Aberdeen 7 @ Bismarck 6 – In a wild, high-scoring game, the Aberdeen Wings ended the playoff hopes of the Bismarck Bobcats with a 7-6 win. Nathan Burke and Nic Sicoly each scored twice in the win. Burke scored the opening two goals for the Wings in the 1st period. Sicoly and Tim Makowski added 2nd period goals, and Evan Rochowiak, Joe Strada, and Sicoly added goals in the 3rd period. Six different players scored for the Bobcats, which included four goals in the 2nd period from Simon Morberg, Jacob Marti, Cooper Haar, and Joseph Mancuso. Niki Jasko and George Grannis scored the other Bobcats goals in the 3rd period. Gabe Vinal made 17 saves in the win, while John Roberts made 25 saves in the loss.
The Wings win ended the hopes of a post season for the Bobcats and allowed Minot to fill the final playoff spot, despite their loss to the Minnesota Wilderness. The Wings 1st round match up is now set with a best of 5 series against the Minot Minotauros. There is still plenty of work to be done however as the Wilderness win and a Bruins loss has those two teams deadlocked at 66 points each. The Wings and Bobcats will play for the final time this season tonight from the VFW Sports Center in Bismarck. Puck drop is scheduled for 7:15pm. You can watch the game at Buffalo Wings & Rings in Aberdeen or by logging on to HockeyTV.com! Tune into 94.1 The Rock, HubCityRadio.com or The Rock App to listen to the action!