Sound Tigers Host Bruins this Morning
April 3, 2018 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Bridgeport Islanders News Release
BRIDGEPORT, Conn. - The Bridgeport Sound Tigers (34-27-5-3), proud AHL affiliate of the New York Islanders, host the Providence Bruins (41-23-3-2) at 10:30 a.m. for the annual Spring Fun 102 school-day game, presented by IBEW Local Union 488. The Sound Tigers enter today's contest eight points outside of a playoff spot with seven games left, trailing only the Charlotte Checkers who play in Lehigh Valley tonight. Bridgeport also has one game in hand on Charlotte with an elimination number of "six."
RADIO: www.bit.ly/BSTRadio
ONLINE VIDEO: www.ahllive.com
LAST TIME OUT
The Sound Tigers scored twice on the power play, twice at even strength, and once shorthanded in a 5-1 win against the Hartford Wolf Pack on Saturday. Kyle Schempp, Connor Jones, Mitch Vande Sompel, Ben Holmstrom and Steve Bernier all found the back of the cage, and Sebastian Aho tied a career high with three helpers, while Eamon McAdam (4-1-0) made 32 saves. Bridgeport has now scored at least five goals in three of its last four games.
TIGERS VS. BRUINS
Today's game features the 11th of 12 meetings between the Sound Tigers and Bruins this season, and the fifth of six matchups at Webster Bank Arena. Bridgeport is 5-4-0-1 against Providence thus far, but the Bruins have won each of the last four meetings after the Sound Tigers took five of the first six. The last two contests have ended in regulation, including Providence's 4-1 win at Dunkin' Donuts Center on March 18, in which Bridgeport guided 45 shots at Zane McIntyre, but only John Stevens could beat him 16 seconds into the second period. Josh Ho-Sang leads Bridgeport in the season series with seven points (one goal, six assists) in eight games.
VIEW FROM PROVIDENCE
Jay Leach's team can clinch a berth in the 2018 Calder Cup Playoffs with a regulation win this morning. The third-place Bruins have an 11-point lead over of the Sound Tigers in the Atlantic Division standings and are coming off a 3-1 victory against the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins on Saturday. Adam Payerl, Trent Frederic and Jordan Szwarz each scored for Providence, while Austin Czarnik notched his team-leading 62nd point with an assist - third in the AHL's scoring race. Between the pipes, Jordan Binnington made 34 saves and improved to second in the league with a 1.94 goals-against-average, and third with a .931 save percentage.
BAILEY'S BEST YEAR
Casey Bailey has 13 points (five goals, eight assists) in his last 13 games and with two helpers in Saturday's 5-1 victory at Hartford, the Penn State University product set a new career high with 38 points (15 goals, 23 assists) this season. A team-best 20 of those points have come on the man advantage (8 goals, 12 assists) and the Sound Tigers have now scored at least one power-play goal in nine of their last 13 games. In addition, Bailey leads the club with 190 shots (seventh in the league) and is tied for first with four game-winning goals. He is expected to play his 200th AHL game this morning.
HITCHED
Long Island native Ryan Hitchcock signed an amateur tryout (ATO) with Bridgeport on March 8 and he's been on fire ever since. The rookie forward, who celebrated his 22nd birthday on Friday, has eight points (two goals, six assists) in nine pro games and scored his first goal just over a week ago in Wilkes-Barre, Penn (Mar. 25). Three of his nine pro games have featured multi-point performances. Prior to turning pro, Hitchcock recorded a career-best 20 points (seven goals, 13 assists) in 31 games as Yale University's captain earlier this season.
QUICK HITS
Travis St. Denis has 16 points (nine goals, seven assists) in his last 14 games and continues to lead the Sound Tigers with 22 goals and 43 points this season... Josh Ho-Sang has eight points (three goals, five assists) in his last 12 outings... Ben Holmstrom moved into sole possession of 10th place on the Sound Tigers' all-time games played list (221) when he took the ice on Saturday in Hartford... All 221 of those have come in consecutive contests, which is the AHL's longest active streak... The Sound Tigers are 0-1-1-0 when starting before noon this season... Sebastian Aho has six points (all assists) in five games since being loaned by the New York Islanders on Mar. 22.
AFFILIATE REPORT
NHL: New York Islanders (32-37-10): Next vs. Philadelphia Flyers - Tonight, 7 p.m. ET
ECHL: Worcester Railers (35-26-4-4): Next at Reading Royals - Tomorrow, 7 p.m. ET
Don't Go It Alone: Whether it's a corporate outing, a fundraiser, or just friends getting together, a group outing with the Sound Tigers will guarantee an unforgettable experience filled with fast-paced action on the ice, great music, promotions and contests at an affordable price. The Sound Tigers have a variety of packages and promotional events to offer. Please call the team's front office at 203-345-2300 ext. 7 for more information on the benefits of bringing your group to a future game!
American Hockey League Stories from April 3, 2018
- Admirals Get Important Win over Chicago - Milwaukee Admirals
- Iowa Shutout by Cleveland 4-0 - Iowa Wild
- Late Comeback Falls Short in 5-3 Loss to Penguins - Hershey Bears
- Monsters Coast to 4-0 Win over Wild - Cleveland Monsters
- Checkers Rally in Potential Playoff Preview - Lehigh Valley Phantoms
- Lafferty Nets First Pro Goal in Penguins' 5-3 Defeat of Bears - Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins
- Checkers Rally to Top First-Place Phantoms - Charlotte Checkers
- Game Preview: Condors Host Ontario Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. - Bakersfield Condors
- Barracuda Sign Forward Ivan Chekhovich to ATO - San Jose Barracuda
- Roadrunners and Banner Health Join Forces for Superhero Night - Tucson Roadrunners
- Capitals Recall Bowey and Boyd from Hershey - Hershey Bears
- Admirals Fan Appreciation Month Begins Wednesday - Milwaukee Admirals
- Syracuse Crunch Weekly - Syracuse Crunch
- Wolf Pack Sign Forward Evan Jasper to PTO - Hartford Wolf Pack
- New Jersey Assigns First-Round Pick McLeod to Binghamton - Binghamton Devils
- Forward Carsen Twarynski Signed to ATO - Lehigh Valley Phantoms
- Anaheim Ducks Announce Roster Move - San Diego Gulls
- St. Denis, Bailey and Jones all score in front of 7,451 fans on Tuesday morning - Bridgeport Islanders
- Checkers Announce Pet Weekend on April 7 and 8 - Charlotte Checkers
- Barracuda Release Caleb Herbert and Sam Warning from PTO - San Jose Barracuda
- Tom McCollum Recalled by Red Wings - Grand Rapids Griffins
- Vegas NHL Draft Pick Hague Joins Wolves - Chicago Wolves
- Belleville Senators Announce Special Fan Appreciation Games - Belleville Senators
- Bid on Hawaiian Night Jerseys - Rockford IceHogs
- Griffins Sign Marcus Crawford to Two-Year Deal - Grand Rapids Griffins
- Sabres Recall Nylander, Porter from Amerks - Rochester Americans
- Phantoms Weekly - Lehigh Valley Phantoms
- Weekly Wrap-Up - Toronto Marlies
- P-Bruins Miss Chance to Clinch Postseason Spot in 3-2 Loss - Providence Bruins
- Tickets for First Round of 2018 Calder Cup Playoffs on Sale Now - Syracuse Crunch
- Game Preview: Bears Hit I-81 to Battle Penguins - Hershey Bears
- Amerks, Monroe County Partner for Refresh Recycling Night April 11 - Rochester Americans
- Checkers, Extreme Ice Center Launch "Mini Checkers" - Charlotte Checkers
- Devils Ink Defenseman Tariq Hammond to ATO - Binghamton Devils
- Chris Terry Named CCM/AHL Player of the Month - Laval Rocket
- Christoffer Ehn Reassigned to Griffins - Grand Rapids Griffins
- T-Birds Make First Ever Stop in Belleville Wednesday - Springfield Thunderbirds
- Senators Reassign Formenton to Belleville - Belleville Senators
- Sound Tigers Host Bruins this Morning - Bridgeport Islanders
- Delia Assigned, Glass Recalled - Rockford IceHogs
- Week 26 Report: Hogs Win 4th Straight, Close in on Playoffs - Rockford IceHogs
- Pirri Returns to the NHL - 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.
