Preview: Islanders at Penguins
Feb 19, 2023THE STORY COMING IN
The Bridgeport Islanders (21-19-7-1) make their final trip to Mohegan Sun Arena at Casey Plaza during the regular season, facing off against the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (21-20-2-5) at 3:05 p.m. today. The Islanders will try for their third straight win and the weekend sweep of Atlantic Division opponents after victories against Hartford and Springfield so far. Bridgeport holds the sixth and final playoff spot in the division, one point ahead of both Hartford and Wilkes-Barre/Scranton with 24 games remaining.
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WATCH: AHLTV.com
A NIGHT TO REMEMBER
Dennis Cholowski’s first goal as an Islander tied it in the final minute of regulation, and Otto Koivula had the winning goal in overtime, as Bridgeport stunned Springfield with four unanswered tallies to steal a 5-4 come-from-behind victory at Total Mortgage Arena last night. Arnaud Durandeau, Samuel Bolduc, and Ruslan Iskhakov also found the back of the net, while Cory Schneider (14-5-3) stopped 22 shots. Bolduc earned three points (1g, 2a), Iskhakov scored once and added a helper, and William Dufour chipped in a career-high three assists.
GAME AT A GLANCE
Today’s game is the fifth of six meetings between the Islanders and Penguins this season, and the third of three in Pennsylvania. Each team has won twice in regulation overall and once in Wilkes-Barre. The Penguins earned a 3-1 win at home in their last meeting Jan. 28th. Wilkes-Barre/Scranton forwards Drake Caggiula and Alex Nylander lead all players in the series with four points (1g, 3a) apiece.
VIEW FROM WILKES-BARRE
The Penguins let a late lead slip away in a 4-3 shootout loss to the Lehigh Valley Phantoms on the road last night. Drake Caggiula, Alex Nylander and Valtteri Puustinen all scored, and Taylor Gauthier (6-2-2) made 34 saves. Wilkes-Barre/Scranton went 2-for-4 on the power play and 3-for-3 on the penalty kill. Puustinen leads the offense with 42 points, while he and Nylander are tied for first with 20 goals.
RED HOT RUSLAN
Ruslan Iskhakov has five points in two games this weekend (1g, 4a), compiling back-to-back multi-point performances including one goal and one assist last night. He registered three assists in Hartford on Friday and now has 11 multi-point efforts this season. The 2023 AHL All-Star is third on the Islanders in scoring (36 points) and shares sixth among League rookies in that category. He is second among AHL rookies in assists (26).
OTTO IN OT
Otto Koivula has scored in back-to-back games including the overtime winner just 1:15 into the extra session last night. It was his 12th goal of the season and his second game winner. It’s also the third time this season that Koivula has scored in two consecutive games, as he looks for his first three-game goal streak today. Last night’s tally was Koivula’s 56th career goal with Bridgeport, tying him with Mike Halmo (2011-16) for ninth on the team’s all-time list.
QUICK HITS
The Islanders outshot Springfield 45-26 last night and won for the first time when recording at least 40 shots (1-2-2)... Bridgeport went 1-for-5 on the power play and 1-for-3 on the penalty kill, winning for the first time this season when allowing two goals on the man advantage... Chris Terry has 11 points (4g, 7a) in the last eight games despite behind held scoreless in three of those contests... He shares eighth among all AHL players in assists (33) and is tied for ninth in points (48).
AFFILIATES
New York Islanders (28-24-7): Last: 6-2 L at Boston, last night -- Next: Tomorrow at Pittsburgh, 7 p.m. ET
Worcester Railers (25-21-3-0): Last: 5-3 W at Norfolk, Friday