Bridgeport looked about the same at Wonderland this morning as it did Saturday in Hartford. Yannick Rathgeb practiced as a defenseman, but as the roster stands right now, there’s a pretty good chance he’ll be on the wing again Wednesday night in Rochester, and Brent Thompson didn’t seem to be expecting changes. Connor Jones will be back Friday, and Thompson said he liked Rathgeb’s game up front Saturday. Steve Bernier practiced in that spot; looked fine, might be good to go Wednesday. Which means they’re back to two extra veterans.
John Stevens practiced between Ben Holmstrom and Jones. He didn’t take part in the more physical drills, skating on his own at the other end through them, but he was in the rush/skating drills. Thompson said he’ll go on the road trip and practice with them, but he doesn’t expect Stevens to play; needs to get some practice contact and conditioning.
Did the math because of a possibility, and though it’s still a possibility, it’s not imminent, so for your enjoyment: Bridgeport goalies in December: Jeremy Smith 6-1-0, 2.12 GAA, .931 SP; Christopher Gibson 3-1-2 (1 SO), 2.30 GAA, .923 SP.
News from the other side: Buffalo called up C.J. Smith, Rochester’s leading scorer (by a tiebreaker), to face the Islanders tonight. That leaves Victor Olofsson in the team lead, the guy who scored both game-winners here in October, one in the last minute, one in overtime. And in Binghamton, goalie Eddie Lack is done for the year.
And… Ultima Thule! Here we go.
…..
It has been a weird year. Heck, it has been a weird month. Thanks for hanging in with me. Happy new year. All the best to you and yours next trip around the sun.