The Bridgeport Sound Tigers have announced a slew of new free agent signings for the upcoming season. Gone are Connor Jones, Chris Bourque, among others. To replace them, the team announced that they had signed a group of first year pros. They signed former RIT Tiger Erik Brown and Saginaw Spirit Defenseman Justin Murray, both who had solid careers in college/juniors.
The Sound Tigers also announced the return of Yanick Turcotte and Jeff Kubiak. Kubiak spent most of the last season in Bridgeport, while Turcotte was in Worcester. Kubiak was a major piece of Bridgeport’s offensive core and it is a big year for him.
Next, the Islanders signed former all-AHL Goalie Jared Correau, who had won a Calder Cup with the Grand Rapids Griffins, and is former teammates with Matt Lorito. Another signing was former Lehigh Valley sparkplug Cole Bardreau, who was a noted “Sound Tiger killer” through his four years in Allentown. The team then announced the signings of Steve Bernier, John Stevens, Mike Cornell and Calder Cup Champion Nick Schillkey. ECHL signings have rounded out the offseason.
In my opinion, this team looks young, which might cause some growing pains early in the season. Although with the leadership of Chris Gibson, Lorito and Bernier is still present, who else will be back around the time that training camp begins?
In other news, the Sound Tigers announced their schedule for the upcoming season. They will open the season on the road in Springfield, then go to Hartford, and follow that up with a trip to Charlotte. The home opener is on Saturday, Oct. 19 against Wilkes-Barre/Scranton. The Sound Tigers will play the same teams as last season, which means that the only Eastern Conference team they will not face is Cleveland.
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Christian Gardecki

A Native of Danbury, CT. Christian is one of the longest tenured Drive4Five writers, Christian Gardecki began writing for Drive4five In May of 2017. Christian covers Minor League Hockey and the Bridgeport Islanders for Drive4Five. Outside of Drive4Five, Christian was the captain of his High School Hockey team and currently attends Hofstra University with a major in journalism. Christian was the play by play broadcaster for the Danbury Westerners summer collegiate baseball team during their 2021 NECBL Championship. Christian also was the Public Address Announcer for the Danbury Hat Tricks Minor Pro Hockey team in the Federal Prospects Hockey League and NAHL Junior team from 2019-21.