Bruins find their fire too late in a loss to Minot
Published 10:25 pm Friday, October 27, 2023
The Bruins’ Ashton Bynum fends of Minot’s Ian Spencer. Herald File Photo
The Bruins’ Austin Salani tracks down the puck against the boards during the second period Friday night in Riverside Arena. Eric Johnson/photodesk@austindailyherald.com
The Bruin’s Parker Anderson lines up a shot in the second period against Minot Friday night in Riverside Arena. Eric Johnson/photodesk@austindailyherald.com
The Bruins’ Dylan Cook look sback for the puck against Minot’s Adam Mahler during the first period Friday night in Riverside Arena. Eric Johnson/photodesk@austindailyherald.com
The Bruins’ Isaak Brassard battles with Minot’s Ty James during the first inning Friday night in Riverside Arena. Eric Johnson/photodesk@austindailyherald.com
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The Austin Bruins couldn’t find the spark they needed to compete until it was too late when they lost 4-3 to the Minot Minotauros in Riverside Arena Friday.
The Bruins scored two goals in the final minute and half of the game when they pulled their goalie, but it wasn’t enough as they were in a three-goal hole before the spurt.
“Getting a few at the end is always a little confidence booster and at the end of the day, that doesn’t really matter unless we win the game,” said Bruins forward Austin Salani, who scored his sixth goal of the season in the late flurry. “(Minot) started off fairly solid, but I think it was more us having a few brain farts and making stupid mistakes. We’ve just got to come out and be better.”
Minot (9-2-1 overall) out-shot Austin 10-2 in the first period as it jumped out to a 2-0 lead and that advantage was extended to 3-0 after two periods.
“We just weren’t ready to play. As a coach when you’ve been doing this for a long time, you start to realize there are some nights where you just don’t have it,” Austin head coach Steve Howard said. “We were not on our game and a lot of our better guys were pretty bad and it only got worse. We were going uphill the whole time and playing five minutes out of 60 doesn’t get you the win.”
With a veteran squad, Howard is hoping his team can push to be more consistent in the future.
“I certainly don’t expect them to have their best all 60 games, but it’s time to clean up the inconsistency,” Howard said. “To lose this one will either be a really good thing or a really bad thing. We’ll see how the guys respond.”
Trent Wiemken had 26 saves for Austin (9-3-1 overall).
SCORING SUMMARY
Minot 2 1 1 – 4
Austin 0 1 2 – 3
First period
(M) Nicholas Sewecke (Will Dawson) 8:54
(M) John Emmons (Trevor Stachowiak, Adam Mahler) 14:25
Second period
(M) Niklas Ketonen (Joel Lehtinen, Pavol Funtek) 17:41
Third period
(M) Nicholas Sewecke 18:43
(A) Ocean Wallace (Will Diamond) 18:43
(A) Austin Salani (Dylan Cook, Gustav Noren) 19:15
Shots: Austin – 26; Minot – 30
Power plays: Austin – 1-for-3; Minot – 0-for-4
