The Bridgeport Report: Dec. 12, 2023

The Bridgeport Islanders opened a season-long, six-game road trip this past weekend with a pair of setbacks to the Utica Comets and Springfield Thunderbirds.

The Islanders (6-15-1-0) were outscored 9-2 over the weekend and dropped to 1-10-0-0 away from Total Mortgage Arena this season. 

Otto Koivula scored for the fourth straight road game and extended his point streak to a season-best four games overall on Friday night in Utica, but the Islanders fell to the Comets, 4-1, at the Adirondack Bank Center. Koivula passed Jeff Hamilton (2003-06) for third place on the team’s all-time scoring list with his 157th career point and tied Trent Hunter (2001-03) for eighth place on the club’s all-time goals list (60).

Twenty-four hours later, Matt Maggio scored his fourth goal of the year on a deflection midway through the third period, but Springfield goaltender Vadim Zherenko stopped the other 34 chances he faced. Bridgeport outshot its opponent for the third straight game (35-29), held its opponent to less than 30 shots for the fifth straight game, but did not have a power-play opportunity for the first time this season.

The Islanders continue their lengthy road trip with a pair of games against the Charlotte Checkers (12-10-0-0) at Bojangles Coliseum this weekend. The two-game set begins Friday night at 7 p.m. and concludes at 6 p.m. on Saturday. The Islanders return to Total Mortgage Arena on Dec. 27th. All games can be seen live on AHLTV or heard for free on the Bridgeport Islanders Radio Network.

The Week Ahead:

Friday, Dec. 15th at Charlotte (7 p.m.): The Islanders make their second and final trip to Charlotte, North Carolina during the regular season. Friday’s game marks the third of eight meetings between the Islanders and Checkers, and the third of four at Bojangles Coliseum. Charlotte won both matchups in October and leads the series 2-0-0-0.

Saturday, Dec. 16th at Charlotte (6 p.m.): Same teams, same place, but an hour earlier. The Islanders and Checkers rematch at 6 p.m. on Saturday night. Bridgeport hosts the Checkers four times this season beginning Saturday, Jan. 6th.

Ice Chips:

Helgeson To Hit #400: Seth Helgeson is expected to play his 400th game with the Bridgeport Islanders this Friday. The 33-year-old is already the club’s all-time leader in games played (399) and has eight goals, 48 assists and 56 points over that span. He ranks fourth all-time in team penalty minutes (619). Helgeson, who is currently serving as Islanders’ captain for the fourth straight season, played his 600th AHL game on Oct. 22nd against Hershey.

Koivula Passes Hamilton: Otto Koivula had scored a goal in four straight road games prior to Saturday’s loss in Springfield. He also saw a team-best four-game point streak come to an end, but his second-period tally on Friday night in Utica officially moved him ahead of Jeff Hamilton (2002-06) for third place on the team’s all-time points (157). Koivula also tied Trent Hunter (2001-03) for eighth place on the club’s all-time goals list (60), which he’s done in 239 career games dating back to his AHL debut on Oct. 6, 2018.

Quick Hits: Bridgeport’s penalty kill ranks second in the Eastern Conference (87.1%), trailing only this weekend’s opponent, the Charlotte Checkers (87.8%)… Jeff Kubiak played his 291st game with Bridgeport last Friday, passing Steven Regier (2004-08) for sixth place on the team’s all-time list… Jakub Skarek played his 118th game in Bridgeport’s crease last Saturday, passing Rick DiPietro (2001-13) for fourth place on the club’s all-time list for goalies... Skarek leads all Eastern Conference goaltenders in minutes played this season (889:03).