The Tauros entered the final weekend of 2023 atop the central division on a four-game winning streak in firm control following the holiday break. After the weekend, which included a three-game duel with rival Bismarck, the Tauros find themselves in an even more comfortable position entering the new calendar year while claiming a league-best record.
A sweep over the Bobcats brought the Tauros’ overall win total to 24 as the men from the Magic City reached the halfway mark of the season. Additionally, the Tauros expanded their lead over the central’s second-place Bobcats to 12 points as the win streak hit 7 (8-2 in the last 10).
The Tauros set the tone of the series early on in game one via a Cayden Casey goal less than three minutes of action into the game. A swift redirected goal off his rebound propelled the Tauros to the early advantage which never evaporated.
Minot displayed their efficiency in the PK department during the first period, managing to kill all three of Bismarck’s shorthanded opportunities as the Tauros maintained the 1-0 lead entering the first intermission.
The Tauros scoring resumed early in the second period as Chad Muller found the back of the net on a backhanded rebound beating the netminder glove-side to extend the Tauros lead to two on Muller’s eighth goal of the year.
In what was proving to be a largely dull and pedestrian second frame, Casey broke through with his second goal of the night dangling a defender from his knees then subsequently firing a backhanded shot past the into the net to make the Tauro lead three.
Bismarck would eventually find their way past Tauro netminder Brady James in the final period of play via a Tamas Toth unassisted goal to cut into the Tauro three-goal lead.
That success however would be short-lived as Adam Mahler would be quick to answer less than five minutes later regaining the three-goal advantage to all but seal the game-one victory for Minot to open the three-game weekend series.
Chase Beacom would add another goal for the Bobcats with less than a minute remaining proving to be too little too late.
On Saturday night, Minot faced their first deficit in nearly a calendar month to begin the contest as Bismarck jumped out to an early 1-0 lead following a goal that involved a lengthy discussion for potential high-sticking.
The goal would inevitably stand as Trent Afinson was credited with the score via an Engel, and Likeness assist, giving Bismarck their first lead of the weekend.
In the waning moments of the first period, John Small would tie the game up on a redirect that would trickle past Bobcats netminder, Klayton Knapp, to even the score at one to conclude the first period.
Bismarck would once again pull ahead early in the second period as Tommy Cronin netted his sixth goal of the season as Landon Fandel threaded a pass to Cronin burying it in the back of the net to take the 2-1 advantage.
Minot would then respond in a flurry of goals spearheaded by Cayden Casey evening the score at two beating Knapp on his blocker side continuing the hot weekend out of the break. Less than a minute later O’Hanisain would find nylon with a slapshot fired off the faceoff in Bobcat territory to gain the first lead of the game for the Tauros.
The second-period goal tallied as O’Hanisain’s 16th of the season solidifying his first half of the season being the sole leader in goals scored for the Tauros now by a margin of seven goals.
The action would not end there, however, as Bismarck once again tied the score in the Saturday night affair with an early third-period score not a minute into the final frame of regulation. The Bobcat goal came by way of Patrick Johnson, via assists by Keanu Krenn, and Evan Hunter.
The equalizer goal would prove to be the only goal scored in the third period sending the game to overtime, and eventually into a shootout.
After falling behind in the early stages of the shootout, several key saves by Brady James set up the game-winning goal opportunity for Jack O’Hanisain. O’Hanisain buried the game-winning goal in the back of the net through the five-hole to end the gritty 60+ minute tussle.
Following the first two games the series shifted down to the state’s capital in Bismarck for a New Year’s Eve meeting between the two teams.
The first period in the series finale saw no scoring. With that being said, the Tauros controlled the pace & possession, outshooting the Bobcats 11-7, primarily playing in Bismarck territory, but nevertheless, no goal was netted for either team.
The scoring picked up midway through the second period when Pavol Funtek forced the puck through a scrum of players into the back of the net accounting for the first goal nearly a period and a half into the action. Funtek’s goal gave the Tauros the 1-0 lead entering the second intermission of the night.
It didn’t take long into the third period for the Tauros to add more as Weston Knox wired one from the front of the net to put the Tauros up by three. The unassisted goal was Knox’s second of the year.
Bismarck did not go down without a whimper though, as Patrick Johnson broke the scoreless effort for the Bobcats giving them a glimmer of life with just under seven minutes to play.
That glimmer would be soon defused as Nicholas Ketonen put the series sweep away with an empty netter to give the Tauros a 3-1 victory just a few hours before the clock struck midnight to close out 2023.
Next up the Minotauros head to St. Cloud to take on the third-place Norsemen. Then both teams will come back to Minot for a home season on January 12th and 13th. Tickets for both games are available in the Tauros Hockey Tauros Hockey Mobile App, through the “Tickets” tab atop this page, or by visiting the Tauros ticketing site.