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October 3, 2006 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Toronto Marlies News Release


THE OPPONENTS:

SYRACUSE CRUNCH

The Syracuse Crunch - AHL affiliate of the Columbus Blue Jackets - will be the Marlies' opponent on opening-night in Toronto for the second consecutive year. Toronto overcame a 2-0 first period deficit to defeat Syracuse 5-2 last October 12th at Ricoh. The victory was the Marlies' first in franchise history following an 8-5 setback on opening-night at Rochester. Defenceman Carlo Colaiacovo scored the first home-goal for the club while the Crunch's Mark Hartigan opened the game's scoring. The game was played before 8,056 spectators, the largest crowd of the season at the Coliseum. The Marlies had a record of 4-2-0-2 versus Syracuse last season including two wins and two shootout losses on home-ice. The Crunch finished second in the AHL's North Division with a record of 47-25-5-3 for 102 points (six wins and 10 points ahead of the fourth place Marlies) and were defeated four games to three by Manitoba in the opening round of the playoffs. Notables: The Crunch lost only nine games at Syracuse's War Memorial at Oncenter last season, two of which came against Toronto. Joe Motzko led the team in scoring with ten points (two goals, eight assists) in six games versus the Marlies last season. Toronto's John Pohl had five goals and eight assists to lead the Marlies in head-to-head competition against Syracuse. He appeared in seven of the teams' eight contests. Former AHL MVP Eric Boguniecki is expected to make his debut for the Crunch. The Marlies will face Syracuse eight times this season. The teams' first game in central New York will take place on November 24th.

MANITOBA MOOSE

The Marlies tangle with the Manitoba Moose - AHL affiliate of the Vancouver Canucks - for the first time this season on Saturday afternoon at Ricoh Coliseum. The game is the first of 18 4:00 p.m. home dates for Toronto this season. The Marlies had a record of 2-3-2-1 versus Manitoba last season. Five of the eight games required overtime or a shootout to decide the outcome. Toronto's 3-2 overtime setback on December 29th marked the first occasion in which the Marlies were defeated after regulation during the 2005-06 campaign. Playing their 33rd game, Toronto was the last club in the 27 team American Hockey League to suffer a loss after 60 minutes of play. The Marlies' lone win on home-ice versus the Moose came on January 6th when Tyler Beechey scored his second goal of the game 40 seconds into the extra frame. Manitoba finished third in the AHL's North Division with a record of 44-24-7-5 for 100 points (three wins and eight points ahead of the fourth place Marlies) and were defeated four games to three by Grand Rapids in the second round of the playoffs. Notables: Winnipeg's MTS Centre hosted the Rbk Hockey AHL All-Star Classic last January. Ricoh Coliseum will welcome the same event beginning on Janaury 28th, 2007. The MTS Centre also attracted more than 15,000 fans to watch the Phoenix Coyotes/Edmonton Oilers' exhibition game on Sunday, September 17th. The Marlies lone 2005-06 win in that building was a shootout victory on March 28th. Bates Battaglia had the deciding goal. Manitoba's Jesse Schultz had a +6 rating to go with 12 points (eight goals, four assists) in eight games versus Toronto last season. The Marlies' Brad Leeb had four goals and two assists to lead Toronto in head-to-head competition against the Moose. He appeared in all eight of the teams' contests. Toronto will face the Moose eight times this season. The teams' first game in Winnipeg will take place on March 2nd. Manitoba's game at Toronto is the third of a four game road trip to begin their season. Former Moose star Brandon Reid returns to the AHL following two seasons in Europe. In three seasons with Manitoba, Reid has never scored fewer than 18 goals in a season. Beechey was signed to a professional tryout contract by the Moose on October 3rd.

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