
Senators Sitting Sixth After Busy Three-In-Three Weekend
March 24, 2025 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Belleville Senators News Release
The 2024-25 regular season is down to a dozen games for the Belleville Senators, and they're still pushing for a third-ever berth in the Calder Cup Playoffs. This past week, they competed in three hard-fought matchups against the Toronto Marlies (AHL affiliate of the Toronto Maple Leafs) and Cleveland Monsters (AHL affiliate of the Columbus Blue Jackets) and came away with a win and a pair of defeats.
Here's a recap of Belleville's three-in-three weekend. More critical games are set to come at CAA Arena this week, and their seven-game homestand continues to finish the month.
Friday, March 21, 2025: Belleville Senators - 3 vs Toronto Marlies - 2
The Belleville Senators continued their strong run of play on home ice on Friday night, outlasting the Toronto Marlies (AHL affiliate of the Toronto Maple Leafs) 3-2 at CAA Arena in round eight of their ten-round Battle of Ontario season series.
Leevi Merilainen stopped a season-high 37 shots, with Jan Jenik, Angus Crookshank and Wyatte Wylie all scoring in consecutive games, to help Belleville keep pace with the Syracuse Crunch (AHL affiliate of the Tampa Bay Lightning) and Cleveland Monsters (AHL affiliate of the Columbus Blue Jackets), who were also victorious on Friday.
Saturday, March 22, 2025: Belleville Senators - 2 @ Toronto Marlies - 4
The Toronto Marlies held serve in the second game of a back-to-back with the Belleville Senators, taking down the visitors 4-2 in Toronto, a night after Belleville had taken a 3-2 decision at home.
The loss moves the Sens' record to 29-22-4-4 on the season and snaps the team's three-game win streak. However, a loss the same day by the Cleveland Monsters kept the Sens two points back of the final AHL North playoff spot with a game in hand.
Sunday, March 23, 2025: Belleville Senators - 1 vs Cleveland Monsters - 2
Another matchup between the Belleville Senators and Cleveland Monsters has come and gone, and yet again, it ended with a final score of 2-1, though this time, the Senators were on the wrong end of the result.
Tyler Boucher scored Belleville's only goal of the game on the power play, while Leevi Merilainen stopped 24 of 26 shots in the loss. The loss puts Belleville four points back of Cleveland and two back of Syracuse for the final two playoff spots in the North Division.
Highlight of the Week:
The Senators didn't get the result they were after in their Saturday game at Toronto, but they did get an incredible save from Malcolm Subban as they tried to fight back against the Marlies. Subban's scintillating, post-to-post glove stop is our Highlight of the Week this week.
Transactions:
Mar.24/25: #34 Stephen Halliday (C) - REMOVE - Recalled from loan to Ottawa (NHL)
Click here for a full list of Belleville Sens transactions.
Statistical Leaders:
Points: 43 (15 G + 28 A)
#34 Stephen Halliday (C)
Goals: 22
#9 Angus Crookshank (LW)
Assists: 31
#4 Jeremy Davies (D)
Power Play Goals: 11
#9 Angus Crookshank (LW)
Plus/Minus: +16
#21 Maxence Guenette (D)
Penalty Minutes: 121
#42 Hayden Hodgson (RW)
Goals Against Average: 2.30
#35 Leevi Merilainen (G)
Save Percentage: .912
#35 Leevi Merilainen (G)
Wins: 14
#35 Leevi Merilainen (G)
Shutouts: 3
#35 Leevi Merilainen (G)
Playoff Picture:
Belleville is in sixth place to start the week, two points behind the Syracuse Crunch in fifth and four points behind Cleveland in fourth. Belleville does not hold the first tiebreaker (regulation wins) against Syracuse, but it does currently have that advantage over Cleveland, whom it will face again on Wednesday night at CAA Arena.
The Senators 'magic number to qualify is 27, with 24 points to gain, but Belleville will continue to be able to directly impact their chances with their play the rest of the way. Nine of their remaining 12 games will be played against North Division opponents (Cleveland x 1, Toronto x 1, Syracuse x 1, Rochester x 3, Laval x 3), with six of those games on home ice.
Information on the playoff qualification races across the league by checking out the AHL's Calder Cup Playoff Primer, which is updated daily.
This Week:
The Senators will play three more games this week as they continue a seven-game homestand at CAA Arena. Among the highlights this week, the season finale of the season series with the Cleveland Monsters (AHL affiliate of the Columbus Blue Jackets), the final regular season "Battle of Ontario" with the Toronto Marlies (AHL affiliate of the Toronto Maple Leafs), and the only visit of the season from the Lehigh Valley Phantoms (AHL affiliate of the Philadelphia Flyers).
Wednesday, March 26, 2025: Belleville Senators vs Cleveland Monsters - 7:00 p.m. (CAA Arena)
Friday, March 28, 2025: Belleville Senators vs Lehigh Valley Phantoms - 7:00 p.m. (CAA Arena) (Pride Night)
Saturday, March 29, 2025: Belleville Senators vs Toronto Marlies - 7:00 p.m. (CAA Arena)
Ticket Info:
Tickets for all 2024-25 Belleville Sens home games are now on sale via Ticketmaster, by emailing tickets@bellevillesens.com, or at the Belleville Sens Box Office at CAA Arena during select hours.
Fans looking for details on other ticketing options can click the following links for more on becoming a season seat member, purchasing a flex pack membership, or putting down a deposit for a group experience. More information on those ticket options, plus details on premium seating and Business Elite packages is available by visiting the Belleville Sens website or emailing tickets@bellevillesens.com.
Images from this story
![]() Belleville Senators in action |
![]() Belleville Senators centre Wyatt Bongiovanni |
![]() Belleville Senators goaltender Malcolm Subban |
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American Hockey League Stories from March 24, 2025
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- Abbotsford Canucks Sign Jackson Kunz to a One Year AHL Contract - Abbotsford Canucks
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- Syracuse Crunch Loan Forward Spencer Kersten to Orlando Solar Bears - Syracuse Crunch
- Kendall Coyne Schofield Bobble Giveaway this Saturday - Rockford IceHogs
- Rangers Recall F Nicolas AubÉ-Kubel from Wolf Pack - Hartford Wolf Pack
- Less Than 600 Tickets Remain for this Saturday's "Battle of Ontario" Finale against Toronto - Belleville Senators
- Admirals, Predators Extend Affiliation for Four Years - Milwaukee Admirals
- Wolf Pack Weekend Recap: March 24th, 2025 - Hartford Wolf Pack
- Gushchin Named Howies Hockey Tape/AHL Player of the Week - San Jose Barracuda
- San Jose's Danil Gushchin Named Howies Hockey Tape/AHL Player of the Week - AHL
- Senators Sitting Sixth After Busy Three-In-Three Weekend - Belleville Senators
- Tampa Bay Lightning Sign Forward Cooper Flinton to Two-Year, Entry-Level Contract - Syracuse Crunch
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.
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