Crunch Fall to Amerks, 4-2, in Regular Season Finale
April 14, 2018 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Syracuse Crunch News Release
SYRACUSE, N.Y. - The Syracuse Crunch fell to the Rochester Americans, 4-2, in the regular season finale tonight at the War Memorial Arena. The teams will meet in the first round of the 2018 Calder Cup Playoffs.
Alexander Volkov scored both Crunch goals to complete the season with a team-high 23 goals. Syracuse finished with a 46-22-3-5 record and a franchise-high .658 points percentage. Despite the loss, the Crunch won the 10-game season series against the Amerks, 6-2-1-1.
Olivier Mantha appeared in his first AHL game between the pipes for the Crunch turning aside 39-of-42 shots. Adam Wilcox turned aside 24-of-26 in net for the Amerks. Syracuse went 1-for-5 on the power play, while killing 6-of-7 Rochester man-advantages.
Volkov opened scoring on the power play at the 11:13 mark of the first period. Olivier Archambault fired from the right circle, but it was kicked away. Volkov followed behind the play to chip in the second chance. Carter Verhaeghe tallied the secondary helper.
Rochester answered back with two goals before the first intermission. While on the man-advantage, the puck kicked out during a battle in front of the net for Seth Griffith to grab behind the cage. He fed C.J. Smith to fire a one-timer from the left wing. His shot was blocked, but Justin Bailey eventually found the back of the net at the 13:01 mark. With 1:04 remaining in the opening stanza, Alexander Nylander capitalized on a turnover in the slot.
Rochester made it a two-goal lead 3:22 into the second period. Garret Ross poked the puck in during a scramble in the crease. Hudson Fasching and Brendan Guhle recorded the helpers.
Two minutes later, Volkov pulled Syracuse back within one. Archambault threw a cross-zone pass to Matthew Spencer at the right point. He sent a perfectly placed feed down to the far goal post for Volkov to redirect in.
The Crunch couldn't catch the Amerks and Sean Malone added an empty-netter in the final minutes to secure a Rochester victory.
The North Division Semifinals against the Amerks opens in Syracuse with Game 1 on Friday, April 20 at 7 p.m.
Single game tickets and packages for the 2018 Calder Cup Playoffs are on sale now and can be purchased in person at the Crunch office located inside the War Memorial Arena at 800 S. State St. in Syracuse, by calling the office at 315-473-4444. For the latest Crunch news, visit www.syracusecrunch.com or follow the club on Facebook (www.facebook.com/syracusecrunch), Twitter (@SyracuseCrunch) and Instagram (@syracusecrunch) using #SyrCrunch.
Crunchables: Alexander Volkov recorded his sixth multi-goal game of the season. All have been against North Division opponents...Carter Verhaeghe has 17 points in his last 18 games (7g, 10a)...Olivier Mantha is the seventh goaltender to appear in a Crunch game this season, setting a new franchise record.
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