Photo credit: Austin Daily Herald
Each year in Austin, fans from all over the city circle one date on their calendar: Paint the Rink Pink Night. The annual cancer fundraiser is here and on a pink-painted sheet of ice, the Bruins will host the Coulee Region Chill Friday night, raising money for a good cause and trying to get their season back on track in front of their largest crowd of the year. The Bruins and Chill will go at it again on Saturday night in La Crosse.
WHAT TO WATCH FOR –
Melting the Chill: The Bruins still haven’t defeated Coulee Region at Riverside in the Kyle Grabowski era, going 0-5-1 since the start of last season (0-1-1 this season). On the flipside, the Bruins have had just about as much success in Coulee’s building, with a 5-0-1 record in that same span. With the temperatures set to rise into the 40s over the weekend in Austin, perhaps this will be the time for a Bruins home win.
Murphy’s Law: The Bruins made a couple of roster changes this week, the most notable of which was acquiring forward Jack Murphy from Minot in exchange for defenseman Paul O’Connor. Murphy is a ’96 from Prior Lake, MN and he’s torched the Bruins in his career, scoring 7 goals and adding 3 assists in 10 regular season plus two playoff contests. Overall this season, Murphy has 9 goals and 16 assists.
Midwest Winning: The Bruins have done a nice job against the always-tough Midwest Division this season, going 7-4-2 against Coulee Region, Janesville, the Minnesota Magicians, and Fairbanks. They’re one of two teams to beat the Jets and have a solid 2-1-1 mark against their Richfield Rivals. They’re 2-1-1 against Coulee as well. The Midwest division boasts two of the top 6 teams in the NAHL (Janesville/Magicians) as well as the defending Robertson Cup Champions (Fairbanks).
Kicking Cancer: This season’s Paint the Rink Pink marks the 7th annual event, and will likely pass the $200,000 mark in total funds raised for the Hormel’s Institute’s cancer research.. Special t-shirt sales, a 50-50 raffle, Bruiser jersey raffle, and our famous postgame charity auction, which includes a variety of autographed Bruins alumni items this season. We set our record last season with a number of $41,579 raised.
THE MATCHUPS –
Central Division Standings:
| TEAM | GP | W | L | OTL | PTS |
| Minot | 43 | 26 | 13 | 4 | 56 |
| MN Wilderness | 42 | 23 | 15 | 4 | 50 |
| Brookings | 40 | 20 | 16 | 4 | 44 |
| Aberdeen | 41 | 20 | 18 | 3 | 43 |
| Austin | 42 | 18 | 19 | 5 | 41 |
| Bismarck | 42 | 18 | 22 | 2 | 38 |
Midwest Division Standings:
| TEAM | GP | W | L | OTL | PTS |
| Janesville | 43 | 32 | 8 | 3 | 67 |
| MN Magicians | 42 | 24 | 14 | 4 | 52 |
| Springfield | 40 | 19 | 19 | 2 | 40 |
| Fairbanks | 43 | 18 | 22 | 3 | 39 |
| Coulee Region | 39 | 17 | 20 | 2 | 36 |
| Kenai River | 42 | 10 | 30 | 2 | 22 |
2016-17 Bruins vs. Chill Head to Head (Bruins lead 2-1-1)
click date for game story
10/22/16 Austin 5 at Coulee Region 2
11/12/16 Coulee Region 6/OT at Austin 5
12/08/16 Austin 5 at Coulee Region 3
01/14/16 Coulee Region 4 at Austin 1
02/10/17 @ Austin – 7:05 PM
02/11/17 @ Coulee Region – 7:00 PM
03/24/17 @ Coulee Region – 7:00 PM
03/25/17 @ Austin – 7:05 PM
HOW TO FOLLOW THE GAMES –
| Date | Time | Opponent | Venue | Viewing Party | TV | Radio |
| 2/10/17 | 7:05 | Coulee Region Chill | Riverside Arena | NONE | HockeyTV (HOME) | NONE |
| 2/11/17 | 7:00 | Coulee Region Chill | Green Island Ice Arena | Hoot & Ole’s | HockeyTV (AWAY) | AM 1480 KAUS |
Doors will open a half-hour early on Friday night with $3 tap beer specials from 5:30-7. The national anthem will be performed by Kaye Perry with a ceremonial puck drop by Paint the Town Pink Ambassador Debbie Retterath. A cancer tribute video will air on the video board during the first intermission. Limited tickets are still available at our vendors: Hy-Vee, Jim’s Marketplace, Games People Play, and the Holiday Inn. Fans wishing to participate in the charity auction can sign up to obtain an auction paddle at the table adjacent to the Bruins beer garden.
