Sports stats

AHL Syracuse Crunch

Crunch Weekly

February 5, 2014 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Syracuse Crunch News Release


Last Week

Wed., Jan. 29 - Crunch at W-B/Scranton - L, 4-0

Fri., Jan. 31 - Crunch at Utica - L, 3-1

Sat., Feb. 1 - Crunch vs. Norfolk - SOL, 3-2

This Week

Wed., Feb. 5 - Crunch at Rochester - 7:05 p.m.

Fri., Feb. 7 - Crunch at Springfield - 7 p.m.

Sat., Feb. 8 - Crunch vs. Springfield - 7 p.m.

Need to Know

- Crunch Olympians Kristers Gudlevskis (Latvia) and Richard Panik (Slovakia) leave for Sochi at the end of this week.

- Three-time Olympian and Hockey Hall of Fame defenseman Brian Leetch will appear at the Saturday Crunch game.

- Syracuse, 13th in the Eastern Conference, plays on the road Wednesday and Friday before a home game Saturday.

The Crunch captured a standings point Sunday in a shootout loss to Norfolk, ending a stretch of six games of regulation losses. Syracuse moves up to 13th in the AHL's Eastern Conference at 41 points, but remains fifth in the East Division. Hershey holds the conference's last playoff spot, 13 points ahead of Syracuse.

After playing four of their last five games on the road, Syracuse's next five games also feature four away from home. Week 19 begins a trip to Rochester, the first of four this season, followed by a home-and-home series with Springfield, the only two matchups with the Falcons this season and a rematch of the 2013 Eastern Conference Semifinals, a four-game sweep for the Crunch.

Former New York Ranger and Hockey Hall of Fame defenseman Brian Leetch will be a special guest at Syracuse's game Saturday, Feb. 8. The two-time Norris Trophy winner and 1994 Stanley Cup champion will greet fans and help kick off an Olympics celebration. Leetch, who was born in Texas and grew up in Connecticut, was an All-American at Boston College and represented the United States at the Winter Games three times (1988, 1998, 2002).

Transactions

- 02/02/2014 Jordan Henry (D) DEL Returned on loan to Florida (ECHL)

- 02/01/2014 Allen York (G) ADD Signed to PTO

- 02/01/2014 John Parks (G) DEL Released from ATO

- 02/01/2014 John Parks (G) ADD Signed to ATO

- 02/01/2014 Kristers Gudlevskis (G) ADD Returned on loan from Tampa Bay (NHL)

- 01/31/2014 Cedrick Desjardins (G) DEL Recalled from loan by Tampa Bay (NHL)

- 01/31/2014 Kristers Gudlevskis (G) DEL Recalled from loan by Tampa Bay (NHL)

- 01/30/2014 Maxime Langelier-Parent (C) ADD Recalled from loan to Florida (ECHL)

Crunch dance the goalie shuffle

Goalies Cedrick Desjardins and Kristers Gudlevskis were both recalled by Tampa Bay Friday night because of injuries to Ben Bishop and Anders Lindback. To fill the void between the pipes, the Crunch signed Allen York to a professional try out and John Parks to an amateur tryout contract. With Bishop healthy enough to play Saturday, Gudlevskis was returned to the Crunch, but not in time to play against Norfolk. York and Parks suited up.

York, playing for his sixth professional team this season, halted Syracuse's streak of regulation losses at six. The former Columbus draft choice, who played 11 games for the Blue Jackets in 2011-12, stopped 29 shots in a shootout loss. York played against Syracuse twice last season as a backup netminder for Springfield. On Feb. 23, 2013, he made 43 saves on 45 shots in a 3-0 loss at the War Memorial and on May 10 he saved each of 11 Crunch shots in 30 minutes of relief action in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals.

The backup, 46-year-old John Parks, is an occasional fill-in netminder during Crunch practices. Parks, a Watertown native who currently resides in Clay, is an assistant coach at Christian Brothers Academy in Syracuse. The one-day deal for Parks was his first professional contract.

Gudlevskis and York begin Week 19 as the Crunch goalie tandem. Desjardins is expected to rejoin the Crunch when the NHL enters its Olympic break this weekend at the same time Gudlevskis departs Syracuse for Sochi.

THE WEEK IN REVIEW

Game 42: Hartzell, Pens shut down Crunch, 4-0

An early first-period goal from the Penguins' Paul Thompson proved to be the deciding marker Wednesday at Mohegan Sun Arena. Rookie goaltender Eric Hartzell blanked the Crunch, 4-0, for his third shutout of the season, the third time Syracuse has been held scoreless this season. The Penguins are 5-1-0-1 against the Crunch.

After allowing two goals in the first, Syracuse held the Penguins off the board in the second allowing only four shots on net. But the Crunch offense never got in gear and Wilkes-Barre/Scranton padded the lead in the third. Tom Kostopoulos, the franchise's all-time leader in most offensive categories, notched a goal and an assist and Simon Despres had two helpers. Kristers Gudlevskis made 21 saves on 25 shots, slipping to 10-8-2.

Game 43: Sustr returns with a spark, but Comets soar over Crunch, 3-1

The Utica Comets built a three-goal edge and held on for a 3-1 victory Friday at the Utica Memorial Auditorium. Andrej Sustr, in his second game with the Crunch this year, spoiled Utica goalie Joacim Eriksson's otherwise perfect night with a goal in contest's final two minutes. The marker was Sustr's first since a game-tying goal in Game 6 of the Calder Cup Finals June 18. Richard Panik and Mike Angelidis assisted.

Brandon DeFazio and Pascal Pelletier gave the Comets a 2-0 lead in the second and Darren Archibald extended the advantage in the third, all at even strength. Syracuse was perfect on the penalty kill for a second consecutive game, stopping five Utica man-advantages, but was also 0-for-5 on the power play.

Cedrick Desjardins stopped 26 shots in the loss, dropping to 5-11-2. Eriksson, the reigning CCM/AHL Player of the Week, stopped 31 of 32 Crunch shots on the night.

Game 44: York and Tyrell sparkle, but Admirals prevail in shootout

With both Kristers Gudlevksis and Cedrick Desjardins recalled to Tampa Bay goaltender Allen York made his Syracuse Crunch debut, recording 29 saves in a shootout loss to Norfolk, 3-2, Saturday at the War Memorial. Dana Tyrell recorded his fourth multi-point game in the defeat.

Jon DiSalvatore gave Syracuse a 1-0 lead halfway through the first with his fourth goal of the year, set up by Tyrell's cross-slot pass. Mike Angelidis had the secondary helper, notching his second assist in as many games. In the second, Norm Ezekiel and Steve Eminger recorded their first goals of the year to lift Norfolk into a 2-1 lead. Dana Tyrell tied the game at 2-2 with his second shorthanded goal of the year, the team's sixth, unassisted.

Norfolk, playing in its 15th shootout, a league high, came away victorious with two of three shooters solving York in the skills competition. Evan Rankin, Richard Panik, Brett Connolly and Vlad Namestnikov couldn't crack Brad Thiessen who finished with 34 saves.

Syracuse held the Admirals to 0-for-6 on the power play and recorded a point for the first time in six games, but dropped its seventh straight.

THE WEEK AHEAD

Crunch at Rochester-Wednesday, 7:05 p.m.

ESPN Radio 97.7 FM & 1200 AM, Syracuse; 100.1 FM & 1440 AM, Oswego

The Crunch make their first of four trips to Blue Cross Arena Wednesday to face off with the AHL's hottest team, Rochester. The Amerks have won each of their last seven games and eight of their last ten. Rochester (22-15-3-3) sits in 2nd in the North Division and 7th in the Western Conference.

Syracuse has taken all three meetings from the Americans so far this season, including a 1-0 victory at the War Memorial the last time the two teams met on Dec. 14. All-Star Luke Adam leads the Americans with 32 points (19g, 13a) in 29 games this season. Ten of his 19 goals have come on the man-advantage. Winger Jamie Tardiff has netted 26 points (12g, 14a) in 30 games and Johan Larsson is third with 22 points (6g, 16a). Larsson is riding a seven game-scoring streak, the longest active streak in the AHL, during which he's netted 12 points (3g, 9a).

In net Matt Hackett and Nathan Lieuwen have shared duties. Hackett, in 27 games, has a 12-12-2 record with a 2.79 goals-against average and a .907 save percentage. Lieuwen has appeared in 19 games with a 10-6-1 record, 2.33 goals-against average and .927 save percentage, third in the AHL among active goaltenders.

Crunch at Springfield-Friday, 7:05 p.m. & vs. Springfield-Saturday, 7 p.m.

ESPN Radio 97.7 FM & 1200 AM, Syracuse; 100.1 FM & 1440 AM, Oswego

Syracuse meets Springfield for the first time since the 2013 Calder Cup Playoffs, visiting the Falcons Friday at 7:05 p.m. before hosting them Saturday at 7 p.m. The Crunch swept the Falcons in the Eastern Conference Semifinals, outscoring the North Division champs 18-7 in four games. Both Tyler Johnson and Ondrej Palat had eight points in the series, including Johnson's three goals in Game 2, the first hat trick in franchise postseason history. Cedrick Desjardins had a 1.75 goals-against average and .936 save percentage in the four games, including a shutout in Game 3, his first of three in the postseason.

Jonathan Marchessault, who was limited to two assists in the four playoff games, leads Springfield in scoring this season at 30 points (12g, 18a). Defensemen Tim Erixon and Frederic St. Denis are the next top scorers on the squad at 24 and 22 points, respectively.

Goalie Mike McKenna, who played 15 games for Tampa Bay in 2008-09, has shuffled between Springfield and Columbus in his first year with the Blue Jackets organization. In the AHL, he is 10-5-0 with a league-best .934 save percentage; his 1.89 goals-against average is second only to Eric Hartzell. In the NHL McKenna is 1-1-1 in four appearances. Jeremy Smith has appeared in the majority of the Falcons games (28, compared to McKenna's 16) posting a 17-8-3 record with a 2.69 goals-against average and a .900 save percentage.

Practice Schedule (subject to change):

Wednesday, Feb. 5 9:30 a.m. morning skate War Memorial Arena

7:00 p.m. game @ RCH Blue Cross Arena

Thursday, Feb. 6 11:00 a.m. practice War Memorial Arena

Travel to Springfield

Friday, Feb. 7 11:15 a.m. morning skate MassMutual Center

7:00 p.m. game @ SPR MassMutual Center

Saturday, Feb. 8 7:00 p.m. game vs SPR War Memorial Arena

Check out the Syracuse Crunch Statistics



American Hockey League Stories from February 5, 2014


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.

Other Recent Syracuse Crunch Stories



Sports Statistics from the Stats Crew
OurSports Central