Bridgeport Briefs: Best Weekend Of Season
Every week, our pal George will be providing Islanders fans with the latest out of Bridgeport.
With the New York Islanders off today, traveling to Detroit for their road trip finale, it’s a great time to introduce you all to George Andros.
You may not recognize the name, but you may recognize his Bridgeport Islanders X account @Notaburneraccou, as he’s been the go-to guy sharing Bridgeport’s lineups, notes, and insights daily.
I’m incredibly excited to welcome him to The Elmonters team. He’ll provide Bridgeport coverage for us in various forms.
Enjoy this new weekly segment, where George gives us the Bridgeport rundown.
Bridgeport Briefs: Best Weekend Of Season
Bridgeport took down the top 2 teams in the division this weekend, including the back-to-back Calder Cup champions, the Hershey Bears (11-4-1-0) and the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (8-4-1-0). They accomplished this feat without the likes of their third-leading scorer and top-line mainstay, Alex Jefferies.
Pennsylvania was not kind to Bridgeport last year. They were a combined 2-6 in the state last season, including 0-3 in Hershey, 0-2 in Wilkes-Barre, and 2-1 in Allentown (Lehigh Valley). With these 2 wins, they have already matched their win total within the Keystone State borders from last season.
All-time Bridgeport games played leader Seth Helgeson was signed to a PTO on Monday. He will bring (even if only temporary) much-needed experience to a blueline with 4 rookies, including Cam McDonald, who made his AHL debut this past weekend. Of all the defensemen on the Bridgeport roster, only Sam Bolduc had NHL experience. It is possible that one of Travis Mitchell or Grant Hutton will be reassigned over the next few days, with the return from injury of Alex Romanov to the parent New York Islanders. The addition of Helgeson gives them 8 blueliners, and it is probably unlikely they would roster more than that.
Calle Odelius had a smooth bounce back (1 assist, +1 rating) this weekend after 2 costly turnovers in the 11/9 game against Providence.
Wyatt Newpower took over the QB spot on the top PP unit this weekend for Odelius and immediately seemed to take the reigns. He notched a power-play assist on Frederik Karlstrom’s 7th goal of the season, which occurred in the 1st period of the Hershey game. Newpower, a 6’4, 210 lb Uconn alumnus, profiles as more of a stay-at-home defenseman, but with 7 pts in 15 games this season (already equaling his point total from the prior 2 individual seasons), may have turned a corner in his offensive development too.
Fellow Uconn alumnus Marc Gatcomb netted a backhand goal against Hershey – extending his 4-game goal streak (temporarily, as he didn’t score Sunday against Wilkes-Barre). Like Newpower, Gatcomb has 7 points in 15 games this season and has earned a steady role on the penalty kill.
Matt Maggio scored his first goal of the season on a slick toe-drag assist from veteran Chris Terry, who was playing in his 1000th professional game on Saturday. Maggio responded well to getting scratched last weekend, as he notched a goal and 2 assists on the Pennsylvania weekend trip.
Goaltending was strong this weekend: Skarek went 28/29 against Hershey, while Hogberg went 29/31 against Wilkes-Barre. Both goaltenders are now at a .900 SV% (Skarek) or around it (Hogberg - .890). As X-user @joey_mcauliffe8 pointed out, Bridgeport was the only team in the AHL with zero qualified goaltenders with SV% over .900. While Tikkanen and Appleby both finished above, their sample size was too small to qualify. More goaltending appearances like the ones this weekend from the Skarek/Hogberg tandem would do wonders to help a team missing 3 of its opening-night defensemen due to callups.
Brian Pinho continues to pace the offense. Last season’s 2nd-leading scorer paired a goal with 3 assists this weekend. He leads the team with 16 points in 15 games this season.
Veterans Frederik Karlstrom and Cole Bardreau also raised their games in the absence of Jefferies this weekend. Each found the back of the net twice, with Karlstrom scoring the game-winner against Hershey and Bardreau, adding 2 insurance markers against Wilkes-Barre.
Despite the 2 wins, Bridgeport still sits at the bottom of the Atlantic division (4-9-1-1), four points behind Providence for the sixth playoff spot.
ISLANDERS NEWS
Islanders Collecting Points To Stay Alive In Wide-Open Wildcard Race Despite Critical Injuries - THN
Islanders Should Send Down Grant Hutton Over Travis Mitchell With Alex Romanov Back - THN
With Islanders' Injured Players Not Skating Yet, Depth Will Continue To Be Tested - THN
Islanders Prospect Cole Eiserman Named Hockey East Rookie Of The Week - THN
Bo Horvat's Role In The Bounce-Back Of Islanders Captain Anders Lee - THN
