PROVIDENCE, R.I. – The Springfield Thunderbirds (1-4-0-0) battled back from a three-goal deficit, but were snakebitten by a late game-winner in a 5-3 defeat to the Providence Bruins (5-0-0-0) on Friday night inside Amica Mutual Pavilion.

Things got off to a rocky start for the T-Birds just 1:57 into the opening period, as a misplayed puck behind the goal line led Riley Tufte to the loose biscuit before centering to Dans Locmelis for a one-timer that eluded Vadim Zherenko, giving Providence the 1-0 advantage.

That would prove to be the only blip on Zherenko's radar in the opening period, as the netminder bounced back to stop the next 10 shots he faced to keep Springfield within a goal heading into the intermission. The T-Birds' penalty kill also did its job, denying two chances for a blistering hot Providence power play. 

Tufte's line caused more problems early in the second, as he crashed the front of the net to punch a Brett Harrison pass between Zherenko's legs and make it a 2-0 game. Patrick Brown followed suit with a net-crashing rebound tally at the 12:13 mark, and the Bruins' lead had ballooned to 3-0.

With their backs against the wall, the T-Birds finally got some confidence when Dalibor Dvorsky cashed in on a power play at 17:18 from the right-wing circle off a slick backhand feed from Matthew Peca. Springfield then went to another power play that carried over into the third, and Juraj Pekarcik brought the T-Birds to 2-for-2 on the man advantage, depositing a backhand over a fallen Michael DiPietro to cut the margin to 3-2 just 52 seconds into the final frame.

With momentum firmly on their side, the T-Birds got a greasy goal to equalize at 2:36 of the third as Alek Kaskimaki jammed the puck through DiPietro at the near post, making it a 3-3 game early in the final period.

DiPietro and Zherenko prevented the tie from being broken as the clubs traded chances sparingly as the game entered the closing minutes. However, puck luck doomed the T-Birds with just 1:47 to play, as Fabian Lysell got loose behind the defense and tucked a breakaway backhand through Zherenko's legs to give Providence the lead. 

Springfield's last-ditch efforts at 6-on-5 came up short, and Brown added his second of the night into an empty net to round out the scoring with five seconds to play. 

The T-Birds now return home for four of the next five games, including the first home-ice installment of the Braman Pest Control I-91 Rivalry on Saturday against the Hartford Wolf Pack, with puck drop set for 6:05 p.m. at the Thunderdome.

Single-game tickets and ticket memberships for all remaining games in the Thunderbirds' 2025-26 season are available now - fans can order now by visiting www.SpringfieldThunderbirds.com or by calling (413) 739-GOAL (4625).