Preview: Islanders at Thunderbirds
January 20, 2025 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Bridgeport Islanders News Release
SPRINGFIELD, Mass. - The Bridgeport Islanders (8-25-2-2) face the Springfield Thunderbirds (17-16-2-1) for the second straight game, and third time in the last week, with an MLK Day matchup at MassMutual Center. Puck drop is set for 3:05 p.m. this afternoon. The Islanders open a four-game road trip today, and will play seven of their next eight games away from Total Mortgage Arena. Six of their eight wins this season have come on the road, where Bridgeport will look to turn things around following a 6-4 loss to the Thunderbirds on Saturday. Liam Foudy registered his second three-point performance of the season (1g, 2a), while Hunter Miska made 37 saves in his Bridgeport debut. Hugh McGing tallied two goals and three points for the Thunderbirds.
Watch today's game live: AHLTV on FloHockey
Listen to today's radio broadcast: Mixlr
ISLANDERS VS. THUNDERBIRDS
Today marks the seventh of 10 meetings between the Islanders and T-Birds this season, and the final of five matchups in Massachusetts. Bridgeport is 2-3-1-0 against the St. Louis Blues' affiliate and 2-1-1-0 in those games on the road. The Islanders won the first meeting, 4-1, on Nov. 1st and posted a season-high seven goals in a 7-5 victory on Dec. 28th (both in Springfield, Mass). Chris Terry leads all Bridgeport players in the series with eight points (2g, 6a) in six games after scoring a power-play goal and adding one assist on Saturday.
VIEW FROM SPRINGFIELD
After scoring six goals in Bridgeport on Saturday, the Thunderbirds' offense dried up yesterday afternoon in a 4-0 loss to the Providence Bruins at Amica Mutual Pavilion, which ended Springfield's four-game winning streak. It dropped the T-Birds back to seventh place in the Atlantic Division standings with 37 points in 36 games, two points behind Hartford. In their 6-4 win against Bridgeport to open a '3-in-3' series on Saturday, Hugh McGing tallied two goals and three points, while Mackenzie MacEachern and Otto Stenberg each had one goal and an assist. It was Stenberg's first AHL goal and points, as the 19-year-old made his League debut.
TERRY TIES KOIVULA, ST. DENIS
Chris Terry scored his eighth goal of the season and the 65th of his Bridgeport career on Saturday, tying Travis St. Denis (2016-20) and Otto Koivula (2018-24) for fifth place on the team's all-time list. He is six goals behind Jeff Tambellini (2005-09) for fourth place, and nine points behind Koivula for second all-time in scoring. The five-time AHL All-Star has a team-leading 31 points, 23 assists, and nine multi-point games in 36 appearances this season. His 23 assists are tied for eighth among all AHL players, and his 11 power-play assists are tied for third in the League.
UP FROM WORCESTER
Defensemen Cam McDonald and Matias Rajaniemi were recalled from the Worcester Railers (ECHL) on Sunday. McDonald played five games with Bridgeport earlier this season, including his AHL debut on Nov. 15th at Hershey. He hasn't played in the AHL since Dec. 28th at Springfield and is looking for his first AHL points. Rajaniemi, the New York Islanders' sixth-round pick (#183 overall) in 2020, could make his AHL debut today. He has four points (1g, 3a) in 34 ECHL games during his first season in North America.
AFFILIATES
New York Islanders (18-20-7): Last: 4-1 W vs. San Jose, Saturday -- Tonight vs. Columbus, 7:30 p.m. ET
Worcester Railers (16-17-2-4): Last: 4-3 OTL vs. Wheeling yesterday -- Next: Friday at Maine, 7:15 p.m. ET
• Discuss this story on the American Hockey League message board...
American Hockey League Stories from January 20, 2025
- Roadrunners Fall 5-4 in OT After Henderson's Last-Minute Comeback - Tucson Roadrunners
- Islanders Rally past Thunderbirds - Bridgeport Islanders
- Anaheim Ducks Reassign Sam Colangelo to San Diego - San Diego Gulls
- T-Birds Succumb to Pesky Islander Rally - Springfield Thunderbirds
- American Hockey League Announces Suspension - San Diego Gulls
- Gulls' Dionicio Suspended for One Game - AHL
- Set Fire to the Reign: Wranglers Defeat Reign 5-4 in Overtime - Calgary Wranglers
- Wolf Pack Recall Defenseman Case McCarthy from Loan to ECHL's Bloomington Bison - Hartford Wolf Pack
- Zac Funk Returns to Bears, Ryan Hofer Re-Assigned to Stingrays - Hershey Bears
- Crunch Downed by Comets, 2-1 - Syracuse Crunch
- Comets Win Afternoon Battle against Crunch, 2-1 - Utica Comets
- Weekly Report: Bumpy Stretch - Charlotte Checkers
- Sergei Murashov Recalled from Wheeling - Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins
- Wolf Pack Weekend Recap: January 20th, 2025 - Hartford Wolf Pack
- Belleville Senators Welcome John Mathers as New Vice President of Business Operations - Belleville Senators
- Räty Named Howies Hockey Tape/AHL Player of the Week - Abbotsford Canucks
- Abbotsford's Aatu Räty Named Howies Hockey Tape/AHL Player of the Week - AHL
- Belleville Sens Return Home from Tough Trip to Pennsylvania - Belleville Senators
- Bears Head to Canada - Hershey Bears
- Tampa Bay Lightning Recall Defenseman Max Crozier from Syracuse Crunch - Syracuse Crunch
- Preview: Islanders at Thunderbirds - Bridgeport Islanders
- Game #36 Preview: Tucson Roadrunners vs Henderson Silver Knights - Tucson Roadrunners
- Don't Miss IceHogs 14th Annual Autism Awareness Night Saturday Night - Rockford IceHogs
- Poturalski and Cagnoni's Big Night Not Enough in Loss at Canucks - San Jose Barracuda
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.
