Bison Stay Perfect, Extend Historic Start With Weekend Sweep

Image courtesy of Bloomington Bison media team

BLOOMINGTON, Ill. — The Bloomington Bison continued their historic start to the season with a pair of impressive victories over the weekend, defeating the Fort Wayne Komets 4-1 on Friday before rallying for a 4-3 shootout win against the Cincinnati Cyclones on Saturday to improve to 3-0 and remain atop the ECHL Central Division standings.

Bloomington showcased its special teams and defensive strength in Friday night’s game at Grossinger Motors Arena.

Chongmin Lee connected on a pair of power-play goals, while goaltender Isaac Poulter turned aside 25 out of 26 shots he faced as the Bison earned a convincing 4-1 victory over Fort Wayne.

The Bison opened the scoring midway through the first period when Michael Milne set up Yu Chan Kong on an odd-man rush, as Kong buried the opportunity for his first professional goal, sending the home crowd into a frenzy and giving Bloomington a 1-0 lead.

The Bison penalty kill remained sharp throughout the opening frame, successfully killing off two Fort Wayne power plays while carrying an 11-6 shots advantage into the first intermission.

Bloomington doubled its lead at 7:57 of the second period when Milne found Deni Goure in close, and the forward slipped the puck past the Fort Wayne netminder, before the Komets responded three minutes later, following a turnover near the blue line, to trim the deficit to 2-1.

The momentum shifted back in Bloomington’s favor late in the period when Fort Wayne was penalized for slashing.

Lee capitalized on the ensuing power play, converting a crisp pass from Vladislav Kamenev to restore the two-goal cushion and send the Bison into the locker room ahead 3-1.

Lee struck again almost immediately in the third period, just eight seconds after another Komets penalty, Bloomington’s power play went back to work.

Forty-four seconds later, Lee buried his second goal of the night off assists from Kamenev and Killian Keicker-Olson, extending the lead to 4-1.

From there, Poulter and the Bison defense shut the door, as Bloomington finished 2-for-5 on the power play and a perfect 100 percent on the penalty kill, en route to improving to 2-0 on the season while claiming sole possession of first place in the Central Division.

Coming off the impressive victory on Friday, the following night in Cincinnati, the Bison faced their toughest test yet but once again found a way to emerge victorious.

Bloomington fell behind just 34 seconds into the game after allowing a power-play goal moments after taking an early penalty.

Despite the setback, the Bison controlled much of the opening period, firing 12 shots on goal compared to Cincinnati’s five.

The Cyclones extended their lead to 2-0 in the second period before Bloomington mounted a comeback behind Milne.

The forward got the Bison on the board at the 8:49 mark, finishing a play set up by Lee and Kamenev.

Just over four minutes later, Milne struck again, converting assists from Dylan Finlay and Goure to tie the game at 2-2.

Bloomington seized its first lead of the night in dramatic fashion during the final seconds of the second period.

With only eight seconds remaining, Finlay blasted a slap shot into the back of the net off feeds from Milne and Goure, giving the visitors a 3-2 advantage heading into the third after successfully turning the game around.

Cincinnati answered less than three minutes into the final period to even the score at 3-3, then outshot Bloomington 10-4 during the remainder of regulation.

However, the Bison penalty kill delivered another key stop with three minutes left, helping force overtime, where Bloomington controlled possession throughout much of the seven-minute extra session but could not find the winner.

The game ultimately moved to a shootout, where Lee scored in the second round and Poulter denied all three Cincinnati attempts to secure the victory.

Poulter finished with a impressive 21 saves through regulation and overtime before turning away every shootout chance, while Milne led the offensive effort with two goals and an assist.

The victory marked Bloomington’s third consecutive win to open the season, the best start in franchise history, and kept the Bison alone atop the Central Division standings.

The Bison will return to Grossinger Motors Arena on Friday, Oct. 30, for another “309 Night.” The promotion will feature $3 Busch Lights and sodas, free popcorn and $9 T-shirts, while Fans can also attend a Trunk-or-Treat event from 4 to 6 p.m. in the Major Butler Lot on the north side of the arena before puck drop.

For all things Bloomington Bison, stay tuned to WZND.com.