Aberdeen, SD – The Minotauros head into Aberdeen with a two point lead on Austin for first place in the division. The Wings meanwhile sit just three points behind the Tauros for the battle atop the Central Division. The Tauros are 2-1-1 against the Wings so far on the season.
The Tauros have outscored the Wings 10-9 over the first four games of the season series. Eight different Tauros have scored against the Wings with Chase Springman and Jared Brandt leading the way with two goals each. For the Wings Michael Soucier has scored three goals against the Tauros with Tanner Okeson and Bjorn Sigurdarson each having a pair as well. The Tauros’ offense comes in ranked sixth overall with 3.22 goals per game while Aberdeen sits 24th on 2.48.
As for keeping the puck out of the net, both teams have been strong. The Tauros have given most of the work to Atte Tolvanen (9-7-2, 2.25 GAA, .915 SV%), though Tanner Holmes has been strong in relief (4-0-1, 1.97, .907). Overall the Tauros rank fifth in goals against per game at 2.43. For Aberdeen Andrew Shortridge (8-5-0, 2.13, .922) and Chad Catt (5-5-0, 2.86, .888) have split time and combine to have the Wings sitting seventh in the league at 2.52 goals against per game.
Tonight’s game marks the first of three in a row in South Dakota for the Tauros, followed by games in Brookings on Friday and then Thursday December 4th. The Tauros will return home to the Maysa December 6th for a showdown with the Bismarck Bobcats. All three games in South Dakota can be seen on fasthockey.com.