Hitting hard

You could probably have written something like the script to this one before the game, though you might’ve taken a Providence power-play goal or two away for realism’s sake.

Depleted lineup. Depleted goaltending. Three-in-three for Providence after a Bridgeport day off. This is a game the Sound Tigers are supposed to win in fashion like this. They executed and got it done.

“It’s what we try to do, bang bodies, get pucks to the net, outwork (the other team),” Micheal Haley said. “It worked out tonight.”

Jeremy Colliton, Blair Riley, newbie Russ Sinkewich: They all had a memorable hit in the first period. The team went to work on the forecheck, forcing turnovers that helped lead to a couple of goals.

“I thought our guys played hard,” Thompson said. “Five on five, we moved the puck very well. We pushed the pace.” The defense moved it up; the forwards got it deep.

Thompson said they kept a pretty even keel through it all, not getting too high or too low as the scoreboard swung a bit early in the game. It’s that whole “we haven’t done anything yet” thing that they’ve talked about once or 300 times, I guess. But they kept playing the way they wanted to play, and against a beat-up team, it worked pretty well.

…..

Will clean up tags and messes from home. Computer’s being a pain, and I may be the only one in the building.

Well, there’s 20 games left, and I said I’d start looking at it then, so… Hartford came from behind to beat Manchester 3-2, so Bridgeport remains a tiebreaker ahead. Albany came back to tie Syracuse late, but the Crunch won it not two minutes later (with a primary assist from Ryan O’Marra). The Devils are five points back.

Mark Katic got his first body contact early on his first shift, stepping up to hit a guy. “I just wanted to get that out of the way early, put a hit in to see how the shoulder felt,” Katic said. “It felt strong.” A few seconds later, he found a seam toward the net and took the puck deep, then tried a wraparound. The kid was back. “It just felt great to be back out there,” he said; he wasn’t where he was at the end of last year, obviously, but a good first step. He wasn’t on the ice for a goal either way. “I thought he gave us a boost on the power play,” Thompson said. “He moved the puck. You could tell his offensive skill level. I’m very happy with the way he played.” Katic missed a couple of shifts to start the second period after a skate blade broke on him.

Riley went all those games without a goal, and now they’re coming furiously, three in the past six games. “It’s good to chip in. It’s not necessarily what I’m expected to do, but (getting down toward the playoffs) you need your third and fourth lines to chip in.”

Arbitrary numbers and other factors and all, but for what it’s worth, Jeremy Colliton is only the second player to score at least 10 goals in four Bridgeport seasons. (One of those factors is that he’s the only player to play in six Bridgeport seasons.) Justin Mapletoft is the other.

Anders Nilsson shut out New Jersey. An assist for Casey Cizikas, too.

Prescout. Nice comeback for a point.

Wade Redden is the new captain of the Connecticut Whale.

Tim Leone wrote a nice piece on the 10th year of Giant Center. He also has the Bears’ top individual moments there, which feature Bridgeport once or twice, and he has team moments, too, which surprisingly don’t include Bridgeport.

Under oddball circumstances, Erie (OHL) gave up 13 goals today with an injured centerman in goal.

And RIP, Alex Webster and Ralph McQuarrie.

Michael Fornabaio