Saturday night at the Barn was Fan Appreciation Night, and did the Bulls give the fans plenty to cheer about heading into next week's Silver Cup Playoffs. After a "slow" start in the first period, the Bulls led Twin City 1-0 heading to the first intermission. The Bulls allowed the Steel to tie the game just 38 seconds into the middle frame on a shorty. That seemed to ignite the Bulls who responded with their own short-handed tally, which is their league-leading 23rd SHG on the season. After that, the rout was on. Six more second-period goals, all at even-strength, staked the Bulls to an 8-1 lead after two.
The Bulls were out for blood, however, perhaps trying to send a message to Twin City should these teams meet next weekend in the playoffs, and potted six more in the third period (again all at even-strength) to ice a 14-1 victory in the final game of the regular season. The victory gives the Bulls 41 wins in 48 games, for a total of 85 points on the season.
Bulls players LOADED the stat sheet, as you can imagine, with James Hughes netting 3G and 3A for a 6-point night; Tim Santopoalo would not be outdone, as he also netted a hat trick and added two more assists giving him 5 points on the evening. Kyle Krueger (2G, 1A) and Matt Kroska (2G, 3A) each had multi-goal games while chipping in helpers and Jake Johnson (1G, 3A), Eric Behrend (1G, 2A), Connor Langfield (1G, 2A), and Richie Marenis (1G, 3A) also lit the lamp as well. Tyler Burg and James Hughes paced the team each with a +6 rating on the evening and Goaltender Matthew Bartels stopped 43 of 44 shots to prevent Twin City from sniffing any chance at momentum.
Don't forget! The "Stampede to the Silver Cup" officially gets underway next weekend with two games at the "Barn"! Game 1 will be Friday, March 15th and Game 2 will be Saturday, March 16th. Puck drop for both games is 7:30pm and ticket prices will NOT increase for the playoffs ($10 for adults, $6 for kids under 18 and seniors over 65). The opponent will be either the Minnesota Flying Aces or these same Twin City Steel. That will be determined during the Minnesota vs. Breezy Point game tomorrow. So get out to the barn and support your Bulls as they "Stampede to the Silver Cup!" Go Bulls!
