AHL Bridgeport Islanders

First Place Sound Tigers Win Three Of Four With Weekend Sweep

Published on March 10, 2003 under American Hockey League (AHL)
Bridgeport Islanders News Release


The Sound Tigers won three of four games, including their second sweep of three-game weekend in a three-week span. After a 4-2 home loss to the Manitoba Moose Wednesday, the Sound Tigers beat the Manchester Monarchs 3-1 Friday and the Binghamton Senators 4-1 Saturday at home and the Springfield Falcons 5-2 on the road Sunday. The Sound Tigers remain in first place in the East Division and third place in the Eastern Conference with 80 points and a 34-22-9-3 record including 19-9-3-2 at home and 15-13-6-1 on the road.

WED MAR 5th vs. MTB, 4-2 L: JASON KING led Manitoba with two goals while ERIC MANLOW and JEFF HAMILTON scored for the Sound Tigers who are now 0-4 versus the Moose, one of only three teams along with the Hershey Bears and Norfolk Admirals they have played but never beaten during the regular season. STEPHEN VALIQUETTE made 19 saves as the Sound Tigers outshot Manitoba 38-23 and were 1 for 6 on the power play and 3 for 3 on the penalty kill.

FRI MAR 7th vs. MCH, 3-1 W: BRANDON SMITH, BLAINE DOWN and NIC BILOTTO scored. Bilotto's goal was his first with the team while Down scored shorthanded and also added an assist. RICK DiPIETRO made 15 saves for the Sound Tigers who were 2 for 4 on the power play, 3 for 3 on the penalty kill and had a 35-16 shots on goal advantage.

SAT MAR 8th vs. BNG, 4-1 W: TRENT HUNTER, MARTIN CHABADA, JUSTIN MAPLETOFT and JEFF HAMILTON scored. Hunter and ERIC MANLOW had two assists, and RICK DiPIETRO made 21 saves to run his winning streak to five games and unbeaten streak to six. The Sound Tigers were 3 for 3 on the power play, 1 for 2 on the penalty kill and had a 45-22 shots on goal advantage setting their season high for shots in a game.

SUN MAR 9th at SPR, 5-2 W: JEFF HAMILTON, JUSTIN MAPLETOFT and RAFFI TORRES scored once, and MARTIN CHABADA scored twice on the power play. Mapletoft also had one assist, and BLAINE DOWN had two while STEPHEN VALIQUETTE made 28 saves for the Sound Tigers who were 2 for 3 on the power play, 6 for 6 on the penalty kill and had a 37-30 shots on goal advantage. The Sound Tigers have now scored on the power play in five straight games, including a 7 for 10 effort this past weekend, and have also outshot the opposition in six games in a row.

PLAYER OF THE WEEK – C BLAINE DOWN

Down had one goal, four assists and five points and was a +1 in four games last week. The rookie forward has points in six of his last eight games notching two goals and seven assists in that time. Down has seven goals, 11 assists, 18 points and 30 penalty minutes in 42 games with the Sound Tigers this season.

THIS WEEK – Springfield & Binghamton To Visit During "Islanders Appreciation Weekend" The Sound Tigers will host Springfield Saturday at 7:05 p.m. and Binghamton Sunday at 4 p.m. during "Islanders Appreciation Weekend" at Bridgeport's Arena at Harbor Yard. The Sound Tigers will recognize their NHL affiliate and its fans during the 20th anniversary of the last of the team's four straight Stanley Cup Championships (read more in COMMUNITY CALENDAR & PROMOTIONAL NEWS).

SAT MAR 15th vs. SPR, 7:05 p.m.: This will be the seventh of eight meetings, the third of four at Harbor Yard, between the teams this regular season. It will also be the second of three meetings with Springfield in a four-game span for the Sound Tigers who will also host the Falcons next Wednesday, March 19th. The Sound Tigers have won all six games this season, trailing for only 1:05, and are 10-3-1 all-time versus Springfield who begins this week in fourth place in the East Division and tenth place in the Eastern Conference with 61 points and a 27-32-6-1 record including 8-20-3-0 on the road and 3-5-1-1 in the last ten games. The Falcons will host the Providence Bruins Wednesday and will visit them Friday.

SUN MAR 16th vs. BNG, 4:05 p.m.: This will be the sixth and final meeting, the third at Harbor Yard, between the teams this regular season. It will also be the fourth of six straight games versus East Division opponents for the Sound Tigers. The Sound Tigers are 3-1-0-1, including 2-0 at home, versus expansion Binghamton who enters this week four points behind Bridgeport in second place in the East Division and fourth place in the Eastern Conference with 76 points and a 34-24-7-1 record including 14-14-4-0 on the road and 5-5 in the last ten games. The Senators, who will host the Saint John Flames Friday and the Worcester IceCats Saturday, begin the week with two games in hand on the Sound Tigers.

SOUND TIGERS TEAM LEADERS (active roster)

Goals – TRENT HUNTER, 25

Penalty Minutes – ERIC GODARD, 154

Assists – ERIC MANLOW, 33

Wins – STEPHEN VALIQUETTE, 11

Points – TRENT HUNTER, 55

Goals Against Average – STEPHEN VALIQUETTE, 2.77

Plus / Minus – JUSTIN MAPLETOFT, +14

Save Percentage – STEPHEN VALIQUETTE, .907

SOUND TIGERS SPECIAL TEAMS

Power Play – 58 for 350, 16.6%; 14th

Shorthanded Goals Against – 11

Penalty Kill – 287 for 329, 87.2%; 2nd

Shorthanded Goal For – 8

SOUND TIGERS STREAKS

The Sound Tigers have won three straight games including two in a row at home. They have outshot the opposition in six straight games by a combined margin of 216-134. The Sound Tigers have scored on the power play in five straight games, going 9 for 22 (40.9%), and in nine of the last ten games, going 16 for 44 (36.4%). G RICK DiPIETRO has won five games in a row and is unbeaten, 5-0-1, in six. C JEFF HAMILTON is on a two-game goal streak (2g) and a five-game point streak (4g,1a). D BRANDON SMITH is on a two-game assist streak (2a) and a three-game point streak (1g,2a). C JUSTIN MAPLETOFT is on three-game point streak (2g,2a). RW MARTIN CHABADA is on a two-game goal streak (3PP, 2GW). C ERIC MANLOW is on a two-game assist streak (3a).

SOUND TIGERS TRANSACTIONS

D DANIEL TETRAULT and D DUSTIN WOOD were recalled from the East Coast Hockey League's Trenton Titans Tuesday and reassigned Sunday. D BRANDON SMITH and RW MATTIAS WEINHANDL were recalled by the Islanders Tuesday. D NIC BILOTTO was signed to a professional tryout contract Wednesday and released today. RW ERIC GODARD was reassigned by the Islanders Tuesday. G RICK DiPIETRO was reassigned by the Islanders Wednesday. RW KONSTANTIN KALMIKOV was reassigned to the ECHL's Louisiana IceGators Thursday. D BRANDON SMITH and D SVEN BUTENSCHON were reassigned by the Islanders Friday. G RICK DiPIETRO was recalled by the Islanders Sunday. G JIM SANCA was signed to a PTO Sunday. D ALAN LETANG was reassigned by the Islanders Sunday.

COMMUNITY CALENDAR & PROMOTIONAL NEWS The Girl Scouts of Housatonic Council are sending a "taste of home" to the United States Armed Forces, and fans can purchase Girl Scout cookies then donate them to troops in the Persian Gulf region at the Sound Tigers office. The cookies will delivered by the First Naval Construction Division. The Sound Tigers are also offering a package in which fans can donate a box of cookies and receive a ticket to this Sunday's game for $15.50. • The AHL's Calder Cup 2003 Tour will stop at Bridgeport's Arena at Harbor Yard during this Saturday's game. • This Friday and Saturday will be "Islanders Appreciation Weekend" with former Islanders CLARK GILLIES and JEAN POTVIN taking part in the festivities. Discounted tickets for both games are available to Islanders fans who purchase in advance by calling 203-334-GOAL or for those who wear Islanders' apparel when they purchase in person at the Harbor Yard box office on game day. The Port Jefferson Ferry is offering an all-inclusive package featuring round-trip ferry fare and Sound Tigers' tickets; advance reservations are required and can be made by calling at 631-473-5138. The Sound Tigers will also wear special uniforms incorporating their logo and the Islanders' orange and blue color scheme. The jerseys from these uniforms will be auctioned during Sunday's game, and the winning bidders will be presented their jersey on the ice and have their picture taken with the player who wore the jersey following the game. There will also be an autograph session featuring Sound Tigers' players after Sunday's game. • RW MARTIN CHABADA will sign autographs following Saturday's game. • There will be MasterCard intermission mini-hockey games Saturday and Sunday. • There will be an intermission "Chuck-A-Puck" Saturday. • Madison Middle School will perform the national anthem before Saturday's game, and the Junior League of Eastern Fairfield County will do so prior to Sunday's game.

SOUND TIGERS ON THE AIR

All Sound Tigers' games are broadcast live on "The ZONE" FOX Sports Radio 1300 AM and at www.soundtigers.com. WSTC/WNLK 1400/1350 AM also broadcasts road games. "The Sound Tigers Report" is also broadcast Tuesdays at 7 p.m. on "The ZONE". Head Coach STEVE STIRLING will be the special guest on this week's edition of the show.

THIS WEEK'S SCHEDULE

The Sound Tigers will practice at Bridgeport's Arena at Harbor Yard Tuesday through Friday at 10:30 a.m. and Saturday at 10 a.m. Please call 203-334-GOAL to confirm practice times and locations or with any special media requests.

Check out the Bridgeport Islanders Statistics

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American Hockey League Stories from March 10, 2003


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