Four-Goal Third Period Propels Bison to Victory

Bloomington, Ill. – After trailing twice in the game, a four-goal third period sealed a 5-4 regulation win for the Bloomington Bison over the Iowa Heartlanders at Grossinger Motors Arena on Saturday night. 

The Bison faced two penalties early in the game, giving Iowa a two-man advantage. At 4:47 Matt Hubbarde opened the scoring on a pass from Keltie Jeri Leon. Bogdans Hodass had the secondary assist on Hubbarde’s first of his pro career. The rest of the first remained scoreless. Iowa outshot the Bison by a 10-4 margin to conclude the period. 

:27 into the second period, Iowa capitalized on another powerplay as Hodass scored on a wrist shot. Hodass’s third of the season was assisted by T.J. Walsh and Hubbarde. Zeteny Hadobas and Max Neill dropped the gloves at 3:31. Both received a fighting major with Neill serving an additional two minutes for roughing. At 9:11, the Bison closed the gap as Lou-Félix Denis’s slapshot entered the net on the powerplay. Patrick Bajkov and Jonny Evans assisted on Denis’ seventh of the season. While seeing many penalties, the 2-1 scored remained throughout the second frame.

1:06 into the third, Evans found Gavin Gould from the crease to even the score. Carter Berger collected the secondary assist for Gould’s fifth of the season. However, Iowa responded quickly as Austen Swankler scored his fifth of the season at 3:36. Jeri-Leon assisted on the goal to give Iowa a 3-2 lead. Wasting no time, Neill scored on a Bajkov rebound to tie the game :27 later. Neill’s second of the season was also assisted by Dustin Manz. The Bison continued the scoring surge at 8:03 as Danny Katic converted on a partial breakaway, giving the Bison their first lead of the night. Denis assisted on Katic’s tenth of the season. The scoring continued 11 minutes in as Yuki Miura connected with Nathan Noel to sneak the puck past Yaniv Perets. Noel’s second of the season was scored shorthanded. At 18:16, Chongmin Lee scored on a wrist shot claiming the victory. Chase Spencer and Manz collected the assists for Lee’s twelfth of the season. 

Perets secured the win for the Bison, making 25 saves on 29 shots. William Rousseau took the loss for Iowa with 18 saves on 23 shots. The Bison went 2-for-3 on the powerplay, and the penalty kill went 2-for-4.

The Bison return to Grossinger Motors Arena next Friday at 7 p.m for a Pi Day Game featuring $3 domestic beer, $1 hot dogs, and $4 craft beer or a slice of pizza pie! 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.