BISON COMEBACK FALLS SHORT AGAINST WALLEYE
BISON COMEBACK FALLS SHORT AGAINST WALLEYE
By: Erik Konwinski, Bloomington Bison
Bloomington, Ill – The Bloomington Bison scored two third-period goals to cut their deficit in half but came up short in a comeback bid and eventually fell 6-2 to the Toledo Walleye at Grossinger Motors Arena Saturday.
Both teams engaged in physical play to begin the rematch of Friday’s action and the Bison controlled pace early. Through 20 minutes, Bloomington held a 15-8 shot advantage but allowed the first goal of the game for a third-straight night and entered the first intermission down 1-0 on the scoreboard. Around the seven-minute mark of the frame, the Walleye snapped a shot to the back of the net from the top of the zone to light the lamp. With three minutes remaining in the frame each team was called for roughing penalties and 4-on-4 play led to a Bison man advantage before too long. Time ran out in the first period and Bloomington would not capitalize on the powerplay, which carried over into the middle stanza.
Compared to a five-goal second period Friday, offense was at a minimum and the lone goal resulted from a Toledo penalty shot – the third such scenario in the weekend series. Bloomington was charged with two penalties before the end of the frame and killed off both Walleye powerplays. The successful kills marked four straight. Mikael Robidoux had the best Bloomington scoring opportunity on a shorthanded breakaway in the final minutes but it was turned away and Toledo took a 2-0 lead into the third.
Brett Budgell nearly cashed in on a breakaway chance but a Walleye save turned into an odd-man rush the other way and Toledo took a 3-0 advantage just under four minutes into the final regulation frame. Around the halfway point, Toledo went up 4-0 and the comeback bid began. Riku Ishida got the Bison on the score sheet 50 seconds after the Walleye tally with his second powerplay goal of the season. Kyle Jackson and Shane Ott were credited with assists, increasing Jackson’s point streak to three games. Chongmin Lee then cleaned up a rebound three minutes later from Eddie Matsushima and Seung Jae Lee to cut the Walleye lead in half. The home crowd did not enjoy momentum for long as Toledo ended the comeback attempt with a shorthanded and then empty net goal. Four fighting majors were assessed to each team in the final 30 seconds of play.
The Bison will look to get back in the win column on Halloween night when the Kalamazoo Wings visit Grossinger Motors Arena for a 7 p.m. puck drop on Friday, October 31.
Single-game tickets are now available for ALL Bloomington Bison home games starting as low as $20! Visit ticketmaster.com or call 309-965-HERD to purchase tickets today.
