Sound Tigers round out East draw

The Bridgeport Sound Tigers clinched a berth in the 2016 Calder Cup Playoffs on Friday night with a 3-2 victory over the Portland Pirates.

Bracken Kearns scored with 41.6 seconds left in regulation to give Bridgeport its 40th win of the season. The Sound Tigers (40-27-4-3, 87 points) are tied with Portland for fourth place in the Atlantic Division with two games remaining.

Bridgeport can still finish as high as third in the Atlantic. At worst, they will finish fifth and cross over into the North Division draw because of their better record than Syracuse, the fourth-place team in North.

This will be the Sound Tigers’ first postseason trip since 2012. Bridgeport will be looking for its first series victory since advancing to the second round in 2003.

Fifteen of the 16 playoff spots in the American Hockey League postseason have now been claimed with two days remaining in the regular season. In the Western Conference, San Jose needs one point in its final two games to clinch the final playoff spot, otherwise Charlotte would grab the final berth.

For more information and daily updates on the playoff races, check out the official AHL Playoff Primer