By: Kenny Kaminsky | Follow me on Twitter/X @KennyKaminsky
After an impressive week in which the Providence Bruins swept their competition despite missing several key players, the team looked to maintain their winning streak as they embarked on their first three-game weekend of the new year. On Friday, Providence faced the Rochester Americans at the Amica Mutual Pavilion. Saturday saw the team travel to Springfield to take on the Springfield Thunderbirds, and they wrapped up the weekend on Sunday against the Laval Rocket at the AMP. This week’s challenges were heightened by the absence of Captain Patrick Brown for the first game and Max Jones for all three games. The team also misses Vinni Lettieri, Matthew Poitras, and Michael Callahan.
On Friday, the Providence Bruins faced off against the Buffalo Sabres’ affiliate, the Rochester Americans. The P-Bruins started strong in the first period but encountered a stellar performance from Amerks goaltender Devon Levi. However, the second period saw some scoring as Tyler Pitlick netted the game’s first goal with a beautiful assist from Georgii Merkulov. Fabian Lysell then extended the lead by scoring two more goals, bringing the Bruins’ advantage to 3-0. The Baby B’s went on to win the game with a final score of 3-0, and Michael DiPietro, recently called up to Boston the night before, made 29 saves for a shutout. This victory marked the third consecutive shutout for the P-Bruins. Merkulov and Lysell tallied two points in the game.
On Saturday, Providence started slowly against Springfield, giving up the lead early in the first period and ending their shutout streak. Fortunately, the P-Bruins bounced back and scored three consecutive goals to take a 3-1 lead. Georgii Merkulov, Frederic Brunet, and Ian Mitchell each contributed a goal. However, disaster struck when the Thunderbirds scored two goals in 18 seconds, tying the game as the teams headed into the second intermission.
After a busy third period and overtime, the Baby B’s secured the win in a shootout, with Merkulov scoring the deciding goal while Brandon Bussi stopped all three of Springfield’s attempts. The final score was 4-3 in favor of the Bruins. Merkulov finished the game with three points, Lysell had two points, and Bussi turned away 33 of 36 shots from the Thunderbirds.
To cap off the weekend, the P-Bruins faced the Laval Rocket, the Montreal Canadiens’ affiliate, at home, aiming to avoid being swept in their season series. Providence started the game slowly, conceding the first goal with minimal resistance. Just 20 seconds into the second period, Riley Duran scored to tie the game at one. Unfortunately, Laval forward Alex Barré-Boulet scored shortly after, giving the Rocket a 2-1 lead heading into the third period. The P-Bruins rallied as Joey Abate found the net, evening the score at two. However, the game went into overtime once again, and unfortunately for Providence, Logan Mailloux delivered the decisive blow in OT, resulting in a 3-2 victory for Laval and completing the series sweep. Dipietro had another solid outing, stopping 28 of 31 shots.
The past few weeks have been challenging for the Providence Bruins due to a depleted roster from call-ups to the National Hockey League. This week was particularly noteworthy, as Georgii Merkulov and Fabian Lysell demonstrated why they deserve a chance at the next level soon. Many players have stepped up in the absence of key team members, with Jackson Edward and Tyler Pitlick standing out as significant contributors lately. We hope some of these players will get to play at the NHL level soon.
Catch the Providence Bruins this Friday as they face off against the Cleveland Monsters in Cleveland. This season, the P-Bruins have performed well against the Monsters, with both games resulting in thrilling overtime finishes. Moving forward, every game will carry added pressure as the P-Bruins aim to maintain their position among the top teams in the Atlantic Division. With various roster changes, each week brings new surprises. The puck drops at 7:00 PM on Flo Hockey.
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