BRIDGEPORT, CT - Anders Nilsson made 26 saves to earn his first North American pro shutout as the Bridgeport Sound Tigers defeated the Albany Devils 3-0 at Webster Bank Arena on Monday afternoon. The Sound Tigers have won five straight games and have recorded a point in 17 of 18 contests as their record improves to 28-18-3-2. Albany falls to 24-20-5-3.
Albany had some of its best chances to score in the opening period when it had nearly six minutes of power play time. However, Bridgeport’s penalty kill held the Devils to just eight shots over the first 20 minutes of the game, as Nilsson made the necessary saves to keep the game scoreless after the first period.
The Sound Tigers took the lead 4:03 into the second period on an odd-man rush. Defenseman Matt Donovan led the way as the carried the puck deep into the Albany zone. Donovan dropped the puck in the slot for Kael Mouillierat, who snapped a shot past Devils netminder Jeff Frazee for his sixth tally of the season to give the Sound Tigers a 1-0 lead.
Bridgeport increased its lead to two with 4:43 left in the middle frame. Jeremy Colliton was aggressive on the forecheck in the Albany zone and freed the puck from the defense and Frazee. The puck came to Blair Riley below the goal line, and Riley banked the puck off of Frazee and into the net as the Albany goalie attempted to recover. It marked Riley’s first goal as a Sound Tiger and the home team led 2-0 after 40 minutes.
Greenwich native Sean Backman sealed the deal for the Sound Tigers with a great individual effort midway through the third period. Defenseman Brandon Gentile started the play with a poke check at his own blue line while the Sound Tigers were shorthanded, sending Backman off to the races. Backman skated in past the Albany defense, cut into the slot at a sharp angle and roofed the puck over Frazee for his fourth goal of the season to make the score 3-0. The question left was if Nilsson would earn his first pro shutout, and the rookie netminder and his defense made it happen as Nilsson turned aside all of Albany’s nine third period shots.
The Sound Tigers will look to earn their sixth straight win on Friday night when they travel to Springfield to face the Falcons at 7:00 p.m.
