AUSTIN, MN – All three of the Austin Bruins’ goals Friday night were firsts of the season. But it was captain Gus Elbert’s overtime penalty shot that was the sweetest. The veteran defenseman’s goal handed the Bruins their first win since October 10th, snapping a five game losing skid, to beat the Bismarck Bobcats 3-2.
The Bruins took an early lead when Nolan Newton and Philip Larsson broke out on a two-on-one, with Larsson handing off the puck to Newton who fired it home for his first career NAHL goal at 4:13 into the first period.
A late tripping call in the first on Larsson would carry over to the second period to give Bismarck the man advantage at the start of the middle frame. The Bobcats took full advantage when newcomer Luc Plante beat Dilans Birkans just 1:33 into the period to tie the game back up.
Despite Bismarck outshooting the Bruins 12 to four in the second, it would be the Black and Gold once again heading into intermission with the lead. With just over two minutes left, Brendan Murray passed the puck up the right wing to the point where Victor Nilsson Dalsjö wristed it past Linus Vieillard to take the lead back with his first career goal.
The Bobcats wouldn’t go down without a fight, as Mark Evans and Teddy Richardson headed into the Bruins’ zone on their own two on one with Evans netting the equalizer at 12:08 in the third.
Patch Cronin was assessed a two-minute minor penalty for boarding with just over a minute left in regulation, a penalty that would carry over into overtime. The Bruins were unable to convert on the man advantage and the teams would play four on four until the first whistle of the extra period with just under a minute left.
With time ticking down, Elbert swiped the puck away in the defensive zone and streaked towards the Bismarck net when Cronin would be called for a hold and Elbert was awarded a penalty shot.
The captain cut in from the left wing before dragging across the slot and firing the puck under Vieillard’s blocker for the game winner.
The Black and Gold are back in action Saturday night at Riverside Arena against Bismarck with puck drop scheduled for 6:05pm. Fans can get their tickets by visiting tickets.austinbruins.com.
