Crunch Fall to Americans, 3-2 in Shootout
AHL Syracuse Crunch

Crunch Fall to Americans, 3-2 in Shootout

Published on March 29, 2026 under American Hockey League (AHL)
Syracuse Crunch News Release


Syracuse Crunch center Lucas Mercuri with the puck vs. the Rochester Americans
Syracuse Crunch center Lucas Mercuri with the puck vs. the Rochester Americans
(Syracuse Crunch, Credit: Micheline Veluvolu)

SYRACUSE, N.Y. - The Syracuse Crunch fell to the Rochester Americans, 3-2, in a shootout this afternoon at Blue Cross Arena.

The Crunch earned a standings point, moving to 39-20-3-3 on the season and 6-4-0-1 in the 12-game seasons series with the Americans.

Crunch goaltender Brandon Halverson put a stop to 24-of-26 shots and 0-of-2 shootout attempts. Devon Levi earned the win turning aside 27-of-29 shots and both shootout attempts in net for the Amerks. Syracuse was held scoreless on seven power-play opportunities while Rochester converted on 1-of-4.

The Americans struck first with 7:08 remaining in the opening frame. Zac Jones dished the puck from the top of the right circle to Matteo Costantini in the slot. Costantini then skated across the front of the crease and potted a backhand shot.

At the 4:11 mark of the second period the Crunch evened the score at one. Conor Geekie fed the puck to Jakob Pelletier who skated it out of the defensive zone and along the right boards into the offensive zone. Pelletier slid the puck to Nick Abruzzese who netted a backhander from the bottom of the right circle.

Trevor Kuntar notched a power-play goal 43 seconds into the final frame to make it 2-1, Rochester, when he tipped in Zac Jones' shot from the right point. Syracuse then tied the game, 2-2, at the 6:24 mark with a snapshot from Ethan Gauthier. Max Groshev tried to punch the puck in from the left goal line, but it popped out to Tommy Miller at the top of the right circle. Miller set up a wide-open Gauthier at the top of the left circle where he fired a snapshot home to force overtime.

The teams remained tied through the overtime period and went to a shootout. Konsta Helenius scored in the first round and Olivier Nadeau found the back of the net in the second round to secure the win for Rochester.

The Crunch are back on home ice on Friday when they face off against the Providence Bruins for the 16th Annual Pucks for Paws presented by The Summit Federal Credit Union.

Ticket packages for the 2025-26 season are on sale now and can be purchased in person at the Crunch office located inside the Upstate Medical University Arena at Onondaga County War Memorial at 800 S. State St. in Syracuse, by calling the office at 315-473-4444 or online through Ticketmaster. For the latest Crunch news, visit www.syracusecrunch.com or follow the club on Facebook (www.facebook.com/syracusecrunch), X (@SyracuseCrunch) and Instagram (@syracusecrunch).

Crunchables: Jakob Pelletier tied the league's longest points streak of the season with 16 games (7g, 16a)...Ethan Gauthier has goals in back-to-back games.

Check out the Syracuse Crunch Statistics

Share: Facebook | Twitter/X | LinkedIn | Reddit | Email



Images from this story

Syracuse Crunch defenseman Maxim Groshev (left) vs. the Rochester Americans
Syracuse Crunch defenseman Maxim Groshev (left) vs. the Rochester Americans
(Micheline Veluvolu)		 Syracuse Crunch left wing Nick Abruzzese vs. the Rochester Americans
Syracuse Crunch left wing Nick Abruzzese vs. the Rochester Americans
(Micheline Veluvolu)		 Syracuse Crunch center Lucas Mercuri with the puck vs. the Rochester Americans
Syracuse Crunch center Lucas Mercuri with the puck vs. the Rochester Americans
(Micheline Veluvolu)



American Hockey League Stories from March 29, 2026


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