T-Birds Raise Banner, But Isles Get Opening Night Win
Hockey

T-Birds Raise Banner, But Isles Get Opening Night Win

Liam White

October 15, 2022 – American Hockey League (AHL) – Springfield Thunderbirds News Release

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. – The Springfield Thunderbirds (0-1-0-0) raised their banner commemorating the 2021-22 Eastern Conference title, but the Bridgeport Islanders (1-1-0-0) spoiled the fun with a 3-2 win on Saturday night’s Opening Night inside the MassMutual Center before a sellout crowd of 6,793.


The Thunderbirds could not find their gear offensively in a first period that saw the visiting Islanders limit Springfield to just four shots on Cory Schneider’s Bridgeport net, and none on the game’s only power play in the opening 20 minutes.

The second half of the opening frame saw Bridgeport vault to a lead off a pair of turnovers. First, Otto Koivula stole a puck between the circles in the Springfield zone, and with a spin to his backhand, threw a shot past Joel Hofer to make it a 1-0 game at 12:06.

Another giveaway spelled trouble for the T-Birds at 16:32 when Ruslan Iskhakov intercepted a puck from nearly the same spot as Koivula’s goal and ripped a wrister off the inside of the post to beat Hofer for his first AHL goal, making it 2-0 for the Islanders after 20 minutes.

Things were not looking pretty to start the second period either, as Chris Terry took advantage of a funky bounce off the side glass and beat Hofer on the blocker side from the right circle just 16 seconds into the middle stanza, making it a 3-0 Bridgeport lead.

However, as they showed repeatedly last postseason, the Thunderbirds showed their fight-back mentality, as newcomer Matthew Highmore got Springfield on the board for the first time in the new season at 2:59. Highmore drove the center lane, and Nikita Alexandrov hit him with a saucer pass from the right-wing side. Highmore chipped a soft forehander over Schneider’s glove to cut the lead to 3-1.

Springfield’s special teams rose to the occasion in the second period, killing three Islander power plays and converting on one of their own as second-year center Mathias Laferriere took a pass from Alexandrov and wristed the puck through Schneider from the right circle at 12:06, which cut the Islanders lead to 3-2.

Shots on goal continued to be hard to come by for Springfield in the third, as Schneider and the Islanders defense had answers for everything the T-Birds threw their way. Springfield could not connect on two more power play chances, including a 6-on-4 in the closing 1:20 of regulation, and the Islanders escaped the Thunderdome with the victory. Hofer stopped 28 of 31 shots in the losing cause, while Schneider needed to make just 20 saves in the Bridgeport victory.

The T-Birds stay on home ice to wrap up their opening weekend by hosting the Providence Bruins for a 3:05 p.m. puck drop on Sunday afternoon. Thunderbirds fans can reserve their seats for the 2022-23 season and lock in the best prices and member benefits by calling (413) 739-GOAL (4625).

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The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

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