The Bridgeport Report: Week 10
Dec 21, 2021The Bridgeport Islanders (9-14-1-3) pocketed three points in three games last week, highlighted by their largest margin of victory in a 5-1 win against the Charlotte Checkers on Saturday. Bridgeport faced the Checkers twice and the Providence Bruins once, beginning a stretch of 21 straight games within the Atlantic Division.
Cole Bardreau scored a goal in all three games, while defenseman Grant Hutton had three assists for the New York Islanders’ American Hockey League affiliate. Jakub Skarek (6-7-2) and Cory Schneider (3-6-1) both occupied the crease in at least one game.
Schneider was sharp in his 10th appearance of the season on Wednesday, making 29 saves and stopping four of five shootout attempts against the Providence Bruins. He kept the Islanders close from start to finish, but it wasn’t enough in a 2-1 shootout loss at Webster Bank Arena to cap a five-game homestand. Despite the setback, Schneider extended his unbeaten in regulation streak to four games (3-0-1).
The Islanders went from scoring one goal on Wednesday to five on Saturday, beating Charlotte 5-1 in their first trip to North Carolina. Five players found the back of the net including three goals in the first period from Bardreau, Jeff Kubiak and Blade Jenkins. Michael Dal Colle and Chris Terry each lit the lamp in the third, while Skarek made 28 saves. The victory was not only Bridgeport’s largest of the season, but it also gave the club its first two-game win streak on the road (4-1 win at Lehigh Valley, Nov. 27th).
Bardreau’s fourth goal of the season and third in as many games gave the Islanders a third-period lead in their rematch with the Checkers on Sunday, but Bridgeport came up short in a 3-1 loss at Bojangles Coliseum to end the weekend. All three of Charlotte’s goals came in the third - each in a different situation. The Checkers scored once on the power play, once at even strength, and added an empty netter in the final 62 seconds.
The seventh-place Islanders tangle with the Hartford Wolf Pack (13-6-2-1) tomorrow night in their final game before the holiday break. Puck drop is scheduled for 7 p.m. inside the XL Center in Hartford. Fans can follow all of the live action via the Bridgeport Islanders Radio Network and AHLTV.
The Week Ahead
Wednesday, Dec. 22 at Hartford Wolf Pack (7 p.m.) - The Islanders face the New York Rangers’ affiliate for the sixth time this season and their third of six games at the XL Center. Bridgeport is 1-4-0-0 against Hartford this year, earning a 3-2 win on Nov. 7th at home. The Wolf Pack recorded a 4-3 victory in their last head-to-head battle on Nov. 17th in Hartford.
Ice Chips
Goal Bardreau: Cole Bardreau has four goals in nine games this season after leading the club with 10 goals in 24 contests last year. He has scored in three straight for the first time since Mar. 10, 2016 - Mar. 16, 2018 and for the third time in his pro career. It ties the longest goal streak for any Bridgeport player this season. Bardreau, who signed a new two-year, two-way contract with New York in September, is three games shy of #300 in the AHL.
Hutton’s Helping Hand: Grant Hutton has five points (one goal, four assists) in his last five games, including a team-high three helpers last weekend. He is Bridgeport’s top goal scorer among blue-liners (three) and had put together a four-game point streak that came to an end on Sunday.
Back and on the Board: Michael Dal Colle and Erik Brown both returned to the lineup on Saturday and made an immediate impact after missing at least a handful of games. Dal Colle recorded his third goal and fifth point in just six games after missing more than a month due to injury. Brown logged an assist in both games against Charlotte after missing five in a row. His hustle in transition and behind the Checkers’ net set up Bardreau’s first-period tally on Saturday, which occurred a 2:17 – the quickest goal that the Islanders have scored this season.
Quick Hits: Chris Terry has 11 points (three goals, eight assists) in his last 10 games… His team-leading ninth goal and sixth multi-point game of the season occurred in his 649th AHL appearance on Saturday… Thomas Hickey, who earned a plus-four rating on Saturday, is two games shy of his 700th pro contest… Simon Holmstrom is three games away from his 100th as a pro… The Islanders have scored first in three straight games after allowing the opening goal in five of their first 24.
Team Leaders
Goals: Chris Terry (9)
Assists: Otto Koivula (14)
Points: Chris Terry (22)
Plus/Minus: Michael Dal Colle, Seth Helgeson, Jeff Kubiak (+4)
Penalty Minutes: Seth Helgeson (37)
Shots: Chris Terry (82)
Games Played: Simon Holmstrom, Kyle MacLean (27)
Wins: Jakub Skarek (6)
Across the Sound: The New York Islanders (8-12-6) earned a point in a 4-3 shootout loss to the Vegas Golden Knights on Sunday afternoon at UBS Arena. Bridgeport grads Brock Nelson and Kieffer Bellows both scored, and Jean-Gabriel Pageau gave the Islanders a late lead, but it wasn’t quite enough in New York’s quest for a third straight home win. It was the Islanders’ final game prior to Christmas as the NHL announced an extended holiday break on Monday.