Preview: Islanders at Senators
Mar 16, 2024THE STORY COMING IN
The Bridgeport Islanders (20-32-6-1) finish their Canadian road swing tonight with a 7 p.m. puck drop against the Belleville Senators (29-24-2-3) at CAA Arena. It’s the third of three games north of the border, and the Islanders’ only trip to Ontario this season. Bridgeport is looking to snap a three-game skid after a 3-1 loss in Laval last night. Ruslan Iskhakov scored the Islanders’ lone goal just 1:57 into the contest, his team-leading 16th of the season, but the offense slowed down after that. The Islanders are 11 points outside of a playoff spot with 13 games remaining.
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ISLANDERS VS. SENATORS
Tonight’s game is the second of two meetings between the Islanders and Senators this season, and the lone matchup at CAA Arena. Bridgeport earned a 4-2 win at Total Mortgage Arena on Nov. 26th, when Kyle MacLean scored twice, and Ruslan Iskhakov and Travis Mitchell each recorded one goal and one assist. Jared Lukosevicius had two goals for the Senators. The Islanders skated to a 5-2 win in their last trip to CAA Arena on Mar. 24, 2023. Dennis Cholowski matched an AHL career high with three assists that night.
VIEW FROM BELLEVILLE
The Senators have lost three of their last four games, and four of their last six, falling to within one point of the playoff cutoff in the North Division. Last night, Belleville suffered a 4-2 loss in Syracuse despite Angus Crookshank’s 24th goal of the season and Garret Pilon’s 14th. Mads Sogaard (14-8-2) made 27 saves. Crookshank is currently riding an eight-game point streak at home, the longest active streak in the AHL. Sogaard is ninth in the AHL with a 2.45 GAA through 26 appearances.
DESTINATION ONTARIO
Windsor, Ontario native Matt Maggio will play his first professional game in his home province tonight. He is one of two players from Ontario, along with North Bay’s Ken Appleby. Maggio scored a goal in three straight games to begin March and currently shares second on the team in goals (13), and is tied for seventh in points (21). Appleby, who is 7-9-0 with a 3.18 GAA this season, is expected to back up for Henrik Tikkanen tonight.
TIKI TIME
Henrik Tikkanen is expected to make his 16th AHL appearance tonight. He has allowed two goals or fewer in nine of his last 11 appearances including a perfect 15-save effort in relief on Wednesday. He has won three of his last four starts and is tied with Ken Appleby for the team lead in wins (7).
QUICK HITS
Tyce Thompson has four points in his last six games (2g, 2a)... William Dufour has five points in seven games this month (3g, 2a)... Julien Gauthier is one game shy of his 200th AHL appearance... The Islanders have scored one goal or fewer in two straight contests and 21 of their 59 games.
AFFILIATES
New York Islanders (29-22-14): Last: 4-0 L at Buffalo, last night -- Next: Today vs. Ottawa, 12:30 p.m. ET
Worcester Railers (25-26-4-3): Last: 2-1 SOL vs. Reading, last night -- Next: Tonight vs. Adirondack, 7:05 p.m. ET