Sound Tigers Fall To Binghamton, 2-1

By Bob Phillips

The Bridgeport Sound Tigers opened the 2017-18 season with a 2-1 loss.

BINGHAMTON, NY – The Bridgeport Sound Tigers opened the 2017-18 season by dropping a 2-1 decision to the Binghamton Devils before 4,897 fans at Floyd L. Maines Veterans Memorial Arena on Saturday night. It was the Tigers’ first opening-game loss since 2014.

Binghamton scored two first-period goals, which would ultimately prove to provide the margin of victory. Blake Pietila, a 24-year-old left wing from Milford, Mich. opened the scoring 8:48 into the new season, giving the Devils a 1-0 lead. Former Providence College star Kevin Rooney picked up a helper on Pietila’s tally. Nathan Bastian, a rookie right wing from Kitchener, Ont., scored what would ultimately prove to be the game-winner on a penalty shot at the 15:46 mark.

The Tigers dominated a scoreless second period, outshooting the home team 13-6.

In the third frame, Bridgeport finally got on the scoreboard when rookie center Scott Easnor recorded his first professional goal—and Sound Tigers’ first tally of the 2017-18 campaign at 11:47. Rookie defenseman Mitch Vande Sompel picked up the helper on Easnor’s goal.

Sound Tigers netminder Christopher Gibson played a steady game between the pipes, allowing just two goals on 24 shots, but Devils goalie M Blackwood was a smidge better, picking up the “W” by stopping 26 of the 27 shots he faced. Both teams were 0-for-4 on the power play.

The Sound Tigers will continue their four-game season-opening road with a pair of games against the Charlotte Checkers at Bojangles Coliseum in Charlotte, N.C., this weekend. Fans can follow all of the action online on the Sound Tigers Radio Network and AHL Live, beginning Friday night with a 6:45 p.m. pregame show. First puck drops at 7 p.m. On Saturday, game time is 6 p.m.

Scouting Report

Fresh off their move back to the Eastern Conference over for the first time since 2010-11, the Charlotte Checkers are the early front runners in the Atlantic Division with a pair of road wins last weekend. On Friday, Charlotte scored twice in the final seven minutes to steal a 5-4 win in Hartford before defeating the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins on Saturday, 5-2. Warren Foegele collected four goals in his first two pro games (tied for the league lead) and was named CCM/AHL Player of the Week earlier today. In addition, Phil Di Giuseppe also chipped in two goals on Saturday for the Checkers.

 Sound Bites

Ross Johnson recorded his first fight of the season on Saturday after leading the club with 11 fisticuffs in 2016-17… Along with Scott Eansor and Mitch Vande Sompel, Matt Gaudreau made his pro debut on Saturday, while Sebastian Aho made his AHL and North American debut… The Sound Tigers will play their first four games on the road before returning to Webster Bank Arena for their home opener on Saturday, Oct. 21… Ryan Bourque, son of former Bruins’ legend and hockey Hall-of-Famer Ray Bourque and brother of Chris Bourque, who played for the Penguins, Capitals, Bruins and Wolf Pack, among many teams, is expected to play his 400th pro game this Friday

Team Leaders

Goals: Scott Eansor (1)
Assists: Mitch Vande Sompel, Kane Lafranchise (1)
Points: Scott Eansor, Mitch Vande Sompel, Kane Lafranchise (1)
Plus/Minus: Many Tied (+1)
Penalty Minutes: Ross Johnston (5)
Power-play goals: n/a
Shots: Casey Bailey (6)

On the Farm
The ECHL’s Worcester Railers open their inaugural season this Saturday with a 7 p.m. faceoff against the Manchester Monarchs at the DCU Center. The Railers, who announced their new affiliation with the Sound Tigers and Islanders in April, are led by forwards Kellen Jones and Yanick Turcotte—both of whom were loaned to Worcester from Bridgeport last week. Forwards Matt Lane and Jeff Kubiak, along with defenseman Mike Cornell, are also currently under contract with the Sound Tigers. Worcester and Manchester are both former AHL sites before the Los Angeles Kings (Manchester) and the San Jose Sharks (Worchester) moved their top minor league affiliates to Ontario, Calif., and San Jose, respectively.

Hot Ticket
The Sound Tigers will boast an extensive and exciting promotional schedules this season. Included in this year's calendar: the return of Star Wars Night (Dec. 2), meet-and-greets with superheroes the Justice League (Nov. 11) and Marvel (Jan. 27), and a bevy of new promotions, including camouflage baseball cap (Jan. 13) and a kid's lunch box (Feb. 11) giveaways. The promotional lineup kicks off with Opening Night on Oct. 21, featuring a Sound Tigers backpack giveaway to the first 3,000 kids courtesy of All Electric Construction and Communication. For tickets, please click HERE.

Season tickets and flex plans are currently on sale. Twenty-, 15- and 10-game plans are available, offering exclusive benefits, including a ticket holder exchange policy allowing any unused tickets to be swapped for same-price seats at future games. Six different pricing options are available. For more information, contact Brad Dworin at 203-345-4813 or via  brad.dworin@harboryardse.com.

—with staff reports