P-Bruins Week in Review
February 27, 2019 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Providence Bruins News Release
There are just 20 games left in the regular season and the Providence Bruins remain in good position to make the playoffs for a seventh consecutive year. The team holds steady at fourth place in the Atlantic Division with 64 points and a 28-20-7-1 record. The team took three of a possible six points this weekend and are four points ahead of fifth place Lehigh Valley with the tiebreaker in hand.
Weekend Recap
The P-Bruins kicked off their weekend with a back-and-forth affair with the Bridgeport Sound Tigers Friday at the Dunk. Providence led 1-0, 2-1 and 3-2, but trailed late in the third period to the Sound Tigers. Paul Carey netted his second goal of the night with six minutes left to force overtime, but Bridgeport eventually went on to the 5-4 OT win. The team traveled to Hartford for a Saturday faceoff with the Wolf Pack, another game that need an extra frame to determine a winner. This time it was the P-Bruins that came out on top, as Jordan Szwarz potted his team-leading 18th goal of the season 1:26 into overtime to give Providence a 3-2 win. The two teams had a rematch at the Dunk Sunday afternoon, but Hartford took control early and came away with a convincing 4-1 victory.
Notable Performers
Gemel Smith continues to shine since arriving in Providence, posting another strong weekend for the P-Bruins. Smith was the only player to score in each of the team's three games as he led the team with three goals and four points. He was one of two Bruins to post a multipoint game, with both him and Paul Carey posting one Friday. Carey and Jordan Szwarz each netted a pair of goals while Connor Clifton and Jakub Zboril tallied two assists over the weekend. For the first time since late December, Dan Vladar made back-to-back starts in net and played well between the pipes. Saturday was his best game of the weekend, stopping 25 of 27 shots but making some spectacular saves to keep Providence in the game.
Stempniak Update
Veteran Lee Stempniak, who was on a professional try-out with Providence, will be in the fold for the foreseeable future. Stempniak signed an NHL deal with Boston Sunday morning and was waived to be assigned back to the AHL. This move allowed Boston to play him in AHL and be called up to the NHL at any time. Stempniak has looked good in four games with the P-Bruins, posting a pair of goals and a pair of assists while playing on the team's top line. He will continue to provide leadership and production for Providence while being a nice depth winger for Boston should they need one after the trade deadline.
Trade Deadline Aftermath
In addition to getting Stempniak back in the fold, the trade deadline saw some familiar faces return from the NHL with another moving on to a new team. Ryan Donato was traded along with a conditional draft pick to Minnesota in exchange for Charlie Coyle, the only loss Providence suffered during the deadline. While they lost the talented winger, Boston's acquisition of Coyle for their third line center role led to Trent Frederic returning to Providence. When Boston acquired Marcus Johansson, the team also returned Karson Kuhlman and Peter Cehlarik to the P-Bruins roster. This was an expected move, as players must be on an AHL roster at the 3pm trade deadline in order to be eligible to be sent down from the NHL any time thereafter for the rest of the season.
Week Ahead
It is the fourth consecutive three-in-three weekend for the P-Bruins as they start March with a 7:05pm faceoff Friday vs the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins at the Dunk. The team travels to Springfield Saturday night for a 7:05pm game against the Thunderbirds before returning home Sunday at 3:05pm for a rematch against the T-Birds to finish the weekend.
American Hockey League Stories from February 27, 2019
- Stars Top Admirals 4-2 in Return to Cedar Park - Texas Stars
- Anaheim Ducks Reassign Redmond to Gulls - San Diego Gulls
- Amerks Back in First After 3-1 Win in Utica - Rochester Americans
- Bears Use Big Third to get by Pack - Hartford Wolf Pack
- Bears Erupt in Third Period, Top Wolf Pack 4-1 - Hershey Bears
- Two 3rd Period Goals Sink Comets - Utica Comets
- San Diego Gulls Sign Goaltender Christian Frey to Professional Tryout - San Diego Gulls
- 'Canes Recall Fleury and Bean from Charlotte - Charlotte Checkers
- Dallas Stars Recall Center Joel L'Esperance - Texas Stars
- First Place Condors Streaking at Home this Weekend - Bakersfield Condors
- Moose Beat Marlies on Late Goal - Manitoba Moose
- Florida Panthers Recall G Sam Montembeault from Springfield - Springfield Thunderbirds
- Columbus Blue Jackets Ink Forward Zac Dalpe to Two-Year, Two-Way NHL/AHL Contract Extension - Cleveland Monsters
- Dauphin Signs Deal for 19-20 Season - Milwaukee Admirals
- Preds Ink Helewka Next Season - Milwaukee Admirals
- P-Bruins Week in Review - Providence Bruins
- Comets Sign Jake Linhart to PTO - Utica Comets
- Game Preview: Bears at Wolf Pack, 7 p.m. - Hershey Bears
- Sabres Assign O'Regan to Rochester - Rochester Americans
- Marlies Host Moose for Early Start - Toronto Marlies
- Iowa Downed by San Jose 5-3 - Iowa Wild
- Big Third Lifts San Jose over Iowa, 5-3 - San Jose Barracuda
- Lagace's Maximum Effort Blanks IceHogs in Rosemont - Rockford IceHogs
- Toninato, Eagles PK Edge Rampage - San Antonio Rampage
- Toninato's Four-Point Performance Highlights Eagles 5-3 Win over Rampage - Colorado Eagles
- Wolves Seize First in Central - Chicago Wolves
The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.
