Weekly Wrap-Up - North Division (Week 11)
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One win streak ended, two other teams broke out of their slumps, and maybe the Marlies are human after all.
This week in the North Division Notebook:
Belleville Senators
Record this week: 1-2
The Senators picked up a nice comeback win to start their week, but it would end up all going downhill from there.
On Wednesday night at home in a chippy affair against Binghamton, Belleville found themselves in a 3-0 hole just seconds into the third period. But, goals by Filip Chlapik and Gabriel Gagne would draw the hosts to within 3-2 midway through. A Ben Harpur goal with 2:10 to go in regulation would complete the rally and send the game to overtime, and in the eventual shootout, Colin White would score the lone goal to finish off a 4-3 comeback win over the Devils.
Friday night, Belleville was tied 3-3 with Manitoba entering the third period off goals by Gagne, Chlapik, and Max McCormick. But, the red hot Moose would explode for four goals in the final 20 minutes of the contest en route to a 7-3 loss, finishing off a 1-2 homestand.
Saturday, the Senators would return to Binghamton for the first time since moving out in April. The new tenants, the Devils, did not give them a nice welcome back, dealing Belleville a 5-2 loss. Gagne and Max Reinhart would each have a goal.
Senator Notes: Harpur was sent down by Ottawa just before Wednesday’s game, with Nick Paul going up to the parent club; the Senators visit Rochester on Wednesday, then return home on Friday to host the Crunch.
Binghamton Devils
Record this week: 1-1-0-1
It was a busy week for last place Binghamton, on and off the ice.
Wednesday evening in Belleville, things looked good for the Devils, as they would take a 3-0 lead early in the third period off goals from Ryan Kujawinski, Blake Speers, and Kevin Rooney. But recent third period woes would catch up to them once again, as the Senators would rally with 3 goals, including the tying goal with just over 2 minutes to go in regulation, to force overtime. Binghamton would be shut out in the shootout round and would end up with a 4-3 loss. It was a hard-fought affair between the two teams, as they combined for 148 penalty minutes.
The struggles continued for Binghamton on Friday, as they would drop a 2-1 decision to Utica on the road. Josh Jacobs would have the lone Devil goal in the second, and Ken Appleby had 30 saves.
On Saturday, in Binghamton’s last home before Christmas, they would finally breakthrough with a 5-2 win over Belleville, spoiling the Senator homecoming. Austin Cangelosi scored his first pro goal, newly acquired Michael Latta would score in his debut, and Viktor Loov, Rooney, and Speers would have third period tallies.
Devil Notes: Rookie forward Brandon Gignac is out for the remainder of the season after suffering a knee injury in Belleville on Wednesday; late Thursday evening, Kujawinski was dealt to Arizona for Latta; Spencer Abbott has been suspended by the team without pay for refusing to report after being traded from San Diego last week; defenseman Yaroslav Dyblenko was suspended for 2 games on Friday after an incident in Wednesday’s game; after being the second recall to New Jersey for the season and scoring against Dallas on Friday, Nick Lappin returned to Binghamton on Saturday; the Devils will go on a two game Pennsylvania road trip this week, heading to Wilkes-Barre on Friday and Hershey on Saturday.
Laval Rocket
Record this week: 0-2
It was not a good road trip for Laval, as they were swept in a 2-game set with Charlotte.
In the first game on Saturday, the Checkers would defeat the Rocket 3-1. Tom Parisi had the lone Laval goal on a power play, while Charlie Lindgren had 23 saves.
On Saturday, Charlotte would put up 3 goals on Lindgren in the first period en route to a 7-5 win. Nikita Scherbak scored twice, Chris Terry added three assists against his former team, Matt Taormina had two assists, and Michael McCarron had one goal and one assist.
Rocket Notes: Taormina leads all AHL defensemen with 25 points; Scherbak extended his point streak to 8 games with his two-goal game on Sunday; Laval returns home for a three game homestand, hosting Syracuse on Wednesday before a pair with Rochester Friday and Saturday.
Rochester Americans
Record this week: 2-1
A solid week for second place Rochester, who earned a pair of wins against Utica to stay within four points of the Marlies.
The Amerks would -start their week with a 3-1 victory over Utica at home on Wednesday evening. After falling behind 1-0 to the Comets just 1:27 into the contest, goals by Steve Moses, Stuart Percy, and C.J. Smith would get the job done. Linus Ullmark stopped 29 of 30 Utica shots.
On Friday, Rochester would give up the go-ahead goal to Toronto in the third period and fall 3-2 to the Marlies. Alex Nylander and Brendan Guhle would each have a goal, while Seth Griffith added two assists.
In a rematch with the Comets on the road on Saturday, the Amerks found themselves down 2-0 4:31 into the third period. Then, Sahir Gill and Nick Baptiste would score over a 3:41 span late in the third to send the game to overtime, where C.J. Smith would finish the comeback with the game winner seventeen seconds into the extra frame to finish a 3-2 win. Adam Wilcox stopped 31 of 33 shots, while Smith and Kyle Criscuolo each added two assists.
Amerk Notes: Nathan Paetsch is the only Amerk out injured, and has begun skating again after a leg injury the second week of the season; Smith leads all AHL rookies in scoring with 30 points and assists with 20, and sits two points behind Chris Bourque for the overall scoring lead; Rochester hosts Belleville on Wednesday, then heads north to Laval for a pair against the Rocket on Friday and Saturday.
Syracuse Crunch
Record this week: 1-1
As the saying goes, all good things must come to an end, and in the case of Syracuse, it was their winning streak.
Two long win streaks were on the line Friday night, as the Crunch hosted Providence, who had won their last 7 in a row. A four goal first period would get the job done for Syracuse, who made it an even 10 straight with a 5-3 win. Adam Erne scored twice, Michael Bournival added a goal and two assists, and Matthew Peca and Dominik Masin had two helpers each.
Saturday in Lehigh Valley, the streak came to a halt with a 4-2 loss to the Phantoms. Kevin Lynch and Peca would each have goals, while Connor Ingram stopped 29 of 33 Phantom shots.
Crunch Notes: Forward Anthony Cirelli was named AHL Player of the Week on Monday after a 7-point week (3 goals, 4 assists) in 3 games; it appears Cory Conacher will not be returning to Syracuse anytime soon due to an injury to Ryan Callahan; forward Ty Loney was reassigned to Adirondack on Sunday afternoon; Syracuse heads to Canada for a two-game trip, visiting Laval on Wednesday and Belleville on Friday, before returning home to host Utica on Saturday.
Toronto Marlies
Record this week: 1-2
The first place Marlies may have finally met their match after being swept by the league’s #2 team this weekend.
Toronto started their weekend with a 3-2 victory on the road against Rochester on Friday. Ben Smith’s 11th goal would break a 2-2 tie with 6:31 remaining in regulation. He also added two assists, and Kerby Rychel would also have one goal and two assists.
Toronto returned home to start a 2-game series with Manitoba on Saturday, in a battle of #1 vs. #2 in the AHL, and would drop the first game 2-1. Jeremy Bracco would just barely salvage the Marlies Teddy Bear Toss day by scoring with 21 seconds remaining in regulation. Garret Sparks stopped 25 of 26 Moose shots.
In game 2 on Sunday, the Marlies would jump ahead 1-0 in the first period on Smith’s 12th goal. But, Manitoba would then score four unanswered goals en route to a 4-1 win and a sweep of the weekend series. Calvin Pickard would stop 22 of 25 shots in the loss.
Marlies Notes: Kasperi Kapanen was recalled to the Maple Leafs on Tuesday, while Martin Marincin was called up on Sunday; defenseman Timothy Liljegren is off to play for Sweden in the World Junior Championships, starting the day after Christmas; the Marlies will travel to Utica for a pair against the Comets on Wednesday and Friday.
Utica Comets
Record this week: 1-1-1-0
It was a mixed week for Utica, who took three of six points, but could have easily gone 3-0 if not for two blown leads…similar to last weekend in Providence.
The Comets would start their week with a 3-1 loss at Rochester on Wednesday. Michael Carcone would score his third of the season 1:27 into the contest, but Thatcher Demko would then give up three unanswered goals. He would finish with 31 saves on 34 shots.
Utica would get back on track on Friday at home with a 2-1 win over Binghamton. Brendan Woods would score the go-ahead goal early in the third period, Philip Holm had a power play goal, and Demko would stop 20 of 21 shots.
Saturday at home against Rochester, things looked great early in the third for the Comets—on the strength of goals from Cole Cassels and Carcone, they lead the Amerks 2-0 early in the third. But, Rochester would then score three unanswered goals, including the game winner 17 seconds into overtime, to finish off a 3-2 loss for Utica. Richard Bachman stopped 27 of 30 shots.
Comet Notes: Defenseman Ashton Sautner was recalled to Vancouver on Thursday; defenseman Dylan Blujus and forward Tony Cameranesi were brought in on professional tryout agreements; the Comets wrap up their homestand with a pair against Toronto on Wednesday and Friday, then travel west to Syracuse on Saturday.
North Division Standings as of 12/18/17:
Toronto: 28 GP, 21-7-0-0, 42 points, .750 pct. Rochester: 28 GP, 16-6-3-3, 38 points, .679 pct. Syracuse: 27 GP, 14-10-1-2, 31 points, .574 pct. Utica: 27 GP, 11-11-4-1, 27 points, .500 pct. Laval: 29 GP, 10-13-4-2, 26 points, .448 pct. Belleville: 28 GP, 11-14-0-3, 25 points, .446 pct. Binghamton: 27 GP, 9-14-3-1, 22 points, .407 pct.
This Week's North Division Schedule:
Wednesday, December 20th
Toronto @ Utica, 7:00 PM Belleville @ Rochester, 7:05 PM Syracuse @ Laval, 7:30 PM
Friday, December 22nd
Syracuse @ Belleville, 7:00 PM Toronto @ Utica, 7:00 PM Binghamton @ Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, 7:05 PM Rochester @ Laval, 7:30 PM
Saturday, December 23rd
Binghamton @ Hershey, 7:00 PM Rochester @ Laval, 7:00 PM Utica @ Syracuse, 7:00 PM
