Sound Tigers Gameday: Brock Nelson out with Islander Face

The Bridgeport Sound Tigers resume their busy 2012-ending schedule by hosting the Manchester Monarchs tonight. They'll do it with several lineup changes and updates:

• Brock Nelson remains out with what the team has now announced is a broken jaw that will keep him out 2-3 weeks. That makes Nelson the latest victim of Islander Face. A rite of passage, it happens to the best of them.
• Brett Gallant has been suspended three games for what the league deemed was leaving the bench, on a line change, for the purpose of fighting Dylan McIlrath. It's the second such suspension for Bridgeport this season, though Brandon DeFazio's was deemed to be not part of a line change (thus he got six games). Michael Fornabaio has notes on Gallants fights, faceoffs and more here.
  
• That was retaliation for McIlrath's elbow hit on Marc Cantin, which got McIlrath suspended for two games...
• ...and also results in Cantin missing tonight's game.
• However, Nino Niederreiter, who sat out the second Whale game after a high stick to the face, is expected to return.
• Anders Nilsson looks to get the start.
• And finally, Bridgeport announced they've brought back defenseman Dallas Jackson on a PTO, and he too is expected in the lineup tonight.

Should be a good tilt tonight. Bridgeport has handled Scott Pellerin's old team twice this season (outscoring them 9-2), and the team's enter tonight separated by just one point (33-32) and one slot (8-9) in the standings. Manchester played Worcester last night, losing 2-1 as old friend Peter Mannino stopped 32 shots in the loss.

The Monarchs obviously don't think they brought their best game in the previous two meetings. Hopefully they forget it tonight, too.