Bismarck Bobcats 1 vs. Amarillo Bulls 2 (OT)
A power play goal late in overtime by forward Ryan Cole gave the Amarillo Bulls (2-0) their second consecutive overtime win at the Robertson Cup, this time over the Bismarck Bobcats (1-1) on the night cap game of Day 2.
The 1st period was very tight checking with neither team wanting to give an inch. It wasn’t until the final five minutes that the shots started to come, but goalies Paul Berrafato for Amarillo and Aaron Nelson from Bismarck were equal to the challenge. The shots finished 8-7 in favor for the Bulls, but neither team was able to score.
The Bulls went on a power play early in the 2nd period as it paid off as Gage Christianson found a loose puck in front of net and fired a shot low on the ice, which eluded a screened Aaron Nelson between the legs and into the back of the net for a 1-0 Bulls lead. Assists went to Brady Ferguson and TJ Sherman.
The Bobcats struck back in the 3rd period to tie the game as shifty forward Stanislav Dzakhov found himself open behind the Bulls defense thanks to a nice pass from Matt Anders and Dzakhov raced in alone on Paul Berrafato and beat him to the blocker side to tie the game at 1-1.
Regulation wasn’t enough for a second night in a row for the late game and both teams went through the majority of the overtime with multiple good chances to score, but both Berrafato and Nelson were equal to the task. Bismarck survived one Amarillo power play when Dzakhov was sent to the box, but they would not survive the second Amarillo power play which came with just a few minutes to go in the extra period. Amarillo worked the puck down below the net and Brady Ferguson sent a pass in front to a streaking Ryan Cole who lifted the puck over the shoulder of Nelson for the overtime winner.
Berrafato made 28 saves in the win, while Nelson took the OT loss making 21 saves.
With the win, the Bulls are in the driver’s seat with the only undefeated 2-0 record in the tournament. However, all four teams enter the final day still mathematically alive to make the National Championship Game, which should make for an exciting Day 3 on Sunday.
