Bison Score Five Unanswered Goals To Complete Comeback

Bloomington, Ill. – Chongmin Lee’s overtime goal propelled the Bloomington Bison to a 6-5 overtime victory against the Kalamazoo Wings at Grossinger Motors Arena on Friday night.

6:40 into the first period, Zach Berzolla opened the scoring with his fourth tally of the season on the unassisted goal for Kalamazoo. The Bison quickly responded at the 9:44 mark on the powerplay when Brett Budgell found Chongmin Lee on the back door even the game at one. Shane Ott recorded the secondary assist on Lee’s 14^th goal of the season. The offensive frenzy continued following a Bison infraction. Zach Okabe regained the lead for the Wings 14:06 into the period. Zach Berzolla and Josh Bloom recorded assists on Okabe’s 17^th tally of the season to put the score at 2-1 to end the period. 

The second period saw five goals between both teams. At the 4:39 mark, Travis Broughman found the back of the net following a Luc Salem pass. Broughman’s eighth goal of the season put the score at 3-1. Just 15 seconds later, the Wings would strike again with Berzolla’s second goal of the night. Josh Bloom recorded the assist on the goal that would put the Wings up by three. Following the goal, Dryden McKay replaced Kasimir Kaskisuo in net for the Bison. The Wings continued their offensive overhaul when Jack Clement give Kalamazoo a four-goal lead at the 6:30 mark. Lee Lapid and Ben Berard recorded assists on Clement’s second goal of the season. 16:27 into the frame, the Bison responded behind Matt Staudacher’s first goal of the season on a one-timer. Johnny Evans and Gavin Gould recorded assists. With 54 seconds remaining, Carter Berger found the back of the net on a wrist shot from the slot. Connor Lockhart and Lou-Félix Denis recorded assists on Berger’s seventh goal of the season. The second period ended with Kalamazoo leading 5-3 but with the Bison outshooting the Wings 34-22.

9:08 into the third frame, Denis sped into the offensive zone and fired a wrist shot into the net for his 10^th goal of the season. The goal was assisted by Ott and Ryan Siedem to put the Bison down by one. The Bison wouldn’t stop there as Connor Lockhart found the back of the net off a rebound from Siedem at 14:04. Ott recorded the secondary assist on the game-tying goal and Lockhart’s 11^th tally of the season. The goal tied the game at five to force overtime. In the closing seconds, the Bison were awarded a power play that carried into the overtime period.

The overtime period was short-lived as Lee scored on the powerplay 1:28 into the extra frame. Ott and Jake Murray recorded assists on Lee’s one-timer goal to win the game. 

Kasimir Kaskisuo played 24:54 and stopped nine of 13 shots. McKay stopped 13 of 14 shots in relief. He played 36:32 and earned the victory in his Bison debut. Jonathan Lemieux recorded the loss with 40 saves. The Bison outshot the Wings 46-27. Bloomington went 2-for-3 on the power play and went 0-for-1 on the penalty kill.  

The Bison return to Grossinger Motors Arena on Friday, March 28 at 7 p.m. for Hockey Fights Cancer Night! Single-game seats are available starting as low as $20! Group pricing with benefits and suite options are also available. Visit bloomingtonbisonhockey.com or call (309) 965-HERD for more information.