Mitch Vande Sompel (4) found the back of the net twice in the Sound

Tigers' regular season finale, a 5-2 win over the WBS Penguins.

WILKES-BARRE, PA — The Bridgeport Sound Tigers (43-24-6-3) defeated the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (35-30-7-3), 5-2, in their regular-season finale before 7,871 fans at the Mohegan Sun Arena at Casey Plaza on Saturday. Mitch Vande Sompel scored twice and Sebastian Aho collected three assists, while Christopher Gibson (22-11-5) made 21 saves in his 40th appearance of the season. Oliver Wahlstrom also had a goal and an assist to boost the Sound Tigers’ offense at Mohegan Sun Arena at Casey Plaza.





The Penguins got off to a fast start and made it 1-0 just 67 seconds into Saturday’s finale courtesy of Ben Sexton’s seventh goal of the season. Sam Lafferty skated to the left circle and fired a hard wrist shot that Gibson knocked down, but Sexton converted the rebound by sweeping the puck in from the doorstep.





Steve Bernier and the Sound Tigers responded quickly with the veteran’s team-leading 24th goal of the season, and his team-best 10th on the power play. With Jan Drozg in the box for slashing, Aho set up in the high slot and guided a shot towards the crease that Bernier deflected past goaltender Alex D’Orio (in his pro debut) for the equalizer at 2:36. It came just 1:29 after Sexton’s opening tally.





Vande Sompel gave Bridgeport its first advantage with another power-play goal at 18:09 of the first period. Chaos ensued nearly four minutes earlier when Patrick McGrath went head hunting on Ben Holmstrom and received a match penalty for a blatant hit in the Penguins zone. He also dropped the gloves with Kieffer Bellows, who confronted the Penguins forward in an effort to stand up for his captain. Lafferty also took a tripping penalty at the 17:03 mark and during the 5-on-3 power play, Vande Sompel slapped home his ninth goal of the season to make it 2-1.





Jake Lucchini tied the game at 2-2 early in the second period when he beat Gibson’s blocker for his fifth goal of the year. Lafferty navigated a cross-ice pass from the right wing to the left circle, where Lucchini capitalized at the 6:09 mark.





Otto Koivula scored the eventual game-winner in the closing minutes of the second period to cap his extremely productive first regular season in the AHL. Grant Hutton sprung Bellows to create an odd-man rush into the Penguins’ zone before Bellows directed a cross-ice pass to Koivula for a one-time goal, his 21st of the season at the 15:39 mark. With a helper, Hutton now has six points (one goal, five assists) in his last six games.





Wahlstrom made it 4-2 with his second pro goal at 13:25 of the third period - a remarkable individual effort into the offensive zone. Wahlstrom danced past Sam Miletic in the high slot, turning the Penguins forward inside out, and beat D’Orio’s left pad with a quick release. Just 26 seconds later, Vande Sompel completed the scoring with his second goal of the night and 10th of the season to make it 5-2. He received a pass from Connor Jones on the left wing and snapped a shot blocker side at the 13:51 mark.





Bridgeport outshot Wilkes-Barre/Scranton 33-23 and finished the game 2-fo-5 on the power play, and 2-for-3 on the penalty kill.





Friday at the Webster Bank Arena. Click HERE for the first-round playoff schedule and ticket packages. With the win, the Sound Tigers improved to 42-24-6 and now advance to the first round of the Calder Cup playoffs. Bridgeport’s first-round playoff opponent will be the Hershey Bears beginning on









Playoff Info

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GAME DATE PLACE

3 Tuesday, Apr. 23 Giant Center

4* Thursday, Apr. 25 Giant Center

*If necessary

All games will begin at 7 p.m.





Fans unable to attend can follow all of the live action via the Sound Tigers Radio Network and AHLTV , beginning with the pre-game show at 6:45 p.m.





The following ticket packages are currently available:





P layoff T-shirt & Ticket package

A limited edition 2019 Calder Cup Playoff T-Shirt is available while supplies last. Each package includes:

One (1) limited edition “Sound Up for the Cup” 2019 playoff t-shirt (Blue)

(Sizes XXL, XL, M, Youth XL & Youth S)

One (1) ticket to a Sound Tigers home game at Webster Bank Arena in the first round of the 2019 Calder Cup Playoffs*

*If a game is not played refunds for that specific game will be issued.





Cost for the Playoff T-Shirt & Ticket Package is $20.

For more information, or to purchase this package by phone, call 203.345.2300 Option 7.





Playoff Food & Beverage Package

A special Playoff Food & Beverage package is available. Each package includes:

One (1) Limited Edition 2019 Calder Cup Playoff Mason Jar

One (1) Hot Dog

One (1) Bag of Chips

One (1) Soda or Beer

One (1) ticket to a Sound Tigers home game at Webster Bank Arena in the first round of the 2019 Calder Cup Playoffs*

*If a game is not played refunds for that specific game will be issued.





Cost for the Playoff Food & Beverage Package is $25.

For more information, or to purchase this package by phone, call 203.345.2300 Option 7.





Individual Playoff Tickets

In addition to the aforementioned packages individual game tickets to Round 1 of the Calder Cup Playoffs are currently available. Individual game tickets start at $15* and may be purchased at the Webster Bank Arena Box Office or online at Ticketmaster.com.

*Fees not included





Season Ticket Holders should contact their Sound Tigers account representative by calling 203-345-2300 and selecting Option 7. Group tickets are available by calling the same number. In addition, there are sponsorship options for the 2019 Calder Cup Playoffs. For more information, contact John Lecardo at 203.345.4818 or John.Lecardo@harboryardse.com