PROVIDENCE, RI – A 7-2 victory over Portland on Oct. 18 left the Providence Bruins with a 4-2 record, after scoring 26 goals in those 
first six games. Things were looking good as the new season was progressing. However, the parent Boston Bruins were eyeing call-ups after forward Milan Lucic was placed on injured reserve. Lucic joined center Marc Savard on the Bruins injury list, and the trade of Chuck Kobasew added to the need to fill roster spots.
After the Portland game, Vladimir Sobotka, Guillaume Lefebvre, and Brad Marchand were called up to the big club. This left a huge offensive void. Marchand had scored six goals in six games, and Sobotka had recorded 10 points over that span, including four goals. Lefebvre was briefly brought up to replace Lucic’s toughness and fierce corner work, but then returned and replaced by veteran center Trent Whitfield who also had also managed eight points in six games for Providence.
Needless to say the P-Bruins struggled in their next four games, scoring just 3 goals in those four games. On Nov. 1, the Bruins beat the Bridgeport Sound Tigers, 4-3, in what proved to be a very satisfying win according to Coach Rob Murray.
“We’ve got a depleted line-up, not only with the call ups, but a couple of injuries and a few guys are sick. We’ve had hard time generating any offense the last few games,” Murray said.
The Bruins are looking for some of their younger players to step up and improve play. Against Bridgeport, Murray felt several had.
“Zach Hamill really picked up his game; Mikko Lehtonen looked good out there, our defense got into the scoring, so it was a good game for us to bounce back,” Murray said. Addressing young players and the need for them to respond while the team struggles, Murray added, “I can’t be too hard on these guys; they stepped up today but they weren’t able to step up the last couple of games. They’re trying, Zach Hamill had a fantastic game, and he was awesome. We need a few guys to help us find a way to win.” 
Jeff Penner was named the number one star; the defenseman notched his first goal of the season and also picked up two assists. Hamill had three assists and Jeff LoVecchio, just getting over being sick grabbed his fourth goal and added an assist as well. Bridgeport outshot Providence 40-28, Dany Sabourin made 37 saves for the victory in front of 4,230 fans at The Dunkin Donuts Center.
Contact Thomas.chace@prohockeynews.com
