ON-THE-BUZZER MATCH REPORT: Swindon Wildcats 3-1 Basingstoke Bison

he Swindon Wildcats earned immediate revenge on the Basingstoke Bison with a 3-1 win.

 

Just a day earlier, on Boxing Day, the Wildcats sunk to a 3-2 defeat to the Bison but had a chance to inflict immediate damage back onto them on Tuesday, which they did with immediate effect.

 

Tomasz Malasinski scored a hat-trick at the Link Centre but this will go down in the history books as a win earned by netminder Stevie Lyle, who made save after save after save.

 

Lyle faced 51 shots on goal in total, with 35 of them coming in the first two periods alone.

 

Malasinski opened the scoring with a really good intuitive finish.

 

Phil Hill took aim from distance and his effort was goalbound, however Malasinski stuck out his stick and diverted the puck past the Basingstoke netminder and into the back of the net at 8:57.

 

It was two for Swindon and two for Malasinski after a cool finish, with that goal timed at 26:26.

 

Kieran Long got Basingstoke back in the game late on, but Swindon held on for the final two-and-a-half minutes to claim the well-earned victory.

 

With just 58 seconds remaining Malasinski netted his hat-trick goal to make the points safe - slotting a shot into a net left empty by a Basingstoke side who pushed everyone forward as they searched for an equaliser.