Crunch crush Moose streak with 6-4 win

November 23, 2007 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Manitoba Moose News Release


SYRACUSE, NY. -- Manitoba's five-game winning streak came to an end Friday night in Syracuse, as the Crunch battled back from an early two-goal deficit to beat the Moose 6-4. Syracuse's Joakim Lindstrom had two goals and two assists, while Manitoba's Jason Jaffray tallied three goals and seven shots for his first hat-trick of 07-08 and second of his pro career.

Playing in his seventh pro game, Cory Schneider started between the Moose pipes. At the opposite end of the rink, Crunch netminder Adam Munro was quickly forced to face the first powerplay of the game, as teammate Tom Sestito was delt a hooking penalty just over a minute in.

Occupying the Crunch zone on the man-advantage, the Moose earned an early one-goal lead thanks to Jaffray's powerplay shot -- Manitoba's third of the game -- from the right circle. Though Syracuse led the shot-clock 6-5, Manitoba extended their lead to two goals within seven minutes. With help from linemates Brad Moran and Jozef Balej, Jaffray beat Munro for the second time, earning his first multi-goal game of 07-08.

Back-to-back penalties to Greg Classen and Zack FitzGerald gave Syracuse a two-man advantage, and the Crunch connected on the powerplay. Out-playing Schneider and the Moose PK, defenceman Andrei Plekhanov put Syracuse back within one at 12:27.

A cluster of players in front of Schneider's net in the dying seconds of the first period resulted in a group pushing match at the buzzer, and after roughing penalties to Jaffray and Alexandre Picard, the Moose headed off the ice up 2-1 and 14-11 in shots.

For the second time in as many periods, the powerplay tables turned and Syracuse beat Schneider on another five-on-three. Transitioning from the penalty box to the scoreboard, Lindstrom scored to tie the game at two, followed closely by Aaron Rome's third of the year, which made the Crunch 3-for-5 on the powerplay and gave the home team their first lead of the game.

After battling back from a two-goal deficit, Syracuse put the Moose down two in the third thanks to an unlikely goal from Crunch forward Adam Pineault, who fired the club's 25th shot from beside Schneider's net. But Manitoba's leading scorer Colby Genoway quickly clawed back for the Moose, slipping the puck under Munro's crossbar to set the score at 4-3.

The clawing continued 1:20 later. Within one and with 14 minutes on the clock, Jaffray fired through Munro's left side to earn his second professional hat-trick and the club's second hat-trick in as many games, following rookie Mason Raymond's five-point night Nov. 21.

The deadlock wouldn't last long however, as with under four minutes on the clock, Lindstrom rediscovered his scoring touch and notched his second of the game on Syracuse's 30th shot to put the Crunch back on top.

Opting for the extra-attacker through the final 90 seconds of the game, Manitoba fought desperately for the game-tying goal, but Syracuse's Andrew Murray would sink the puck for the final time, securing a hard-fought 6-4 victory for the Crunch.

LOOKING AHEAD: The Moose and Monsters meet for the second time in a week tomorrow night in Cleveland. Manitoba won their first-ever contest with Lake Erie 4-2 on Sunday, Nov. 18th.



American Hockey League Stories from November 23, 2007


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

OurSports Central