Bridgeport Sound Tigers Are Top Team in the AHL

On Sunday the Bridgeport Sound Tigers picked up their fifth win-in-a-row and 13th win in their last 14. It feels good to know that what’s in the system is one of the strongest in the AHL.

For a while, the New York Islanders were firmly rooted to the bottom of the NHL. There was no hope of escape. The present looked bleak, we fans turned to the future, to the Bridgeport Sound Tigers. And it too wasn’t looking so well.

The Bridgeport Sound Tigers, the Isles AHL affiliate, were a middling sub-500 team. In December, they hit a terrible run where they lost ten of twelve contests.

But since that terrible losing streak, the Sound Tigers have been on fire, winning 13 of their last 14, including an eight-game winning streak, and now a five-game winning streak.

What’s happened?

New York Islanders

Who’s Leading the Charge?

Ryan Pulock is playing lights out right now. In the Sound Tigers last 14 games, Pulock has put up a total of 13 points.

That sounds like the Ryan Pulock we’re accustomed to, and to the one, the Islanders drafted 15th overall in 2013. An offensive-minded defenseman with a great shot.

Bracken Kearns, the 35-year-old AHL veteran, has put in ten points in the same span. To be fair, for a while Kearns was one of only two players putting up points for the Sound Tigers, so these ten points are par for the course on a great season for the Vancouver native.

Then there’s Joshua Ho-Sang. Who has 12 points in the Sound Tigers run. Good for second in scoring during the last 14 games. At 31 points on the season, that just over a third of all his points in this small window.

With reports of Ho-Sang’s behavior being an issue once again, the immediate thought was this kid wasn’t going to be able to turn it around. Just another risky pick wasted under the Garth Snow regime. He’s far from vindicated himself, but should this continue, then maybe there’s hope after all.

What About Jaro?

There was no surprise that Jaroslav Halak showed up to play in Bridgeport after his unceremonious waiving at the end of December. Who knew how well he would play. Was it going to be the 3.23 GAA and .904 SV% Jaro, or something different?

In this run of games, Jaro has been pretty darn good, not good enough to deserve a trip back to the big club, but good enough to get mention and a solid thumbs up of acknowledgment from me. You know, the type of things former NHL goalies really strive for.

Halak has a 11-0-0 record with a 2.27 GAA and a 0.920 SV% between January 15th and February 17th, 2017. If only Jaro could replicate those NHL average numbers when he was up with the big club.

Next: A Review of Isles Face-Off Record in February

Things are looking fantastic down in Bridgeport right about now. Which has to give any and all Isles fans a nice tingly feeling. Because two of the biggest factors for this run of form are prospects that will likely soon make their NHL debut.

EDIT: A mention of return-waivers was removed. Return waivers were eliminated in the latest CBA.