Recap: Islanders 5, Senators 2
Mar 24, 2023
Arnaud Durandeau scored twice for the second straight game and Andy Andreoff recorded his AHL-leading 31st goal of the season, propelling the Bridgeport Islanders (30-25-7-1), American Hockey League affiliate of the New York Islanders, to a 5-2 win against the Belleville Senators (27-29-6-1) at CAA Arena on Friday.
Dennis Cholowski collected three assists and Jakub Skarek (12-14-3) made 22 saves, backstopping the Islanders to a two-game series sweep of the Senators and a two-game sweep in Canada this week.
As of Friday night, Bridgeport has tied Lehigh Valley for fifth place in the Atlantic Division standings (68 points) and remains three points ahead of Hartford for a playoff spot.
BOX SCORE
Belleville struck first of the sixth time in its last eight games when Max Guenette beat a screened Skarek from above the right circle just 5:16 in. It was Guenettes’ fourth goal of the season and the Senators’ only tally at even strength in the contest.
The Islanders bounced back with the next three goals to take a 3-1 lead into the third period. Keane, Ontario native Erik Brown scored on a remarkable play at 17:72 of the first, cutting back to his forehand in the right circle, shaking a Belleville player, and beating Kevin Mandolese (6-8-2) top shelf.
Ruslan Iskhakov had the first of two goals on nine shots in the second period to put Bridgeport ahead. Cholowski set him up at the 1:26 mark before Cholowski also served up Durandeau on a stretch pass across the blue line at 9:11. Durandeau darted straight at Belleville’s net, drew a penalty, and scored on the forehand for his 18th goal of the season.
Jake Lucchini made things interesting with a shorthanded goal at 11:32 of the third, hammering home Cole Cassels’ centering feed on a two-on-one. It was Belleville’s 10th shorthanded goal of the season and just the third allowed by the Islanders. Their two shorthanded goals allowed entering the night led the AHL.
Bridgeport held off another push from the Senators midway through the third and secured its 30th win of the season with a pair of goals 1:13 apart. Andreoff, a Pickering, Ontario native, cut in from the left circle and roofed home a short-side shot to make it 4-2 at the 17:12 mark before Durandeau scored an empty-netter at 18:23. Terry earned an assist on Andreoff’s tally, his team-leading 43rd helper and 62nd point this season.
The Islanders finished 6-3-1-0 against North Division opponents this season and 2-0-0-0 against the Senators. Bridgeport went 0-for-4 on the power play Friday night, while its penalty kill was 3-for-3.
Next Time Out: The Islanders continue a four-game road trip on Wednesday with a 7 p.m. matchup against the Hartford Wolf Pack at XL Center. Fans can watch all of the live action via AHLTV.com or listen to the broadcast through the Bridgeport Islanders Radio Network.