T-Birds Host Bruins for Sunday Matinee

Springfield, MA – The Springfield Thunderbirds (3-11-1-0) continue their five-game homestand with a Sunday matinee contest with the Providence Bruins (7-4-1-0) at 3:05 p.m. at the MassMutual Center.



The Thunderbirds are coming off a third victory of the season in which they scored five or more goals. Springfield's six-goal outburst in the final 40 minutes erased a 3-0 deficit against the Laval Rocket en route to a 6-4 triumph.

 

Providence enters the MassMutual Center having already won three matchups with the T-Birds this season, including a 5-2 win in Springfield on Oct. 20. The Bruins are 3-0-0-0 against Springfield this season, including a pair of wins at the Dunkin' Donuts Center to start the season - 5-2 on Oct. 7 and 3-2 on Oct. 13.

 

Lately, though, the Bruins have struggled, falling in four of their last five games, including being shut out in two of those four losses by the Bridgeport Sound Tigers.

 

Springfield will look for its first back-to-back wins of the 2017-18 season. The Thunderbirds will receive one reinforcement from Manchester, as defenseman Rob Hamilton has been recalled from the Monarchs and signed to a PTO. In 12 games in Manchester, Hamilton has recorded six points (2g, 4a) and posted a +5 rating.

 

The Thunderbirds were paced in their win on Saturday by Denis Malgin, who tallied two goals and an assist, including the game-winning tally in the 6-4 win. Curtis Valk scored twice to log his second multi-goal game of the year, and Springfield also got goal contributions from Chase Balisy and Mikkel Aagaard.

 

Springfield's power play broke out against the Rocket, going 2-for-4. The Thunderbirds power play is now clicking at over 20% on home ice for the 2017-18 season. The T-Birds penalty kill also came up large against a top-3 unit, killing off six of seven Rocket man advantages, yielding only a first period one-timer from Chris Terry.

 

In net, Sam Montembeault was outstanding for Springfield, stopping 32 of 36 shots to secure his second win.

 

The homestand rolls on for Springfield after the Sunday matinee. For the first time ever, the Thunderbirds play host to the Charlotte Checkers for a special T-Birds 101 School Day game on Wednesday at 10:35 a.m. ET. Charlotte and Springfield will rematch on Friday, Nov. 17 at 7:05 p.m. ET.

 

Springfield Thunderbirds fans are encouraged to visit www.SpringfieldThunderbirds.com to learn more about Thunderbirds Season Ticket Memberships. Packages start at just $12 per game, and Thunderbirds Full Season Ticket Members receive the most benefits, including a refillable collector’s mug and a commemorative jersey. For more information or to order now, call (413) 739-GOAL (4625) or visitwww.SpringfieldThunderbirds.com.