Islanders Face Penguins, Checkers at Home

Feb 26, 2022

The Bridgeport Islanders (18-22-5-4) open a four-game homestand this weekend with back-to-back contests against the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (tonight, 7 p.m.) and Charlotte Checkers (tomorrow, 3 p.m.). Three of the four games will be against the Penguins, who currently hold the sixth and final playoff spot in the Atlantic Division (.500). Bridgeport sits eighth in the division (.459). Tonight is game #50 of 72 during the Islanders’ 2021-22 regular season.

 

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LAST TIME OUT

The Islanders came up short in a 5-3 loss to the Springfield Thunderbirds at MassMutual Center on Wednesday. Ken Appleby (1-4-3) made an AHL career-best 45 saves, as Bridgeport allowed a season-high 50 shots against, but it wasn’t enough to beat the Atlantic Division’s top team. Mackenzie MacEachern scored twice for Springfield, while Grant Hutton, Collin Adams and Paul Thompson had the goals for Bridgeport.

 

ISLANDERS VS. PENGUINS

Tonight’s game is the second of six meetings between the Islanders and Penguins this season, and the first of three in Connecticut. Wilkes-Barre/Scranton earned a 4-3 win in the series opener on Feb. 4th, despite multi-point efforts from Erik Brown (one goal, one assist) and Collin Adams (two assists). The Penguins haven’t visited Webster Bank Arena since Feb. 15, 2020, when Simon Holmstrom scored twice including the game-winner at 9:38 of the third period to lift Bridgeport to a 3-2 victory.

 

VIEW FROM WILKES-BARRE

The Penguins (21-21-2-4) are unbeaten in regulation in three straight games (2-0-0-1), but just 4-4-1-1 over their last 10. J.D. Forrest’s club earned one point in a 3-2 shootout loss against the Lehigh Valley Phantoms on Wednesday, but let a 2-0 lead slip away in the setback. Valtteri Puustinen leads the team with 30 points (15 goals, 15 assists) in 47 games, while Alexander Nylander paces the Penguins in goals (16).  

 

ISLANDERS VS. CHECKERS

The Islanders and Checkers square off for the eighth and final time this season on Sunday afternoon. Bridgeport is 3-3-0-1 in the series following a two-game split in North Carolina on Feb. 11-12. The Islanders have points in two of the three previous meetings at Webster Bank Arena (1-1-0-1).

 

VIEW FROM CHARLOTTE

The Checkers (26-19-3-0) play three games in three days this weekend and opened their busy stretch with a 5-1 loss to the Providence Bruins on the road last night. Alexander True scored his 11th goal of the season to avoid a shutout after the Bruins led 5-0 late in the third period. Charlotte sits fifth in the Atlantic Division and is 5-4-1-0 over its last 10 games. They face Springfield tonight before finishing the weekend in Bridgeport on Sunday.

 

HELGESON HITS #500

Seth Helgeson played his 500th AHL game on Wednesday. The 31-year-old Islanders captain is in his fifth season with Bridgeport and his 10th in the AHL overall, having spent the first five seasons with Albany. Helgeson has 83 points (13 goals, 70 assists) and 732 penalty minutes in 500 regular-season games since his AHL debut on Apr. 13, 2013. He became the third player on Bridgeport’s active roster to hit 500 AHL games, joining Chris Terry (666) and Paul Thompson (629).

 

KOIVULA’S HELPING HAND

Otto Koivula assisted on both of Bridgeport’s goals in a 2-0 win against Hartford on Sunday, and earned his team-leading 25th helper of the season on Wednesday. He has recorded an assist in more than half of his appearances this season (21 / 41) and shares 18th place among all AHL players in helpers. He is second on the Islanders in scoring this season, one point behind Chris Terry (36).

 

QUICK HITS

Andy Andreoff has points in four consecutive games for the second time this season (two goals, two assists)... Paul Thompson has three goals in his last six games... Jakub Skarek is fifth in the AHL in minutes played (1,558:43) and sixth in shots faced (804)... Bridgeport has scored a power-play goal in back-to-back games for the first time since Dec. 28-29... The Islanders’ penalty kill is 11-for-11 over its last three games... Bridgeport has gone to overtime 14 times this year - only Cleveland has more (16).

                                      

AFFILIATE UPDATE

New York Islanders (19-20-8); Last: 4-3 SOL at San Jose, Thursday -- Next: Tonight at Los Angeles, 10:30 p.m. ET

Worcester Railers (21-20-3-1); Last: 5-4 OTL at Idaho, last night -- Next: Tonight at Idaho, 9:10 p.m. ET