Comets Earn Point in Shootout Loss to Crunch, 4-3
February 1, 2023 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Utica Comets News Release
Utica, NY. -It's always a hard-fought rivalry when the Utica Comets matchup against their division and inter-state rival, the Syracuse Crunch. On Wednesday night at the Adirondack Bank Center, the two teams didn't disappoint in a lively game in front of a raucous crowd in Utica. While the Comets found themselves down by two goals in the third period, they managed to fight back to a tie game and send the contest to overtime and a shootout to earn a point in a 4-3 shootout loss.
It was a power-play scenario that allowed the Comets to strike first in the game during the opening period. Defenseman Robbie Russo launched a shot from the right-wing side that beat Syracuse goalie, Hugo Alnefelt at 6:41. The goal was Russo's fourth of the season and it was assisted by Graeme Clarke and Brian Halonen and it put Utica up, 1-0. It was the only goal scored in the first period as Nico Daws, Comets netminder, stopped all six shots he faced in the first twenty minutes of play.
While there was no scoring in the second period, the Crunch tied the game and it was Darren Raddysh who found room just under the cross bar on Daws at 2:20 in the third period. The Crunch gained a 2-1 advantage after a goal by Alex Barre-Boulet at 5:11 on the power-play. The Crunch didn't take long to strike again, and it was defenseman Trevor Carrick who blasted a shot that was partially stopped by Daws but rolled past the line at 6:20. Two quick goals by Syracuse vaulted them to a 3-1 lead. With Daws pulled, the Comets used a goal mouth scramble in the Syracuse zone, and it was Jack Dugan who found the puck and blasted it home at 16:39. The goal was Dugan's seventh of the season and it was assisted by Halonen and Tyce Thompson. The Comets were down 3-2 at this point in the contest. Rookie defenseman Simon Nemec tied the game 3-3 with just 1:18 remaining on a blast from the blue line sent the crowd to their feet amidst the chant of "Utica" from fans in attendance.
The overtime period didn't result in a goal for either team. The game headed to a shootout. While the Comets received a goal from Nolan Stevens in the skills session, the Crunch were able to strike at the top of the sixth round on the Luke Edmonds chance and the Comets took a point in a 4-3 decision.
The Comets play the Hartford Wolf Pack on Friday night on the road before returning home on Saturday to battle the Providence Bruins inside the Adirondack Bank Center on Wednesday night at 7:00 PM. Great seats are still available, visit www.uticacomets.com.
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