Preview: Islanders vs. Thunderbirds
Mar 5, 2023THE STORY COMING IN
The Bridgeport Islanders (24-22-7-1) complete their season-long, six-game homestand this afternoon with a 3 p.m. matchup against the Springfield Thunderbirds (28-20-2-4) at Total Mortgage Arena. Last night, Bridgeport suffered a 9-0 loss to the Hartford Wolf Pack at home, allowing five goals in the second period alone and tying franchise records for most goals against in a game (nine) and fewest shots for in a game (11). The Islanders enter today’s action two points behind the Wolf Pack for the Atlantic Division’s final playoff spot with 18 games remaining in the regular season.
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WATCH: AHLTV.com
GAME AT A GLANCE
Today’s game is the 11th of 12 meetings between the Islanders and Thunderbirds this season, and the fifth of six in Connecticut. Bridgeport is 4-2-4-0 against Springfield this year and 2-1-1-0 in those games at home, including an impressive come-from-behind, 5-4 win in their last matchup on Feb. 18th. Dennis Cholowski tied it in the final minute of regulation and Otto Koivula scored the winning goal in overtime, as Bridgeport clawed back from a 4-1 deficit in the second period. Arnaud Durandeau, Samuel Bolduc, and Ruslan Iskhakov also found the back of the net, while Cory Schneider made 22 saves. T-Birds forward Martin Frk leads all players in the series with seven goals and 14 points.
VIEW FROM SPRINGFIELD
Drew Bannister’s team has won three straight games and holds down the fourth position in the Atlantic, five points behind Charlotte with one game in hand. Last night, the Thunderbirds downed the Checkers at home in a 4-1 final, led by Martin Frk’s two points (1g, 1a). Vadim Zherenko made 32 saves. Springfield’s parent club, the St. Louis Blues, made headlines in February with the acquisition of forwards Mikhail Abramov and Adam Gaudette, along with three draft picks including Toronto’s first-round choice this summer, in a multi-team trade that sent Ryan O’Reilly, Noel Acciari and Josh Pillar to Toronto.
RIP-ROARING RUSLAN
Ruslan Iskhakov has five goals and 12 points in his last eight games and remains tied with Iowa’s Sammy Walker for first among all AHL rookies in scoring. The All-Star winger earned his team-leading sixth three-point night of the season on Thursday and scored a goal for the second straight game, and fifth time in his last seven. Iskhakov has 43 points (14g, 29a) in 51 games this season. He also has 26 shots on goal, a plus-three rating, and four multi-point performances in his last eight games. Iskhakov has 11 points (4g, 7a) in 10 games against the Thunderbirds.
ANDREOFF HEATING UP
Andy Andreoff has points in four of his last five games (3g, 3a) and remains second on the Islanders in scoring with 44 points (23g, 21a) in 51 contests. Andreoff scored twice on Thursday and now leads the team with 23 goals this season, tied for 10th among all AHL players. The veteran center is just three goals and 11 points shy of his career highs set in 2018-19 with Syracuse. His nine power-play goals have already matched his career best.
QUICK HITS
The Islanders’ power play is 5-for-14 over the last five games (35.7%) and continues to rank second in the AHL at 23.9%... Bridgeport went 0-for-1 on the power play last night against Hartford and 1-for-4 on the penalty kill, allowing a season-high three goals on the man advantage... Chris Terry has 14 points (6g, 7a) in his last 14 games and is tied for 11th in the AHL’s scoring race with 51 points this season... Samuel Bolduc has seven points (2g, 5a) in his last seven games and shares 12th place among AHL defensemen in scoring (career-high 33 points).
AFFILIATES
New York Islanders (32-25-8): Last 4-1 W vs. Detroit, yesterday -- Next: Tuesday vs. Buffalo, 7:30 p.m. ET
Worcester Railers (28-25-3-0): Last: 5-2 L vs. Newfoundland, last night -- Next: Today at Maine, 3 p.m. ET