Durandeau Enjoying Career Year with Isles
Mar 12, 2023By Dalton Rice | Bridgeport Islanders
Arnaud Durandeau was in the middle of a scorching stretch with the Bridgeport Islanders, when the New York Islanders came calling.
The 24-year-old had six goals in six games following an early tally against Springfield on Feb. 18th, and within a matter of 48 hours, he became the sixth Bridgeport skater to make his NHL debut this season.
“I called my whole family on FaceTime right away to tell them,” Durandeau said. “That was a special call for sure.”
Upon arrival in Pittsburgh for his Feb. 20th debut, where the Islanders were set to face off with the Penguins, multiple NHL regulars reached out to Durandeau, including Jean-Gabriel Pageau, a fellow French-Canadian, who texted the Montreal native offering congratulations and some words of advice.
Durandeau registered four shots on goal to go with a plus-1 in 14:09 of ice time and made three more appearances with New York, totaling 37:51 minutes of playing time with five shots on goal before being returned to Bridgeport on Mar. 2nd.
“My first game was great; I played a lot of minutes with (Casey) Cizikas and (Hudson) Fasching who are two great pros and I got a few chances,” Durandeau said. “I think my first stint went really well.”
Durandeau didn’t just earn the callup with one hot stretch, but rather by building his game through 151 AHL contests.
Development has been the name of Durandeau’s game, even looking back to his four years in the QMJHL where the six-foot-tall speedster grew his point totals every season, reaching over a point-per-game (73 in 68 appearances) in his final season.
Durandeau turned pro for the 2019-20 season, tallying eight points in 21 games with Bridgeport and eight in 15 games with the Worcester Railers of the ECHL. He only played 14 games in the shortened season in 2020-21 and came back with 15 goals and 22 assists last year, setting his career high.
“Of course, getting more opportunities helps, especially playing with guys like Andy (Andreoff), (Chris) Terry, (William) Dufour and (Otto)Koivula who are great players,” Durandeau said. “It is my fourth year and I can feel that confidence growing.”
Durandeau is nearing those career highs that he set last season in 64 games played. With 16 games left on the schedule, Durandeau needs just one goal and three assists to surpass his totals from the 2021-22 season.
“A call-up can happen whenever, so I just need to keep playing my game, getting better defensively, working on being consistent and really anything to help the team down here in Bridgeport,” he said.