SPRINGFIELD, Mass. - The Springfield Thunderbirds (24-27-6-2) rode their veteran forwards to a thrilling, come-from-behind 4-3 win over the Providence Bruins (45-12-1-0) on Sunday afternoon inside Amica Mutual Pavilion. 

After potting seven in a win over Hartford a night ago, the Bruins wasted little time adding to their potent offensive weekend as Matthew Poitras cleaned up a rebound in the blue paint after Georgi Romanov made an initial save off of Ty Gallagher. Poitras' 12th goal of the year made it 1-0 Providence just 2:10 into the contest.

The Springfield power play provided a good response for the visitors at 9:34 when Juraj Pekarcik shuffled a rebound past Simon Zajicek following a Marc-Andre Gaudet slapper, tying the score, 1-1.

Unfortunately, the Bruins would restore their lead in short order when Matej Blumel surprised Romanov with a long slap shot just 1:18 later to make it a 2-1 game. 

Springfield's special teams continued a strong first period, as the man-down unit successfully fended off two Providence advantages to keep the deficit at just one goal heading into the second.

With a carryover power play to begin the second, Dillon Dube nearly got Springfield even with a one-time slapper that beat Zajicek but caught the iron. Romanov, meanwhile, had a strong showing in the period, especially early in the period, keeping his team within a goal by making nine stops in the period.

Zajicek and the Providence penalty kill stiffened on a third man-down scenario near the midpoint of regulation, and the 2-1 score remained intact heading to the third.

The third period began with Springfield penalty kill once again answering the bell on back-to-back Providence power plays to keep the score at a manageable 2-1.

As the third passed its midpoint, the T-Birds' most experienced leaders took over, beginning at the 10:36 mark when Chris Wagner's torrid weekend continued as he threw a shot off a defender and past Zajicek to tie the game, 2-2.  

Just 1:50 later, the T-Birds flipped the game upside-down when Wagner won an offensive zone draw directly back to Dube, who snapped a perfect shot under the crossbar to give Springfield its first lead, 3-2. 

Romanov and the T-Birds' defense locked things down in the defensive zone, and Alek Kaskimaki hit an empty net after a clutch shot block from Wagner at 18:53 of the third. Blumel would get his second of the night for Providence, but only three seconds remained at the time of the goal, making it too little, too late for the Bruins.

The T-Birds' comeback marked the first time all season that the Bruins failed to win when leading after two periods. With their victory, the T-Birds now sit in the sixth and final playoff spot in the Atlantic Division with 13 games remaining in the regular season.

The T-Birds take a trip north of the border for their next two contests on Friday and Saturday in Laval and Belleville, respectively. 

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).