The Bridgeport Islanders announced this morning via social media that goaltender Henrik Tikkanen has been sent to the Worcester Railers of the ECHL. This will mark Tikkanen’s third stint in the ECHL since getting drafted in the seventh round of the 2020 NHL Entry Draft.

Tikkanen, 24, signed his entry-level contract with the New York Islanders organization this past April. He is set to become a restricted free agent (RFA) following the conclusion of the 2025-2026 season. The native of Finland will be 25 years old when the contract expires.

Tikkanen has yet to play an AHL game in the 2024-2025 season. The Islanders have split the crease between Jakub Skarek and Marcus Hogberg. Both have played well. Skarek, in particular, is off to a hot start.

Though Tikkanen did not play in the AHL, he saw the ice during the NHL preseason. Of the four goaltenders who played, Tikkanen had the fewest minutes, the highest goals-against average (GAA) and the lowest save percentage. In his lone 29 minutes of preseason goaltending, Tikkanen allowed five goals on 18 shots. This all came in the nightmarish collapse against the New York Rangers. Tikkanen, simply put, was the odd man out amongst the goalies who played during the preseason.

Tikkanen will return to Worcester, where he has played 58 games since 2022. Over those games, Tikkanen has posted a respectable record of 29-24-4. His GAA over that span was 3.09. He will likely serve as the backup to ECHL veteran John Muse in Worcester. Muse is beginning his second year with the Railers and is playing well.

Worcester, 0-2 on the season, will return to action on Oct. 25 versus the Trois-Rivières Lions. The Lions are 0-1 early in the year.  This game will be the first of a five-game road trip for the Railers.

They will return to Worcester on Nov. 8, when they take on the Maine Mariners. All ECHL games can be viewed on flohockey.tv

Image Courtesy of TheHockeyNews

Joey McAuliffe

Joey McAuliffe is a passionate Islander fan pursuing a Masters of Accounting in Buffalo, NY. His favorite player of all time is Jordan Eberle. He has followed the team closely since 2014, but he began regularly attending games during the 2006 season. Outside of hockey, Joey loves music and the Buffalo Bills.