It would be Grant Winkler for the Wings to start the scoring at the 5:18 mark getting assists from Sebastian Lillsund and Brady Estabrook. Then, just two minutes later, Ian Engel for the Bobcats would even the score. Just two minutes after that Jakub Kopecky for Bismarck would get his chance, and Bismarck would get their first lead of the game. But, Jack McDonough for the Wings would tie the game getting his second goal of the season getting assists from Ryan Flaherty and Grant Winkler. Then, before the period would be over, Leonid Bulgakov would score, getting help from Nick Comfort and Elvis Laskovs. The Wings would have the lead heading into the second period at 3-2. We pulled Grant Winkler for an on-ice interview giving him a chance to talk about his first goal of the season, and asking him about the week of preparation when having three games in four days and taking on the top team in the division. He responded by saying that the preparation is similar to any other week besides having a game on Wednesday, however, having that midweek game definitely helped to better prepare them for the weekend games that they were going to have.
During the second period, the only scoring that would happen would be for Bismark when Chase Reid would find the back of the net. This would lead to a tie game of 3-3 heading into the third period.
Although both teams had good scoring chances, it wouldn’t be until the 13:19 mark of the third when Bismarck’s Matthew Rafalski would score, giving them their second lead of the game. With two minutes left in the game, the Wings would pull their goalie in an attempt to tie the game, but Drew Roelofs would fire at the empty net and the game would end with a score of 5-3 in favor of the Bobcats.
Willum Braun was in net for the Wings, stopping 25 of 29 shots sent his way.
The Wings were able to outshoot the Bobcats 36 to 30 all game.
Three stars of the game were Jack McDonough (1 goal), Leonid Bulgakov (1 goal), and Grant Winkler (1 goal, 1 assist).
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ABERDEEN, SD (AberdeenWings.com) [SAT] The Aberdeen Wings secured the win against not only the top team in the Central Division, but the top team in the league!
There were plenty of good scoring chances for the Wings in the first, and the Wings would even have to kill off a penalty late in the period, but there would be no scoring to report in the first period.
To start the second period, it would be Bismarck’s Brendan Ruskowski that would get on the board first. But, after Bismarck would take a holding penalty, the Wings would go on the Power Play. Then, it would be Leonid Bulgakov who would score on the Power Play getting assists from Gavin Reed and Sebastian Lillsund. The score would be tied at one heading into the third period. At this point, the WIngs would be outshooting the Bobcats 32 to 17.
For a majority of the third period, the Wings were keeping the play in their offensive zone and ensuring that they were keeping up their scoring chances. At the 10:35 mark, Cole Saterdalen would score his first goal of the season for the Wings getting assists from Matthew Martin-Gaurdreault and Gavin Reed. After, Bismarck would try and take back control, but Cade Moxham would find a breakaway and score, getting help from Gavin Reed and Jack McDonough. Then, with two minutes left in the game, the Bobcats would pull their goaltender in an attempt to tie the game, but the Wings would find themselves in the offensive zone of the ice again. Gustas Zemaitis would find the empty net getting assists from Brady Estabrook and Cole Saterdalen. The game would end securing the win for the Wings with a score of 4-1.
Willum Braun was in net for the Wings, stopping 29 of 30! An incredible effort for Braun all weekend.
The three stars of the game were Cole Saterdalen (1 goal, 1 assist), Leonid Bulgakov (1 goal), and Willum Braun (29 of 30 saves).
We had a chance to catch up with Assistant Coach Eric Hirschhaut to get his thoughts on the team’s overall performance over the past few games, especially after having to play 3 games in 4 days, and having to acclimate to injury in a short amount of time. Here is what he had to say:
“We are very proud of this group, especially after these past 5 games. Taking 3 out of 4 points in St. Cloud and taking 4 out of 6 points this week against Watertown and Bismarck in a hard 3 games in 4 days is not easy. We’ve had players up and down our lineup step up which has been huge. Willum Braun has been outstanding, and has given us a chance to win every game he’s played in the last few weeks. This is a great confidence boost for the team which we need to play with for these next three weeks leading into Christmas Break.”
Next, the Wings head to Mason City to take on the North Iowa Bulls before coming back to the Odde to take on the St. Cloud Norsemen on home ice!