismarck Bobcats 4-1. The Tauros struck early opening the scoring just 1:15 into the game and did not look back. The dominating effort by the Tauros combined with the Austin Bruins’ loss moved the Tauros three points ahead of the rest of the division.
Nick Monfils opened the scoring just over a minute in when he beat Alex Bitsakis on a shot off a Colton Kramer take away. Tauro captain Jon Lizotte doubled the lead after Monfils found him alone in the slot late in the opening frame. The Tauros top line struck early in the second when Blake Lizotte walked out of the left wing corner and beat Bitsakis to the far post to make it 3-0 Tauros.
Entering the third period it appeared the only question remaining was whether or not Atte Tolvanen would hold onto the shutout. Unfortunately for Tolvanen and the Tauros the Bobcats were finally able to score when Alex Strand got behind the defense and scored on the Cats’ 31st shot. The goal pulled Bismarck within two and seemed to give them a spark. However, with the Tauros on a late power play James Mathias tipped home a nice feed from Casey Johnson to push the lead to three goals once again. Tolvanen did not allow another goal making 33 saves in the Tauros 4-1 win.
The Tauros return to the Maysa Arena on Friday and Saturday nights at 7:35 for a pair of games with the Aberdeen Wings. The Wings are 2-3-0 over their last five games and the Tauros are 3-1-1 against them on the year. Tickets are available now by clicking on the “tickets” tab atop this page.