Game Day: Islanders vs. Checkers
Feb 8, 2025THE STORY COMING IN
The Bridgeport Islanders (10-31-2-2) host the Charlotte Checkers (25-13-3-2) in their first of five home games during the month of February, with puck drop scheduled for 7 p.m. inside Total Mortgage Arena. Last night, the Islanders returned from the All-Star break and ended a three-game road trip with a 3-0 loss to Tristan Jarry and the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins. It was the Islanders’ fifth straight defeat. Jarry made 31 saves to hand Bridgeport its fifth shutout loss of the season and second in Wilkes-Barre, Penn. Leading scorer Chris Terry saw his five-game point streak come to an end, but still has eight points in his last six contests (5g, 3a) since Jan. 24, and enters the night tied for sixth in the AHL’s scoring race (40 points).
Watch tonight's game live: AHLTV on FloHockey
Listen to tonight's radio broadcast: Mixlr
ISLANDERS VS. CHECKERS
Tonight’s game is the seventh of eight meetings between the Islanders and Checkers this season, and the third of four in Connecticut. Bridgeport is 1-4-0-1 against Charlotte so far, but recorded a 4-1 victory at Bojangles Coliseum in their last meeting on Dec. 22. Brian Pinho, Liam Foudy, Chris Terry, and Alex Jefferies all scored, while Pinho added two assists for a game-high three points. Jakub Skarek, who remains on call-up with the New York Islanders, made 29 saves that night. Bridgeport is 0-1-0-1 in two previous meetings against Charlotte at Total Mortgage Arena.
VIEW FROM CHARLOTTE
Charlotte exited the All-Star break with a 3-0 win against the Hartford Wolf Pack at XL Center last night. Rookie goaltender Cooper Black made 20 saves for his fourth consecutive victory and his third shutout of the season, tied for fifth most in the AHL. Teammate and former Islander Ken Appleby is tied for the league lead with four shutouts in 17 appearances. Will Lockwood scored a goal for the fourth straight game (4g, 2a), while fellow Checkers forward Rasmus Asplund also scored to extend his point streak to five games (2g, 4a). The Florida Panthers’ affiliate has won four of its last five games and is tied for second in the division with Providence (55 points). Head coach Geordie Kinnear served as the Atlantic Division’s bench boss during the 2025 AHL All-Star Classic this past weekend in Palm Desert, Calif.
POWER UP
The Islanders had scored a power-play goal in seven straight games before going 0-for-1 last Saturday in Hershey. Even with that outcome and a 0-for-2 performance last night, Bridgeport has recorded 13 power-play goals in its last 15 games, raising its success rate to 17.8% on the season (30-for-169, 16th in the AHL). Chris Terry continues to lead the Islanders in power-play goals (7) and his 19 power-play points are tied for second in the AHL behind Charlotte’s Trevor Carrick, who has 20.
CURIOUS GEORGE
Twenty-year-old defenseman Isaiah George returned to the AHL last Saturday after a 33-game stint with the New York Islanders. He made an immediate impact, scoring Bridgeport’s earliest goal on the road this season just 2:11 into the contest against Hershey. He also logged an assist for his first pro multi-point game. George, the Islanders’ fourth-round draft pick in 2022, has four points (2g, 2a) in six AHL games and five points (1g, 4a) in 33 NHL appearances. He made his NHL debut on Nov. 5 against Pittsburgh and scored his first NHL goal on Dec. 21 at Toronto.
QUICK HITS
Liam Foudy posted a team-high six shots last night, and leads the Islanders with 136 shots this year... Sam Bolduc has 12 points in the last nine games (2g, 10a)... He has four multi-point efforts during that span... Bridgeport grad Marc Gatcomb scored his third NHL goal in his 11th game with New York last night in Winnipeg... Charlotte’s Trevor Carrick is tied for the most points among AHL defensemen (34).
AFFILIATES
New York Islanders (25-22-7): Last: 4-3 L at Winnipeg, last night -- Next: Tonight at Minnesota, 8 p.m. ET
Worcester Railers (20-19-2-4): Last: 3-2 OTW vs. Atlanta, last night -- Next: Tonight vs. Atlanta, 6:05 p.m. ET