( Photo Credit: Providence Bruins / Flickr )

By: Mark Allred | Follow me on Twitter @BlackAndGold277

Per New England Hockey Journal and NHL.com writer Mark Divvers‘ tweet below, Providence Bruins defenseman and recently named team Captain Josiah Didier is making his 2021-22 regular-season debut tonight. The 28-year-old Littleton, Colorado native went down with a knee injury in April of 2021 against the Bridgeport Islanders. While rehabbing over the offseason, the former 2011 fourth-round selection of the Montreal Canadiens had another setback adding an Achilles injury to a rough 2021 year.

The top minor-pro affiliate of the NHL Boston Bruins named the 6′-3″ 223-pound Didier Team Captain on the first day of 2022 as the veteran blueliner was gearing up for a return to the ice. Tonight Josiah will lead his Providence team to a hopeful fourth straight victory as the Bridgeport Islanders visit the Dunkin’ Donuts Center in Downtown Providence, Rhode Island.

Didier joined the Providence Bruins as a free agent on July 1st, 2019, to a one-year AHL-only contract. Before signing with Providence, Josiah spent two seasons manning the blueline for the AHL Charlotte Checkers, a team he went all the way with capturing the Calder Cup in the spring of 2019. After spending his first year with the B’s AHL affiliate posting 3-12-15 numbers in 61 games, the Providence organization signed Didier to a two-year AHL contract extension at the end of January 2020.

Last season Josiah appeared in just half the games played in the AHL’s Covid abbreviated regular season, posting three assists before going down in April of 2021 against tonight’s opponent Bridgeport. In the news release back on January 1st, 2022, seen HERE on the official providencebruins.com website, Providence Head Coach had these quotes below talking about Josiah’s character and the amount of leadership he provides as a veteran player and one to convey information to both bench bosses and players on and off the ice.

“As a player and as a person, Dids is just the highest quality,” said Mougenel. “He really is a born leader. He has empathy. He’s caring. He’s considerate. He’s the ultimate teammate.”

“He’s somebody, for me, who is an extension of our staff and he’s somebody that will make me a better coach. As a player, he’s done it the hard way. He’s worked for every inch that he’s gotten and his work ethic is off the charts. He embodies a lot of the things that the Bruins are all about.”

“From a management and organizational standpoint, he’s exactly what you want,” said Mougenel. “You just want to be around this guy. I fell very strongly about the player and the person. We hope to have Dids in the organization for a substantial amount of time.”

As mentioned, the Providence Bruins are currently on a three-game winning streak looking to make it four tonight against the visiting Bridgeport team. Providence sits in the first position of the AHL’s Atlantic Division standings with a 16-9-3-1 record and 36 points, and it’s the club’s .621 winning percentage that’s propelled the team’s rise up the standings. The higher divisional winning percentage also moved Providence to the third position in the Eastern Conference as this NHL B’s affiliate starts heating up at the right time. Providence has captured two consecutive division titles but has yet to participate in any postseason Calder Cup Playoff action due to the pandemic.

Next game for the Providence Bruins after this evening’s tilt at the Dunk, the B’s play the same Islanders club on the road in Bridgeport, Connecticut. Puck drop from the Webster Bank Arena tomorrow night is at 7pm and can be seen with a paid subscription on AHLTV.