(Photo Courtesy of Providence Bruins)
By: Jen Stasio Coombe | Follow Me On Twitter @hockeygirl2976
The Providence Bruins enter Thanksgiving week with three away games on tap. Wednesday the team travels to Hartford to play the Wolf Pack. Thursday and Friday, they will presumably be consuming immense amounts of turkey and recovering from the tryptophan hangover. Saturday they will be back in action facing the Lehigh Valley Phantoms in Allenstown, Pennsylvania. They will round out their weekend by traveling to Mohegan Sun Arena for a matinee game Sunday against the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins. After the challenge they faced this past weekend and the performances they put in, I think they are more than ready.
(Photo Courtesy of Providence Bruins)
Wednesday, November 21st Providence Bruins vs. Hartford Wolf Pack (AWAY)
The Wolf Pack and the Bruins have met three times already this season, twice in Hartford and once in Providence. The Wolf Pack has won two of those three games with Providence winning one of the games played in Hartford. The fifty percent average while away at Hartford is very telling as it has historically been the record over the past two years. In addition, the teams both sit at the bottom of the Eastern Conference and have similar recent win/loss records. All things considered, this game is truly going to be a toss-up and a matter of who brings their best game that day.
Rob O’Gara a previous Bruin now plays for the Wolf Pack, so expect to see some interesting interactions between former teammates and friends.
(Photo Courtesy of Jen Stasio Coombe)
Saturday, November 24th Providence Bruins vs. Lehigh Valley Phantoms (AWAY)
The Lehigh Valley rematch will be a rough one. The game this past weekend was a hard fought and emotional game for both teams. Each team walked away feeling they had been wronged at some point during the night, but one did walk away the victor.
With a forty percent win record against Lehigh Valley last year and the impressive showing last Friday it is not impossible to imagine Providence pulling out this game on Saturday night. If they keep up the coordinated effort we saw this past weekend and work a little bit harder on keeping a level head they can easily come away with the win this weekend.
(Photo Courtesy of Providence Bruins)
Sunday, November 25th Providence Bruins vs. Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (AWAY)
For the first time this season the eighth-ranked Bruins will be meeting the fifth-ranked Penguins away from home. The first two games of this season were victories for Providence. However, over the past five years, the overall season record for these two teams has been right about fifty percent. The record doesn’t change a whole lot when we break out home and away. Providence won 8 of 12 matches at home and 4 of 10 away. With all records and standings considered the odds are slightly in the Bruins favor for the Sunday Matinee and I look for it to be a tight and highly contested game.
My picks to watch this weekend:
Up Front:
Colby Cave – He was robbed of his Gordie Howe Hat-trick this past weekend when his fight was recorded as “roughing”. However, his effort and exemplary performance has not faltered. Keep an eye on Colby.
On The Blue Line:
Wiley Sherman – As I have begun to call him the great “Wall” of Sherman. This kid has and does put his tall frame in the line of so many pucks in a game that I lose count. You don’t need to keep an eye on the puck keep an eye on where the wall is and where he is placing his body and that will tell you all you need to know.
In Net:
Dan Vladar – Having a falling save percentage can get to a goalie. I want to see Dan pull himself out of this and rise above.
Cheers to week eight and best of luck to our Baby B’s. Have a fantastic Thanksgiving. I will catch up with you next week and until then, feel free to message me on twitter with any questions or comments and as always, take some time to check out the other great articles by the incredible team here at Blackngoldhockey.com. Now Go Get Hockey With It!
Leave a Reply