Roster Notes:
The parent club in Ottawa suffered another pair of injuries on Thursday night, with both Ridly Greig and Mark Kastelic going down and both expected to miss a few games. With that in mind, there will surely be some support sent by Belleville, though those transactions haven’t been announced yet. In terms of the lineup in Springfield tonight, the Senators are fully healthy, save for Tyler Boucher, meaning Jiri Smejkal could return to the lineup. The reigning American Hockey League Goaltender of the Month, Mads Søgaard is expected to start in goal. Full lineup information will be available prior to puck drop tonight.
Who to Watch:
Senators forward Matthew Highmore returns to his old stomping grounds tonight. He put up 61 points in 68 games with Springfield last season, before moving to Belleville over the summer. He’s continued to provide that scoring spark for Belleville as well, leading the team with five points after six games played. Meanwhile, Goaltender Mads Søgaard was named the American Hockey League’s Goaltender of the Month for October, after posting a 3-1-0 record, with a 1.73 goals-against average and a .944 save percentage. He stopped 135 of 144 shots against in the month.
The Thunderbirds also had a representative in the league’s monthly awards. Forward Adam Gaudette was named AHL Player of the Month for October, putting up 11 points (nine goals, two assists) over eight games. Forward Mikhail Abramov is on a three game point streak (two goals, two assists) and the T-Birds also have a Belleville connection in the crease, with former Bulls’ goaltender Malcolm Subban, now suiting up in Springfield.
Follow the action:
Tonight’s game can be seen on AHL TV and heard on the
Belleville Sens Entertainment Network.