Preview: Islanders vs. Wolf Pack
Dec 27, 2022
THE STORY COMING IN
The Bridgeport Islanders (14-9-5-0) spent their holiday break in third place in the Atlantic Division standings, but look to snap a four-game losing streak as they return to action tonight against the Hartford Wolf Pack (10-12-1-4). Puck drop is set for 7 p.m. at Total Mortgage Arena. Bridgeport is just 1-6-1-0 in its last eight games, including a 4-3 loss to Hartford in its final outing before the break. Paul Thompson, Arnaud Durandeau and Andy Andreoff each scored, while Chris Terry had two assists on Friday at the XL Center. Jakub Skarek (4-6-3) made 35 saves in his second straight start.
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LISTEN LIVE: https://bit.ly/BridgeportIslanders
WATCH: AHLTV.com
GAME AT A GLANCE
Tonight’s game is the fifth of 12 meetings between the Islanders and Wolf Pack this season, and the fourth of six at Total Mortgage Arena. Bridgeport is averaging 4.75 goals per game against Hartford this season and has won three of the first four matchups, but lost in regulation last Friday. The Isles have still outscored the Wolf Pack 19-12. Durandeau leads all players in the series with eight points (3g, 5a) in four games.
VIEW FROM HARTFORD
The Wolf Pack are eighth in the Atlantic Division standings but can match Springfield’s 27 points with a win tonight. Ryan Carpenter paved the way to Hartford’s 4-3 victory against Bridgeport on Friday with two goals including the game-winner at 9:28 of the third period. Austin Rueschhoff and Bobby Trivigno also had multiple points with two assists each, while Dylan Garand (3-6-2) made 25 saves for just his second win since the start of November. The Wolf Pack power play went 0-for-6 and is now 0-for-21 in its last seven games, remaining last in the AHL overall at 12.0%.
EL DURANDEAU
Arnaud Durandeau earned his sixth multi-point game of the season on Friday and scored his first goal in 10 games with a first-period snipe between the circles. Eight of Durandeau’s 18 points have come against the Wolf Pack this season, including three-point performances on Nov. 5th (2g, 1a) and Nov. 23rd (3a). He currently ranks third on the Islanders’ roster in assists (13) and fifth in points (18) after a breakout season in 2021-22, where he set career highs in goals (15), assists (22) and points (37) in 64 games.
DU-SCORE
William Dufour has four points (2g, 2a) in his last five games including two multi-point performances. He scored his 10th goal of the season on Dec. 17th in Syracuse, which is tied for fourth among all AHL rookies and ranks second on the Islanders behind Andy Andreoff (15). Dufour also ranks second on the team in power-play goals (5) and is tied for second among AHL rookies in that category. Last season, Dufour scored a career-high 56 goals in 66 games with the Saint John Sea Dogs, which led the entire QMJHL.
QUICK HITS
Andy Andreoff has scored in back-to-back games and leads the team with 15 goals this season... He had 18 goals in 60 games last season and set a career-high 26 goals with Syracuse in 2018-19... Chris Terry passed Ab DeMarco (1938-52) and Michel Picard (1989-04) for 35th place on the AHL’s all-time scoring list with his 639th career point on Friday... Ruslan Iskhakov shares fourth place among all AHL rookies with 20 points... Sam Bolduc shares eighth place among all AHL defensemen with 20 points and is fifth in shots (70).
AFFILIATES
New York Islanders (19-14-2): Last: 5-1 W vs. Florida, Friday -- Next: Tonight vs. Pittsburgh, 7:30 p.m. ET
Worcester Railers (18-9-1-0): Last: 7-0 L at Adirondack, Friday -- Next: Tomorrow vs. Maine, 1 p.m. ET