By: Kenny Kaminsky | Follow me on Twitter/X @KennyKaminsky
After a fantastic sweep against their division rival, the Bridgeport Islanders, the Providence Bruins aim to finish their first three-in-three of the season with a win against the Hartford Wolf Pack today at 3 PM, following Brandon Bussi’s impressive victory last night, Michael DiPietro is expected to start at the Amica Mutual Pavilion for his second game in three days.
The Wolf Pack are coming off a tough 6-3 loss to the Rochester Americans on Friday in Rochester. The game was intense for several reasons, one of which was a dirty, cheap shot by Hartford defenseman Ben Harpur. He intentionally charged at Amerks goaltender Felix Sandstrom while the play was behind the net. Last season, Sandstrom unintentionally injured Harpur on a freak play, which caused Harpur’s season to end prematurely. This unsportsmanlike play led to Harpur receiving a four-game suspension, though the punishment should have been more severe.
Several key players were scratched during last night’s game against the Islanders. Max Jones, Brett Harrison, and Jackson Edward sat in the press box for this barn burner. The Baby B’s recently assigned Drew Bavaro and Jimmy Lambert to their East Coast Hockey League affiliate, the Maine Mariners, and called up former Notre Dame goaltender Ryan Bischel. While Bischel has struggled statistically in Maine, he holds a 2-1-0 record in his three starts, making him a potential wild card for tomorrow’s game against Hartford. Additionally, Fabian Lysell returned to the lineup last night after missing three consecutive games due to injury.
Players to watch for Providence are Vinni Lettieri and Georgii Merkulov, who have been dominating the American Hockey League this season and have been particularly impressive lately. Both Merkulov and Lettieri have recorded four points in their last two games. Vinni leads the team with 11 points in 11 games, while Georgii is just behind him with 10 points in the same number of games. Additionally, Michael DiPietro is expected to be in goal. He is on fire, currently ranked among the top 10 goalies in the league following his victory against Bridgeport on Friday.
Hartford’s goalies have had a tough start to the season. In the last game, Louis Domingue was in the net, which suggests that Dylan Garand will likely take over as the starting goalie. Garand has performed better than Domingue, boasting a 2.52 Goals Against Average and a .910 Save Percentage. The team will also rely on their leading scorer, Brett Berard, to help secure a victory over Providence. Berard has recorded nine points in 11 games. Currently, the Wolf Pack sits in 5th place in the Atlantic Division with a record of 5-4-2.
With a win today, the Providence Bruins can surpass Hartford in the standings and secure 5th place in the division, closely pursuing the top spot, which they trail by just a few points. This weekend has been exceptional for the Baby B’s, and capturing a victory in front of the home crowd would be the perfect way to boost their season after a challenging start. Join the Bruins today at 3 PM at the Amica Mutual Pavilion as they aim to sweep the weekend series.
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