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AHL Springfield Thunderbirds

Bruins Get Better of T-Birds in Another 1-Goal Game

November 5, 2022 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Springfield Thunderbirds News Release


Springfield Thunderbirds battle the Providence Bruins
Springfield Thunderbirds battle the Providence Bruins
(Springfield Thunderbirds)

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. - The Springfield Thunderbirds (5-4-0-1) stumbled in the middle period following a 2-1 lead at the first intermission, and the Providence Bruins (7-1-1-1) came away with a 3-2 victory on Saturday night at the MassMutual Center.

For the first time since Oct. 19, the Thunderbirds found themselves on the wrong end of the game's first goal, as it took Fabian Lysell just 1:44 to get a breakaway at 4-on-4. Vadim Zherenko was unable to deny the 19-year-old rookie, who snapped it home on the blocker side to give Providence the 1-0 edge.

The game took a scary turn for Providence, though, at the 11:06 mark of the first when goaltender Kyle Keyser was injured in a collision with teammate Vinni Lettieri, favoring his leg and having to be helped off the ice. Rookie Brandon Bussi checked into the game to replace Keyser.

The T-Birds greeted Bussi with eight shots over the final nine minutes of the period. Mathias Laferriere had a glorious chance to give Springfield the tying marker, but he missed the net from the right side with Bussi out of position and much of the net left vacant.

As the hockey gods would have it, though, Laferriere got redemption, and at the 18:00 mark of the period, a nearly identical situation presented itself. Tyler Tucker activated from the point to take a wrist shot from the top of the left circle. Bussi made the initial save, but the tantalizing rebound sat just outside the crease. Laferriere dove for it and beat Bussi to the spot, chipping it up over the goalie to tie the score, 1-1.

The Laferriere line came right back on the ice for the ensuing face-off, and the trio inflicted more damage just 59 seconds later. Josh Leivo, fresh off a hat trick in his T-Birds debut on Friday, found a puck at the left-wing goal line. With a hawkeye's vision, he spotted Matthew Highmore off the post on the opposite side of the ice and found him with a perfect tape-to-tape pass. Unguarded, Highmore patiently outwaited Bussi before slipping it through the netminder's legs to give Springfield the 2-1 lead with 1:01 left in the period.

The middle period would undo the T-Birds' great efforts in the first. Luke Toporowski extended his point streak to nine games as he took a feed from Kai Wissmann in the left circle and snapped it upstairs through Zherenko to tie the game, 2-2, just three minutes into the second.

On a night when the power plays went a combined 0-for-9, the Bruins got an unlikely hero late in the second when Joey Abate plucked the loose change off the right-wing wall before snapping a shot over the blocker of Zherenko at the 16:00 mark of the frame, sending the Bruins into the third with a 3-2 lead.

That lead would hold up through the final 20 minutes, as Bussi's great night in relief concluded with 25 saves on 27 shots, including a perfect 19-for-19 in the final two periods. Springfield's power play continued to scuffle, going 0-for-5 on Saturday and 0-for-10 over the two games on the weekend.

Springfield hits the road for three games across four nights next week, beginning with a 7:00 p.m. meeting in Hartford on Wednesday night against the Wolf Pack.

Thunderbirds fans can reserve their seats for the 2022-23 season and lock in the best prices and member benefits by calling (413) 739-GOAL (4625) or visiting www.SpringfieldThunderbirds.com.

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Springfield Thunderbirds battle the Providence Bruins
Springfield Thunderbirds battle the Providence Bruins
   



American Hockey League Stories from November 5, 2022


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