Cats and Candy

Oct 18, 2018

Storyline

The Minotauros and Bobcats  renew the Subway North Dakota Cup rivalry with another home-and-home series starting in Bismarck on Friday and moving to Minot on Saturday.  The Bobcats have not played a game since the rivals last met in the Tauros home opener on October 6th.  The Tauros come in off of a weekend road split with Aberdeen.

Tauros

The Tauros remain tied for the first place in the Central Division and one of the best statistical teams in the league.  The Tauros have the second ranked offense and the second ranked defense in the league scoring 4.40 goals per game and allowing just an even 2.00 goals against per game, their +24 goal differential is the best in the league by five goals.  The Tauros special teams have been strong as well with a fifth ranked power play at 24.4% and second ranked kill at 89.1%.  By any measure the Tauros have been among the best in the league through their first 10 games of the season.

The Tauros have had individual success as well.  Keenan Lund is second in the league in scoring with 15 points on five goals and 10 assists.  Lund’s 10 assists are best in the league as is his +11 rating.  The Tauros also have the league’s top goal scorer in  Taylor Lantz who has seven goals.  Fritz Belisle is tops in the NAHL with three game-winning goals.  Lincoln Erne and Lincoln Strom are tied for second in the league among defensemen with a +7 rating, and Erne’s nine points (3g 6a) are good for fifth among blue-liners.  The Tauros goaltending duo of Ben Garrity and Nicholas Grabko are both dominating as well.  Garrity is second in the league with a .944 SV% and third with a 1.76 GAA.  Grabko’s .934 SV% is good for fourth in the league.

Bobcats

The Bobcats come into the weekend off of a 13 day break since their last game, a 5-2 loss to the Tauros.  Their offense ranks fifth overall with 3.25 goals through their first eight games and their 2.63 goals against per game is eighth in the NAHL.  Unlike the Tauros who have scored by firing a lot of shots on goal (35.50 for fifth in the league) the Cats are capitalizing on few opportunities with a 14th ranked 31.75 shots per game.

Adam Stacho leads the Cats with 11 points on three goals and eight assists.  Alex Pollock (3g 6a) and Ryan Taylor (2g 6a) round out the Cats with multiple games played averaging at least a point per game.  In goal John Roberts has started every game of the season for Bismarck posting a 16th ranked .923 SV% though his 2.61 GAA is 21st in the league.

Watch, Listen, Tickets, and Promotions

Friday’s game in Bismarck will be on AM 1390 KRRZ, HockeyTV.com, and the “Listen Live” tab atop this page.  The Bismarck Bobcats have replaced and tested their HockeyTV equipement and it will be working for Friday’s game.  Saturday’s game will be on HockeyTV.com and the “Listen Live” tab atop this page.

Tickets for Friday’s game in Bismarck can be purchased through the Bobcats website bismarckbobcats.com or by clicking here.  Tickets for Saturday’s game in Minot can be purchased here, or by clicking on the “Tickets” tab atop this page.

Prior to Saturday’s game the Minotauros Booster Club will be hosting the annual Trunk-or-Treat Tailgate Party.  The party is open to all fans and the Minotauros are donating 100 pairs of tickets to fans who attend.  Once the game begins the Halloween fun continues with the OK Automotive Costume Contest on the ice during the first intermission with over $500 in prizes!