Individual News
20th of November 2008
Challenge Cup crunch time is what this Saturday night is all about at the Basingstoke Arena, as the Bison lock horns with the Nottingham Panthers. The action gets under way at 6.30pm.
A loss for either side will see them knocked out of this year's competition. Holders Nottingham will not go down without a fight, while victory for the Bison will put them a step closer to their first ever semi-final tie in this competition.
When these sides met earlier in the season, in the Lace City, the Herd won 6-4 with the scoring led by Matt Miller (2) and singles for Jeremy Cornish, Brent Hughes, Greg Chambers and Danny Stewart. The Nottingham replies came from Bruce Richardson, James Neil, Kevin Bergin and Corey Neilson.
So this weekend, the Panthers will be out to avenge that and arrive in Basingstoke with just one addition to their roster, that is Mark Richardson who played for the Bison when these teams last met, but now wears a Nottingham sweater.
The Herd will be further depleted with the loss of Canadian forward Matt Miller who returned to North America this week, to link up with former Bison Jason Goulet at Rapid City Rush in the Central Hockey League.
Bison player/coach Eric Braff said: "We wish Matt well in the future. He has certainly played his part for us and we thank him for his contribution."
Miller's last game in a Basingstoke jersey was last Sunday, in the Herd's brilliant 4-1 win in the Skydome over league leaders Coventry Blaze. That night Danny Stewart bagged the club's first hat-trick of the season, while netminder Kevin Reiter picked up the Elite League player of the week award for his performance between the pipes facing 66 shots and only being beaten once.
Talking ahead of the Nottingham game, Braff said: "We come into this game after our best weekend of the season. We know we are for a tough game, as Nottingham have three strong lines, but we have to keep things simple and play our own game.
"This is a huge match for us and you can be sure we will be giving it our best shot as we want to make that semi-final."
The clash with th Panthers is going to be a great night and not to be missed with so much at stake. Tickets for the match are still available from the box office on (01256) 355266.
Saturday's game is a non season ticket game and those tickets will be held until 4pm on Saturday for season ticket holders to purchase their seats. After that they will go on general sale.
On Sunday, the Bison return to league action with a trip to the Cardiff Devils and so far in Wales this season the Herd have won 4-3 and lost 4-3 in overtime.
Bison boss Braff is expecting the same again and said: "So far every time we play them they are see-saw battles and I don't expect this one to be any different. We will go there looking to keep our winning road streak alive."
A loss for either side will see them knocked out of this year's competition. Holders Nottingham will not go down without a fight, while victory for the Bison will put them a step closer to their first ever semi-final tie in this competition.
When these sides met earlier in the season, in the Lace City, the Herd won 6-4 with the scoring led by Matt Miller (2) and singles for Jeremy Cornish, Brent Hughes, Greg Chambers and Danny Stewart. The Nottingham replies came from Bruce Richardson, James Neil, Kevin Bergin and Corey Neilson.
So this weekend, the Panthers will be out to avenge that and arrive in Basingstoke with just one addition to their roster, that is Mark Richardson who played for the Bison when these teams last met, but now wears a Nottingham sweater.
The Herd will be further depleted with the loss of Canadian forward Matt Miller who returned to North America this week, to link up with former Bison Jason Goulet at Rapid City Rush in the Central Hockey League.
Bison player/coach Eric Braff said: "We wish Matt well in the future. He has certainly played his part for us and we thank him for his contribution."
Miller's last game in a Basingstoke jersey was last Sunday, in the Herd's brilliant 4-1 win in the Skydome over league leaders Coventry Blaze. That night Danny Stewart bagged the club's first hat-trick of the season, while netminder Kevin Reiter picked up the Elite League player of the week award for his performance between the pipes facing 66 shots and only being beaten once.
Talking ahead of the Nottingham game, Braff said: "We come into this game after our best weekend of the season. We know we are for a tough game, as Nottingham have three strong lines, but we have to keep things simple and play our own game.
"This is a huge match for us and you can be sure we will be giving it our best shot as we want to make that semi-final."
The clash with th Panthers is going to be a great night and not to be missed with so much at stake. Tickets for the match are still available from the box office on (01256) 355266.
Saturday's game is a non season ticket game and those tickets will be held until 4pm on Saturday for season ticket holders to purchase their seats. After that they will go on general sale.
On Sunday, the Bison return to league action with a trip to the Cardiff Devils and so far in Wales this season the Herd have won 4-3 and lost 4-3 in overtime.
Bison boss Braff is expecting the same again and said: "So far every time we play them they are see-saw battles and I don't expect this one to be any different. We will go there looking to keep our winning road streak alive."