THIRD PERIOD FLURRY HELPS COMETS COME FROM BEHIND IN BRIDGEPORT

Dec 9, 2019

Bridgeport, CT – Brogan Rafferty had four points (1-3—4) and the Utica Comets scored four unanswered goals in the third period on their way to a 6-3 come-from-behind win against the Bridgeport Sound Tigers on Monday night at Webster Bank Arena.

 

After earning a power play midway through the first, the Comets used their on-fire man advantage to cash in for the 12th straight game. Holding along the wing, Sven Baertschi wheeled a backdoor feed to Justin Bailey, who poked it home to extend his goal-scoring streak to five games with the only goal of the period.

 

Early in the second, the Sound Tigers got on the board and tied the game at one with a nifty passing play from Colin McDonald to Kieffer Bellows. The tie game lasted for just 46 seconds before Utica swiped the lead right back, as the Comets generated a second power play goal. Reid Boucher forced a rink-wide pass to the left circle, where Kole Lind dropped to a knee and one-timed it past a sliding Jared Coreau for his fifth of the season.

 

Bridgeport took control the rest of the way in the second, striking twice before the break and taking a 3-2 lead. Jeff Kubiak tallied his second of the year at the nine minute mark and Nick Schilkey’s point-blank wrist shot at 16:45 cemented an intermission advantage.

 

Snatching grip of the game right back in the third period, the Comets found another gear and earned three goals over the span of 2:03 of play to start the third period. Nikolay Goldobin and Zack MacEwen teamed up to finish on a two-on-one chance for Goldobin’s ninth of the season to tie the game. Lukas Jasek got in on the mix 1:28 later with a one-time finish, and Kole Lind’s second of the night made it 5-3 in favor of the Comets in the blink of an eye.

 

Utica padded their advantage with their fourth unanswered of the period at 11:06, as Rafferty polished off his four-point night with a goal from below the goal line. After Coreau made a save on a Boucher shot, Rafferty chased the rebound below the goal line, threw it off Coreau’s back and into the goal.

 

The offensive onslaught in the third period helped the Comets come back from a 3-2 deficit and cement a 6-3 road win.

 

The Comets are back in action Wednesday night when they host the Toronto Marlies. Puck drop is at 7 p.m. Tickets are still available at the Box Office, over the phone by calling (315) 790-9070, or online at www.empirestatetix.com. The game can be heard on 94.9 KROCK and viewed on AHL TV.

 

Scoring Summary	1	2		3	F
Utica	1	1		4	6
Bridgeport	0	3		0	3
Special Teams	PP		PK			PIM
Utica	3/6		5/5			15
Bridgeport	0/5		3/6			19

 

Goaltender (Team)			MIN		SA	SV
McIntyre (UTI)			60:00		31	28
Coreau (BRI)			60:00		33	27
P	TIME	Team	Goal	Assist				Assist	Type	Score
1	11:16	UTI	J. Bailey	S. Baertschi				K. Lind	PP	1-0 UTI
2	2:46	BRI	K. Bellows	C. McDonald				M. Lorito	ES	1-1
2	3:31	UTI	K. Lind	R. Boucher				B. Rafferty	PP	2-1 UTI
2	9:00	BRI	J. Kubiak	R. Bourque				P. Wotherspoon	ES	2-2
2	16:45	BRI	N. Schilkey	O. Koivula				T. Kuhnhackl	ES	3-2 BRI
3	4:37	UTI	N. Goldobin	Z. MacEwen				-	ES	3-3
3	6:04	UTI	L. Jasek	B. Rafferty				G. Brisebois	ES	4-3 UTI
3	6:40	UTI	K. Lind	S. Baertschi				B. Rafferty	PP	5-3 UTI
3	11:06	UTI	B. Rafferty	R. Boucher				L. Jasek	ES	6-3 UTI

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