Weekly Wrap-Up - North Division (Week 10)
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The Crunch streak hits 9, Toronto continues to lead the way, and two blown leads doom the Comets. More in this week’s North Division Notebook:
Belleville Senators
Record this week: 0-1
Belleville had the easiest schedule of all seven teams this week…but had nothing to show for it.
The Senators would be shutout by Syracuse 6-0 at home on Saturday night. Danny Taylor would get the start and stop 14 of 18 shots in 40 minutes of work, then backup Chris Driedger would relieve in the third period and stop 6 of 8.
Senator Notes: The homestand continues with two more games this week, Binghamton on Wednesday and Manitoba on Friday, then the Senators return to their old stomping grounds in the Southern Tier on Saturday night to take on the Devils. Speaking of…
Binghamton Devils
Record this week: 1-2
One step up, then two steps back yet again for the last place Devils, who continue to struggle on their new home ice.
Binghamton started their week with a trip to Laval to face the Rocket…and skated away with a 2-1 come from behind win. After falling 1-0 after one period, a Bracken Kearns second period goal would tie it up…then Jacob MacDonald would score his 10th goal of the season 31 seconds into overtime for a much needed Devil victory. John Quenneville would add two assists, while Mackenzie Blackwood stopped 24 of 25 shots.
Back on home ice Friday night against Syracuse, two goals from rookie Nathan Bastian in the first 16:46 of the game would give the Devils an early 2-0 edge. But, the Crunch would score five unanswered goals, including four in the second period, en route to a 5-2 Devil loss. Four Devil skaters would have one assist each.
Saturday, Charlotte would visit the Southern Tier for the first time since the 2011 Eastern Conference Finals, when the then Binghamton Senators swept the Checkers in four straight en route to the Calder Cup. Six years later, Charlotte would get some revenge, routing the Devils 7-1. Blackwood would get the start on his 21st birthday and would give up 5 goals on 18 shots in 23 minutes of work. Ken Appleby would come in from the bullpen for the rest of the way and stop 14 of 16. Kearns had the lone Devil goal.
Devil Notes: With injuries to Brian Strait, Yaroslav Dyblenko, and Austin Cangelosi, Binghamton signed former Panthers defenseman Dylan Olsen, who was playing for Adirondack, and training camp invitee forward Kevin Morris (via Manchester) to professional tryout agreements; after Friday’s contest, the Devils acquired forward Spencer Abbott from the San Diego Gulls for future considerations; Binghamton is now 3-8-2-0 on home ice; the Devils hit the road for a pair of games against Belleville and Utica on Wednesday and Friday, respectively, before returning home to host the last residents of the Floyd L. Maines Veterans Memorial Arena, the Senators, for the first time on Saturday.
Laval Rocket
Record this week: 0-2-1-0
Not a successful week for Laval, as they only managed one point in three home games.
On Wednesday against Binghamton, the Rocket jumped ahead early 1-0 on a goal by Jeremy Gregoire. But, the Devils would tie the game up early in the second period, then score 31 seconds into overtime to defeat Laval 2-1. Despite the loss, goaltender Charlie Lindgren was named the game’s first star with 32 saves.
On Friday, Laval would give up two goals in the third to Toronto to break a 1-1 tie and lose 3-1. Niki Petti would score his second goal of the season, the only Rocket skater to register a point. Lindgren would have 23 saves.
In the rematch the following afternoon, the Rocket would get swept in the two game set with the Marlies, 5-2. Petti and Chris Terry would each have one goal, while Stefan Leblanc added two assists.
Rocket Notes: Daniel Carr was demoted—then recalled—to Montreal in a span of 24 hours on Monday; the Canadiens returned Nikita Scherbak to the Rocket on Sunday; Laval heads south for the weekend, with a pair of games against Charlotte on Saturday night and Sunday afternoon.
Rochester Americans
Record this week: 2-0-0-1
Not a bad showing for Rochester in a 3 in 3 weekend through three Atlantic Division cities, snagging 5 out of 6 points and holding on to second place in the division.
On Friday, the Amerks would kick off their New England road trip with a 2-1 win over Springfield. Seth Griffith and Kyle Criscuolo would have one goal each, while Linus Ullmark only had to make 18 saves for the win.
Saturday, Rochester would head south down Interstate 91 to Hartford, where they would drop a 3-2 shootout to the Wolfpack. C.J. Smith would score his 8th in the second, while Zach Redmond’s 4th goal of the season with 9:28 to go in regulation would tie the game up and require bonus hockey to settle things.
The Amerks would finish off the weekend by heading further south to Bridgeport Sunday afternoon and defeating the Sound Tigers 4-1. Redmond had two goals and one assist, Griffith scored once and assisted on another, and Stuart Percy added two helpers. Adam Wilcox stopped 36 of 37 shots and picked up his third win of the season.
Amerk Notes: On the Buffalo express this week, Criscuolo and Hudson Fasching were sent down and Evan Rodrigues would be recalled on Monday, but Fasching would then return to the Sabres on Tuesday; Rochester hosts Utica on Wednesday and Toronto on Friday, then visits the Comets on Saturday.
Syracuse Crunch
Record this week: 3-0
Taking a quote from Tyler Johnson: 8’s a fluke, 9’s a streak. It appears nothing is slowing down Syracuse’s roll at this point.
The Crunch would start the week by extending their win streak to 7 with a 6-1 win in Utica. Adam Erne would pick up his first career hat trick, Carter Verhaeghe scored twice, rookie Matthew Spencer scored his first pro goal, and Anthony Cirelli added three assists. Louis Domingue stopped 24 of 25 Comet shots.
On Friday night in Binghamton, Syracuse would fall behind early 2-0. But a 4 goal second period would spearhead the Crunch to a 5-2 victory, their eighth in a row. Cirelli would score twice, Mathieu Joseph had one goal and two assists, and Alex Gallant added his first goal of the season.
Saturday, Syracuse headed north to Belleville and shut out the Senators 6-0 to make it 9 in a row. Rookie goaltender Connor Ingram needed only 18 saves to complete his first professional shutout. Mitchell Stephens and Alexander Volkov would each have two goals, while Matthew Peca, Dominik Masin, and Volkov had two assists apiece.
Crunch Notes: Rookie Dennis Yan is out for 2 to 4 weeks with an elbow injury; defenseman Jamie McBain was sent down—then recalled—to Tampa in a 48 hour span, then returned to Syracuse on Friday; forward Shane Conacher was sent back to Adirondack on Thursday; the Crunch host Providence on Friday before traveling to Lehigh Valley on Saturday.
Toronto Marlies
Record this week: 2-0
Another successful week for the first place Marlies, as they swept a road series against Laval to extend their win streak to four games.
Despite losing goaltender Garret Sparks in the first period to an apparent injury, the Marlies would break a 1-1 tie in the third period on Friday and win 3-1. Kasperi Kapanen and Chris Mueller would each contribute a goal and an assist.
Toronto would finish off the two game sweep with a 5-2 win on Saturday afternoon. Five different Marlies would contribute a goal, while Travis Dermott and Kerby Rychel added two assists each.
Marlies Notes: Goaltender Cal Heeter was recalled from Orlando on Saturday to back up Calvin Pickard, then would return to the Solar Bears on Sunday; with Saturday’s win, the Marlies are the first AHL team to reach the 40 point mark; Toronto has a 3 in 3 weekend upcoming, traveling to Rochester on Friday before returning home Saturday to begin a 2 game series with Manitoba.
Utica Comets
Record this week: 0-1-2-0
After running head on into the Syracuse train, Utica did manage two points on a road trip to Rhode Island, despite two blown third period leads and quite a few personnel changes.
The Comets week did not get off to a promising start, as they dropped a 6-1 decision to Syracuse at home on Wednesday evening. Patrick Wiercioch scored shorthanded midway through the first period, then the Crunch would score six unanswered goals on goaltender Richard Bachman.
On Saturday, Utica would kick off a two game set against the Bruins in Providence and drop the first game in overtime 3-2. Michael Carcone’s second goal of the season would give the Comets a 2-1 lead in the third, but Providence would tie the game up with 3:27 remaining in regulation, then take the extra point with 1:41 remaining in overtime. Cam Darcy would score his first of the season in the loss.
In the rematch on Sunday afternoon, Utica appeared to be in the driver’s seat early in the third, as two goals from Reid Boucher gave them a 3-1 lead. But the Bruins would again comeback to tie, scoring twice in a 2:05 span, then again taking the win just 26 seconds into overtime by a 4-3 margin.
Comet Notes: Goaltender Thatcher Demko and forward Michael Chaput were recalled to Vancouver on Thursday; with injuries and recalls piling up, the Comets brought in Idaho forward Brady Brassart and Utah defenseman Cliff Watson on professional tryout deals; defenseman Jordan Subban was traded to the Kings early Friday morning in exchange for Nic Dowd; Demko would return to the Comet roster on Saturday; Utica travels to Rochester on Wednesday, then returns home on Friday to host Binghamton and the Amerks on Saturday.
North Division Standings as of December 11th, 2017:
Toronto: 25 GP, 20-5-0-0, 40 points, .800 pct Rochester: 25 GP, 14-5-3-3, 34 points, .680 pct Syracuse: 25 GP, 13-9-1-2, 29 points, .580 pct Utica: 24 GP, 10-10-3-1, 24 points, .500 pct Laval: 27 GP, 10-11-4-2, 26 points, .481 pct Belleville: 25 GP, 10-12-0-3, 23 points, .460 pct Binghamton: 24 GP, 8-13-3-0, 19 points, .396 pct
This Week's North Division Schedule:
Wednesday, December 13th
Binghamton @ Belleville, 7:00 PM Utica @ Rochester, 7:05 PM
Friday, December 15th
Manitoba @ Belleville, 7:00 PM Providence @ Syracuse, 7:00 PM Binghamton @ Utica, 7:00 PM Toronto @ Rochester, 7:05 PM
Saturday, December 16th
Manitoba @ Toronto, 4:00 PM Laval @ Charlotte, 6:00 PM Rochester @ Utica, 7:00 PM Belleville @ Binghamton, 7:05 PM Syracuse @ Lehigh Valley, 7:05 PM
Sunday, December 17th
Laval @ Charlotte, 1:00 PM Manitoba @ Toronto, 4:00 PM
