Syracuse Crunch Blow Past Laval Rocket, 6-4
AHL Syracuse Crunch

Syracuse Crunch Blow Past Laval Rocket, 6-4

Published on February 28, 2026 under American Hockey League (AHL)
Syracuse Crunch News Release


Syracuse Crunch's Matteo Pietroniro battles Laval Rocket's Nate Clurman
Syracuse Crunch's Matteo Pietroniro battles Laval Rocket's Nate Clurman
(Syracuse Crunch)

SYRACUSE, NY - The Syracuse Crunch blew past the Laval Rocket, 6-4, tonight at the Upstate Medical University Arena.

Eleven different Crunch players recorded a point with Dylan Duke (2g), Brendan Fury (1g, 1a), Mitchell Chaffee (1g, 1a), Matteo Pietroniro (2a), Jakob Pelletier (2a) and Tristan Allard (2a) tallying multi-point efforts. The win advances the Crunch to 31-17-3-1 and 3-1-1-1 in the eight-game season series against the Rocket.

Crunch goaltender Brandon Halverson stopped 31-of-35 shots to earn the win. Hunter Jones turned aside 13-of-19 in net for the Rocket. Syracuse was held scoreless on three power play opportunities, while Laval went 2-for-4.

The Crunch were first on the board just 3:25 into the game. Pietroniro sent a stretch pass ahead for Duke who skated across the blue line and sent in a wrister from the right faceoff dot. The Rocket were quick to respond and tied the game two minutes later. Halverson caught a piece of Alex Belzile's shot from the right circle, but the puck slipped past him and trickled across the goal line. Duke put Syracuse back on top when he scored his second of the game at the 11:49 mark. After faking a shot in the high slot, he sent the puck through a defender's legs and into the back of the net. Then, with just 49 seconds remaining in the frame, Chaffee scored as he cut across the slot to give Syracuse a two-goal lead.

Laval opened the second period with a quick power-play goal just 1:08 in. Joshua Roy set up Samuel Blais for a shot from the top of the right circle. Syracuse regained their two-goal lead at the 6:43 mark off a shorthanded breakaway goal by Furry, then scored again at 11:10 to make it a 5-2 game. After several close-range attempts, Ethan Samson finally got his stick on the puck and fired it home from between the circles.

The Rocket stole one back five minutes into the third period when Blais set up Owen Beck for a one-timer from the left circle, but the Crunch responded less than two minutes later. Ethan Gauthier got behind the defense and scored on a short breakaway. Roy potted another power-play goal for Laval at 11:39, but the Crunch shut down a comeback effort to take the win.

The Crunch host the Rochester Americans tomorrow at 4 p.m.

Ticket packages for the 2025-26 season are on sale now and can be purchased in person at the Crunch office located inside the Upstate Medical University Arena at Onondaga County War Memorial at 800 S. State St. in Syracuse, by calling the office at 315-473-4444 or online through Ticketmaster. For the latest Crunch news, visit www.syracusecrunch.com or follow the club on Facebook (www.facebook.com/syracusecrunch), X (@SyracuseCrunch) and Instagram (@syracusecrunch).

Crunchables: Dylan Duke is on a seven-game points streak (6g, 4a) and recorded his third multi-goal game of the year...Brendan Furry reached a new career-high in goals (11).

Check out the Syracuse Crunch Statistics

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Images from this story

Syracuse Crunch's Jakob Pelletier and Laval Rocket's Joshua Roy on the ice
Syracuse Crunch's Jakob Pelletier and Laval Rocket's Joshua Roy on the ice
 Syracuse Crunch's Matteo Pietroniro battles Laval Rocket's Nate Clurman
Syracuse Crunch's Matteo Pietroniro battles Laval Rocket's Nate Clurman
  



American Hockey League Stories from February 28, 2026


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