There was that long stretch where they didn’t win without scoring three. Today is only the second time this season (Oct. 24 in St. John’s) when they scored four but lost.
“I liked the way the forwards played tonight,” Brent Thompson said. “We generated four goals. You generate four goals, you should win the hockey game. It’s a plus. We haven’t been scoring a lot of goals. We need to be better defensively. That’s D-side positioning, awareness, the little details we talk about.”
The kids did all right. Kyle Burroughs, for one, made a few big plays on the penalty kill, getting a clear and a breakup on the five-on-three in the second period and making a stop on Seth Griffith’s open-side try late in the period.
“It’s been really fun,” Burroughs said. “Playing with a guy like Ryan (Pulock) is great. Especially the penalty kill, that’s something I take pride in and always enjoy. Playing the power play is an added bonus.”
“Burroughs played a solid game. His hockey IQ is very good,” Thompson said. “He’s done a great job … in positions that are not necessarily his role.” He gave Loic Leduc credit, too, then added, “Other guys have got to look at themselves on the back end and say ‘I’ve got to be better.”
Early in the third, they swapped Colin Markison and Sebastian Collberg. Markison was involved in both of Bridgeport’s third-period goals, getting a steal and driving to the net on the first, taking Pulock’s drop pass for a blocked shot that Gomes finished off on the second.
“You earn what you get. I thought our younger guys earned it,” Thompson said. “(Carter) Verhaeghe played a pretty good game tonight. Obviously we got Markison on a line with Gomes and Jones, and they generated a lot of energy, generated two goals for us.”
Moral victories aren’t much to rave about at this point in the season, but with the defense patched together, with kids being thrown into bigger and bigger spots, it seemed like a night to at least take some positives into Hartford tomorrow.
“There were some nerves, I think,” Burroughs said. “We’re not as experienced as some other defense corps in the league, but we stuck to our guns.”
……
We’ve seen Pulock carry the puck at times, but tonight it seemed to be a consistent thing for him. It paid off on the scoreboard on the last goal of the game. “It’s something I think can be a big part of my game,” Pulock said. “When I carry the puck like that, I always seem to be playing well. I got some chances tonight.”
Thompson said he liked seeing Pulock jumping in and trying to generate something.
“I’d like to see him shoot a bit more,” Thompson said. “I’d like to see everyone shoot a bit more.”
Here’s what appears to be Jared Gomes’ only other two-goal game as a pro. (Checked Germany, too.)
Power play now 0-for-47:58 and counting; the 0-for-28 is tied for sixth-longest. (In time, it’s shorter than nine of the other 10 streaks of 26 or longer, for what it’s worth.)
Matt Carkner returns from suspension tomorrow. Speaking of, Prescout. Tough one. Sounded for a while like Emerson Etem would be waiting for Bridgeport, on a conditioning assignment. The Rangers traded him instead for Vancouver’s Nicklas Jensen, who’ll reportedly report to Hartford.
Scary stuff in Grand Rapids, where Alden Hirschfeld had a seizure during the Griffins’ game against Milwaukee. See the Admirals Roundtable feed for the frightening real-time view on what was, thankfully, an apparently effective response by the medical staff there.
And horrible news about Denna Laing, injured at the women’s winter classic in Foxborough.