Game Day Build-Up: B-Sens look to ground T-Birds as three-game road swing continues

Jan.27/23 @ Springfield Thunderbirds (NHL Affiliate: St.Louis Blues)

The Set-Up:

The Belleville Senators wrestled the proverbial monkey off their collective backs on Wednesday, grinding out a come from behind 2-1 shootout win over the streaking Laval, but the hard work continues tonight against another team that’s been flying high of late in the Springfield Thunderbirds. Springfield is landing back home at the Thunderdome after sweeping a road trip through Milwaukee, Rockford and Grand Rapids. Like Belleville, the Thunderbirds are trying to put together some strong performances on route to the all-star break and setting up a fight towards a playoff spot in their division.

Previous History:

In their history, B-Sens wins agains the T-Birds have been rare. The Belleville Sens are just 1-7-0-1 against Springfield, with their only victory coming on January 8, 2022, when they earned a 7-5 win at CAA Arena.  The Sens have never won at MassMutual Center, while the Thunderbirds swept both games at CAA Arena earlier this season, with Belleville falling 5-2 on October 21, and 3-1 the following night.

Roster Notes:

It’s been a long time coming, but both Roby Jarventie and Lassi Thomson will return to Belleville’s lineup tonight. Jarventie missed 31 games after injuring his knee in Rockford at the end of October, while Thomson was cleared to play earlier this week and will slot back in after having to sit about a dozen games. With their return, Matt Boucher will give way up front, as will Jack Dougherty on the back end. In net, Luke Peressini is expected to make his first career American Hockey League start, after joining the club on a professional tryout offer this morning. The Newmarket, Ontario native has been playing with the Sens ECHL affiliate in Allen, Texas and took part in Belleville Sens training camp in the fall. He’ll be backed up by Logan Flodell, with Mads Søgaard and Antoine Bibeau both being hurt, and Kevin Mandolese recalled to the NHL.

Injury Report:

Who to Watch:

Cole Cassels seven-game point streak may have come to an end on Wednesday, but Jake Lucchini has started a fresh one, notching points in three straight games (one goal, two assists) since returning from the NHL. Rourke Chartier collected an assist in his first game back from Ottawa on Wednesday, while Scott Sabourin has scored in back-to-back games, including Wednesday’s overtime winner. Roby Jarventie, who returns from injury tonight, has six points (two goals, four assist) in six career appearances against Springfield.

Four Thunderbirds players have points in back-to-back games, including Matthew Kessel (one goal, two assists), Jacob Hayhurst (two goals, one assist), Anthony Angello (two assists), and Drew Callin (one goal, two assists). Brady Lyle has points in five-of-six games (two goals, four assists), while Nathan Todd has 13 points (eight goals, five assists) in 15 career games against Belleville, with Springfield and Manitoba.

Follow the action:

Tonight’s game can be seen on AHL TV, or heard live on the Belleville Sens Entertainment Network. Pregame coverage starts at 6:45p.m. (ET) with David Foot.

Ticket info:

Tickets for all Belleville Sens home games are available via Ticketmaster or at the CAA Arena Box Office, with more information on group experiences, promotional packs and more, available on the Belleville Sens website.

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