Two good periods: Springfield postgame

“I thought we played two good periods,” Brent Thompson said after they blew a 3-0 lead, then shootout-won. It was enough. The T-birds have slipped 16 points back of Bridgeport, so giving up the point, like last weekend to Hartford, isn’t the biggest deal. (If there is to be an inevitable crushing loss to a dead team walking in Springfield this year, it’ll be April 12.)

But by and large, it was a decent game. The first period was effective enough. The second was pretty good. A couple of goals off faceoffs got Springfield into it; a deflection tied it.

“Mostly, yeah. I think we played a pretty solid game for almost 60 minutes,” Sebastian Aho said. “We got a little sloppy and gave them one or two goals. I think it shows a lot of character coming back from that, still having our head in the game.”

Bad breaks, perhaps; things to clean up on faceoffs, sure.

“We want to make sure we’re defending hard and defending the right way,” Thompson said. “Baby steps. I thought we did a lot of positive things.”

……

Thompson on scratching Otto Koivula: “Just to rest, honestly. I want to make sure he resets, gets going, and look, numbers, just like last week (with the three-in-threes). I thought it was a good time for him just to sit, watch from up top, get rest: It’s all in development. He’ll be back in tomorrow, 100 percent.”

He said Christopher Gibson is OK.

Prescout. On they go. Bridgeport has a point in seven in a row; the Bears are 10 past that and has won 11 in a row. Aaron Ness is among the leading scorers for defensemen.

Via Mark Divver, congrats to Jack Capuano, headed to the Rhode Island Hockey Hall of Fame.

Sacred Heart tied at Army a night after a big win here. The Pios sit fifth in Atlantic Hockey — bye-into-the-quarters territory — with two games remaining (at league-leading AIC). The women, meanwhile, whom we wrote about the other day, fell to Franklin Pierce 3-2 in the NEWHA semifinals.

More tomorrow. Last day for waivers to get guys to the AHL by the deadline, so could be busy that way.

Michael Fornabaio