Preview: Islanders vs. Wolf Pack
Mar 18, 2023THE STORY COMING IN
The Bridgeport Islanders (28-24-7-1) look for their second win of the weekend as they host the Hartford Wolf Pack (25-24-4-7) at 7 p.m. inside Total Mortgage Arena. Last night was the Andy Andreoff show in a 5-2 victory against the Syracuse Crunch. The veteran forward earned his second hat trick of the season and the third of his pro career, while adding an assist to match his career high for points in a single game (3g, 1a). Andreoff’s 29 goals this season lead all AHL players. Chris Terry also had a big night with three points (1g, 2a) and Jakub Skarek (11-13-3) made 28 saves. With the victory and Hartford’s regulation loss to Springfield, the Islanders now hold the Atlantic Division’s final playoff spot by three points. Both Bridge-port and Hartford have 12 games left in the regular season.
TICKETS: Buy now!
LISTEN: https://bit.ly/BridgeportIslanders
WATCH: AHLTV.com
GAME AT A GLANCE
Tonight’s game is the 10th of 12 meetings between the Islanders and Wolf Pack this season, and the final matchup at Total Mortgage Arena. Bridgeport is 5-4-0-0 against Hartford and 3-2-0-0 in those games at home, but the Wolf Pack have taken each of the last two meetings overall by a combined 16-5 score. Hartford beat Bridgeport on Wednesday in a 7-5 final at XL Center. There have been 79 total goals in the series and the winning team has scored at least four goals each time. Surprisingly, only one of the previous nine meetings have been decided by one goal.
VIEW FROM HARTFORD
The Wolf Pack blew a two-goal lead in the third period last night and fell to the Thunderbirds at home, 4-2. Anton Blidh and Will Cuylle each scored in the first period, but Springfield rallied with four goals on five shots in the third to steal the victory and move into sole possession of fourth place. Dylan Garand (11-12-3) made 22 saves on 25 shots. Cuylle leads Hartford with 21 goals and 37 points in 57 games, and enters tonight’s tilt on a three-game point streak (2g, 3a). Former Bridgeport forward Tanner Fritz paces the team in assists (27).
ANDREOFF’S BIG RUN
Andy Andreoff has scored in three straight games, with five goals total during that span. Last night’s hat trick not only gives him a new career high, but his 29 goals lead all players in the AHL this season. He is tied for sixth in the league with 11 power-play goals. Andreoff has seven points (6g, 1a) in his last five games and is second on the Islanders in scoring (51 points) behind Chris Terry.
TERRY HITS 60
Chris Terry earned his fifth three-point effort and his team-leading 16th multi-point game of the season last night, reaching the 60-point mark for the eighth time in his AHL career. Terry has nine points (2g, 7a) in his last six games and leads the Islanders in points (60) and assists (41). He is tied for sixth in the AHL’s scoring race this season and his 673 career AHL points rank 31st all-time. He scored his 282nd career AHL goal last night, passing Mark Lofthouse (1977-89) for sole possession of 28th place all-time. He can tie Michel Picard (1989-04) for 27th place tonight (283 goals).
QUICK HITS
Today is Cory Schneider’s 37th birthday... He becomes the oldest goaltender to start a game in team history... Robin Salo is expected to play his 100th North American game tonight between the NHL and AHL... Ruslan Iskhakov leads all AHL rookies in scoring with 46 points (15g, 31a) in 57 games... The Islanders’ power play is second in the AHL (23.5%) and 8-for-25 against the Wolf Pack (32.0%)... After tonight, the Islanders don’t play at home until Sunday, Apr. 2nd against Lehigh Valley.
AFFILIATES
New York Islanders (35-27-8): Last: 6-3 W at Anaheim, Wednesday -- Next: Tonight at San Jose, 10:30 p.m. ET
Worcester Railers (31-26-3-0): Last: 4-3 W at Maine, last night -- Next: Tonight vs. Maine, 7:05 p.m. ET