DULUTH, Ga. - The Atlanta Gladiators (18-20-3-2) were shutout by the Bloomington Bison (19-18-1-2) on Friday night, by a final score of 5-0, at Gas South Arena, in Duluth, Georgia.
Drew DeRidder got the nod in between the pipes for the Gladiators, while Yaniv Perets started in goal for the Bison.
Former Gladiator P.J. Fletcher hit the crossbar early in the first, but neither team found twine in the opening period. Following the first stanza, the Gladiators were out-shooting Bloomington, 14-5.
At 4:13 in the second, Gavin Gould (2) recorded his second goal of the season, opening up a 1-0 lead for his team. After some pretty passing, Gould picked the pick up at the circle, drove to the net, and slipped the puck into the net on the backhand.
Early into the final frame, Patrick Bajkov (5) scored following a blast from Bryce Montgomery, putting the puck past the outstretched leg of Drew DeRidder.
Just four minutes later, Bajkov (6) scored his second goal of the game, assisted by Josh Boyer and Carter Berger. Bajkov, who was acquired from the Rapid City Rush in early January, was officially on hat-trick watch.
At 9:19, 34-year-old forward Sam Coatta (1) scored his first goal in a Bison uniform, assisted by Eddie Matsushima and Gavin Gould, giving the road team a 4-0 advantage.
With just under seven minutes left to play in regulation time, Patrick Bajkov (7) scored his third goal of the game, completing a hat-trick to push the Bison to a 5-0 lead. Bajkov’s hat-trick was the first ever in the franchise history of the Bloomington Bison.
Drew DeRidder made 26 saves on 31 shots in the loss for the Gladiators, while on the other side, Yaniv Perets made 33 saves in the shutout win for the Bison. This is the second straight start, for different teams, that Perets has shut-out the Gladiators.
Check out the highlights below.
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