By Sean Williams, www.minotauroshockey.com
Bismarck, N.D. – A dominant showing in the first two games of the Central Division Finals has the Minot Minotauros as the only undefeated team left in the NAHL since the start of the postseason, as the Tauros improved their postseason record to 5-0-0 with a 5-2 win on Friday and a 6-2 win on Saturday over the Bismarck Bobcats. With it being a best-of-five series, the Tauros are now just one win away from winning the Central Cup and heading to Blaine, Minn. for the Robertson Cup Championship semifinal round.
Not only do the Tauros have the best record among teams left in the playoffs, they also lead all teams in goals scored with 30 and have allowed the least amount of goals with just seven thus far. Their opponent has scored 25 goals and allowed 21 in seven games played compared to the five games the Tauros have played. It’s been a remarkable start to the playoffs for the Tauros, as they aim to get one more win over their in-state rival and inch themselves closer to the ultimate prize.
Helping Minot get off to a great start over the weekend was Jack O’Hanisain and John Small, who scored two goals each on Friday, and John Emmons who added a goal as well. Brady James was excellent in net once again, saving 24-of-25 shots he faced. On Saturday, a hat trick by Nicholas Sewecke provided a huge boost to the team, while Cayden Casey added two goals and Niklas Ketonen scored one goal as well. Lukas Swedin was in net for the Tauros, where he echoed the play similar to his teammate, stopping 23-of-25 shots he saw.
Through five postseason games, Sewecke is leading the way for Minot with 10 points on six goals and four assists. Behind him and averaging a point per game or better thus far is O’Hanisain (three goals, four assists) and Ketonen (four goals, three assists) with seven points apiece; Casey (three goals, three assists); Weston Knox (six assists); Ian Spencer (three goals, three assists) and Joel Lehtinen (two goals, four assists) with six points each; and Colby Woogk (five assists) and Will Dawson (five assists) with five points each.
For Bismarck, Tommy Cronin’s eight points on four goals and four assists leads the team, followed by Evan Hunter (one goal, five assists) and Patrick Johnson (one goal, five assists) with six points each; and Jake Peterson (five assist); Matthew Rafalski (two goals, three assist) and Tamas Toth (three goals, two assist) with five points each.
With the Tauros needing just one more win to advance to the Robertson Cup Championship semifinals, they are looking to make it that far for the first time since the 2017-18 season when they made a run all the way to the title game. First, however, they need to handle their business against the Bobcats and focus on getting one more win. This weekend, the pair will play south of town at VFW Sports Complex with puck drop scheduled for 7:15 p.m. on Friday and Saturday (if necessary). If the Bobcats manage to win both and force a game five, they will come back to the Pepsi Rink on Monday, May 13 for a 7:05 p.m. puck drop.