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AHL Syracuse Crunch

Crunch Scrap for 5-3 Win over Sens

February 21, 2015 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Syracuse Crunch News Release


SYRACUSE, N.Y. - The Syracuse Crunch won at home for the second consecutive night, downing the Binghamton Senators, 5-3, Saturday at the War Memorial Arena. Carter Ashton, who scored his first goal in a Crunch uniform late in the first, was one of three multi-point performers. Mike Angelidis and Yanni Gourde had Gordie Howe hat tricks, with a fight, a goal and two assists each. Syracuse has taken four of six matchups against Binghamton this season.

After the Senators (22-25-5-1) scored on their first shot of the game, Carter Camper's ninth goal 3:46 into the opening period, Syracuse tied the score. Defenseman Jake Dotchin tallied his fourth goal of the season, most among Crunch defensemen, a wrister from the high slot over Peter Mannino's glove. Mike Angelidis and Henri Ikonen garnered assists.

Syracuse took a 2-1 lead with 14.3 seconds remaining in period one. A bouncing puck from the right wing rolled onto Carter Ashton's stick. The winger settled the puck, glided to the low circle, and wristed a shot over Mannino's pad for his first Crunch goal. Mannino finished with 35 saves in and Syracuse outshot Binghamto, 40-23.

Joel Vermin extended the Crunch advantage to two goals 1:32 into the second period, kicking the loose puck from the high slot onto his stick blade and beating Mannino. Vermin's ninth of the season and 10th of his career was his first in eight games. Vlad Namestnikov and Jonathan Marchessault earned the assists. After missing six games due to injury, Marchessault has two points (1g, 1a) in the last two contests.

Halfway through the second, Binghamton pulled within a goal, 3-2, on Garrett Thompson's sixth goal of the season. The puck deflected off Thompson's stick and into the back of the cage past Crunch netminder Kristers Gudlevskis at the 9:24 mark of the middle frame. Gudlevskis finished with 20 saves and moved to 17-8-2 this season.

The Crunch added a power-play insurance goal from Mike Angelidis, the captain's 16th marker of the season, 7:53 into the third period for a 4-2 advantage. Yanni Gourde slipped a pass beneath the goal line to Ashton, who delivered it cross-crease to Angelidis. The center poked it in for his team-leading fifth power-play goal.

Both Gourde (12) and Angelidis (7) have set career highs in multi-point games this season. Angelidis (1g, 2a) earned his first three-point game since Dec. 18, 2013, a 4-3 shootout loss to the Hershey Bears. Syracuse's power play finished 1-for-6 and held the Senators unit, ranked third in the league, scoreless on three opportunities.

Binghamton came within a goal at the 14:48 mark of the third, scoring shorthanded to make it 4-3. Patrick Mullen set up the play with a saucer pass to Colin Greening on a two-on-one rush. Greening backhanded the puck past the sliding Gudlevskis.

Gudlevskis helped fight off multiple chances in the final few minutes from the Senators, and Gourde tallied the final goal, an empty netter with 23 seconds left, to ice the game, 5-3. After the score, pushing and shoving developed into three separate fights, with six fighting majors assessed, three on each squad. Angelidis, Gourde and Joey Mormina were each assessed fighting majors, and Angelidis and Binghamton defenseman Chris Wideman each earned game misconducts.

The Crunch finishes its three-in-three weekend Sunday in Rochester at 5:05 p.m. Currently 13th in the Western Conference, Rochester was off Saturday after a 5-2 loss to Texas Friday. Syracuse owns the season series edge, 3-2, against the Amerks. Manchester's point in an overtime loss to St. John's leaves the Monarchs one point ahead of Syracuse for the conference lead.

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