by: Sean Williams, gotauros.com
Minot, N.D. – Last weekend was a cause for celebration in multiple ways for the Minotauros. Not only did the Tauros sweep the Aberdeen Wings, captain Trevor Stachowiak also set a franchise record for most games played as he took the ice for the 173rd time on Saturday. This weekend, the Tauros will look to continue their surge forward when they host the Austin Bruins at 7:35 p.m. on Friday and Saturday on the Pepsi Rink at the Maysa Arena.
The sweep of Aberdeen sets the scene for yet another big weekend between the Tauros and Bruins, as the pair currently occupy the top two spots in the Central Division standings. Heading into the matchup with 25 points and a 12-3-1 record is Austin, while Minot is not far behind with 23 points and an 11-3-1 record. The last time these two teams met, not much separation was created as both games were decided by two goals or less in a series split.
Both teams have been no stranger to success, as they enter the weekend with an identical 7-2-1 record over their last 10 games. During that stretch, the Tauros have swept North Iowa, St. Cloud, and Aberdeen, and adding another divisional foe like the Bruins to that list would be great for the team in the long run, but it is a tall task at hand.
Over their last 10 games, the Bruins have swept St. Cloud and Bismarck, and are averaging 2.4 goals per game while allowing just 1.8 goals per game. Bruins’ goaltender Trent Wiemken has been a major part of their success, allowing one goal or less in four of their last five games, including two shutouts against Bismarck and Minot. Getting a slight edge over the Bruins recent run are the Tauros, who enter the weekend averaging 2.6 goals per game and allowing a minuscule 1.6 goals per game across their last 10 contests.
A balanced attack with two goals by Nicholas Sewecke, as well as tallies from John Emmons and Niklas Ketonen helped propel the Minotauros to a 4-3 victory in their split with the Bruins a few weeks ago. The team will need to take the same approach if they hope to have similar or even better success this time around.