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AHL Syracuse Crunch

Syracuse Crunch Weekly

December 31, 2014 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Syracuse Crunch News Release


LAST WEEK

Fri., Dec. 26 - Crunch vs. Albany - W, 3-2 OT

Sat., Dec. 27 - Crunch vs. Worcester - L, 4-2

Sun., Dec. 28 - Crunch at Springfield - OTL, 3-2

THIS WEEK

Wed., Dec. 31 - Crunch at Rochester - 3:05 p.m.

Fri., Jan. 2 - Crunch at Albany - 7 p.m.

Sat., Jan. 3 - Crunch at Binghamton - 7:05 p.m.

NEED TO KNOW

- The Crunch are winless in two, but are two points shy of the division and conference leads at 44 points, 20-8-3-0.

- Mike Angelidis has 12 goals this season, equaling his total from all of last year, and is on pace for 29 markers.

- Syracuse plays three road games this week, at Rochester, Binghamton and Albany.

Transactions

- 12/30/2014 Allen York (G) ADD Recalled from loan to Florida (ECHL)

- 12/30/2014 Andrei Vasilevskiy (G) DEL Recalled from loan by Tampa Bay (NHL)

- 12/26/2014 Kevin Lynch (C) ADD Recalled from loan to Florida (ECHL)

Angelidis equals Crunch season high in goals

Mike Angelidis scored his 12th goal of the season Sunday, his 32nd game. The output equals his total from all of last year in 75 games. In 2012-13, his first campaign with Syracuse, he totaled 11 goals in 71 games.

Since his AHL debut, Dec. 20, 2006, Angelidis averages nearly 14 goals per full AHL season. With 111 goals in 547 AHL regular season games, Angelidis garners .203 goals per contest. His average for 2014-15 to date is .375, a pace for 29 goals at season's end.

The ninth-year pro set a career high of 20 goals with Norfolk over the course of 80 games in 2010-11, .250 goals per game. Angelidis had 38 points that year, also a career best.

The Woodbridge, Ontario native recorded the first multi-goal games of his Crunch career Nov. 19 and Dec. 5. He's yet to record an AHL hat trick, last scoring three times in a game Nov. 17, 2006, for the ECHL's Florida Everblades, a month before earning his first promotion to the AHL.

Marchessault the supplier

Jonathan Marchessault has six assists since Dec. 19, his best five-game stretch of the season. The 24-year-old winger is tied for sixth in the AHL with 20 assists and leads the Crunch with 28 points.

Marchessault has a hand in 12 of Syracuse's 18 power-play goals, scoring two and assisting on 10. His 10 power-play helpers ties for third in the league. He's also contributed an assist on five game-winning goals and three times has he recorded two assists in a game.

Marchessault has set up nine different goal scorers, including Vladislav Namestnikov, Mike Angelidis and Yanni Gourde three times each.

The Cap-Rouge, Quebec native has seven more assists than any of his teammates and is on pace to surpass his career-high of 46 assists set with Springfield in 2012-13.

WEEK IN REVIEW

Game 30: Overtime heroics extend Crunch win streak to 10 games

Vladislav Namestnikov's game-winning goal at the 4:18 mark of overtime earned the Crunch a 3-2 victory over Albany and extended Syracuse's win streak to 10 games, the second longest in the AHL this year. It also marked the second consecutive contest in which Namestnikov netted the game winner.

Mike Blunden's sixth goal of the season tied the game at 1-1 in the second period, before Joey Mormina's goal with 1:27 remaining in the third period tied the game, 2-2, ultimately forcing overtime.

Jonathan Marchessault moved past Yanni Gourde for the team scoring lead with two helpers, while Andrei Vasilevskiy earned his ninth win with 31 saves, extending his AHL win streak to five.

The Crunch stopped all six Devils power plays and fired 37 shots on goal, their most since Nov. 29. Eric Neilson fought Mark Fraser early in the game and Luke Witkowski pummeled Ben Johnson late in the contest; the teams combined for 54 penalty minutes.

Game 31: Sharks snap Syracuse streak

The Worcester Sharks snapped Syracuse's 10-game win streak on Saturday, defeating the Crunch 4-2 at the War Memorial Arena. It was Syracuse's first loss in 30 days.

After allowing a pair of second-period goals, the Crunch allowed another tally early in the third period. Trailing 3-0 halfway through the final stanza, Syracuse fought back. Following a Jeremy Langlois delay-of-game minor, Yanni Gourde slammed home a rebound off a Slater Koekkoek point shot, slicing the deficit to 3-1. Gourde's team-leading 13th goal was also assisted by Cody Kunyk who tipped Koekkoek's blast.

Trailing by two goals with less than three minutes remaining in the period, Dalton Smith cut the Sharks lead to one, converting on the rush during a delayed penalty. A streaking Jonathan Marchessault found Smith coming down the left wing and Smith one-timed the Marchessault feed past goalie Troy Grosenick for his eighth goal.

Jeremy Langlois added an empty-net goal at the 18:29 mark to seal the Sharks' 4-2 victory. Syracuse scored once on three power-play opportunities, while Worcester converted on its only chance. Eight penalty minutes were served total, the fewest in a Crunch game this year. Grosenick earned the victory stopping 23 shots, while Gudlevskis was handed his first loss since Nov. 28, the last time the Crunch lost.

Game 32: Falcons clip Crunch in overtime

Denny Urban scored the overtime game winner and extended the Falcons' Northeast Division lead to two points over the Crunch. Andrei Vasilevskiy made 30 saves, but failed to win for the first time since Nov. 26.

A holding-the-stick penalty on Slater Koekkoek early in overtime gave Springfield its sixth power play and Urban converted from the left circle after several blocks and saves by Syracuse.

Vladislav Namestnikov tallied his 13th point in 11 games with the Crunch when he put a rebound past Anton Forsberg to tie the game at 1-1 in the first period. Namestnikov blocked a shot at the end of the first, missed a few shifts, and then exited again after a brief return.

Mike Angelidis temporarily put the Crunch up 2-1 with his 12th goal of the season before Springfield tied the game 45 seconds later. Jonathan Marchessault stole the puck behind the net and passed to Yanni Gourde, who set up the captain in front of the net. Marchessault extended his team lead to 28 points (8g, 20a) and Gourde is second on the Crunch at 26 points (13g, 13a).

THE WEEK AHEAD

Crunch at Rochester- Wednesday, 3:05 p.m.

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

The Amerks have slipped to last in the North Division and 14th in the Western Conference with three wins in their last 12 games. They enter Week 13 at 25 points, 10 points out of a playoff spot.

Rochester's Phil Varone is among the league's top scorers, tied for eighth at 28 points. He has eight goals and his 20 assists are tied for sixth in the AHL. Tim Schaller's nine goals lead the team. The club's former goal leader, Luke Adam, was traded by the Buffalo Sabres to the Columbus Blue Jackets for Jerry D'Amigo Dec. 16. D'Amigo, a Binghamton native and former Maple Leafs prospect, has seven points in 28 games with Springfield this year and is scoreless in five games with the Amerks.

Nathan Lieuwen has suffered nine of the Amerks 19 losses, but won his last game Dec. 19 vs. Adirondack, his first win since Oct. 22. Rookie Andrey Makarov, who's started all three of Rochester's games against Syracuse is 8-10-1 with a 2.74 goals-against average and .910 save percentage.

Crunch at Albany- Friday, 7 p.m.

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

The Crunch take the ice for the first time in 2015 when they travel to Albany for a Friday night matchup against the Devils. Syracuse is 3-0 against Albany so far this season, including back to back home wins against the Devils in December.

The Devils come into the week with 34 points, tied for last in the Northeast Division and ten points back of the second-place Crunch. Albany has perked up of late, earning points in four of their last five games. Despite their standing in the division, the Devils still sit tied for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference with the Bridgeport Sound Tigers. Albany has fared much better on friendly ice: the Devils are 9-4-1-2 at home as opposed to 5-6-1-2 on the road this season.

Paul Thompson leads active Devils skaters in points with 23, plus/minus with plus-11, and goals with 13; Thompson is also tied for third in the AHL in goals. Raman Hrabarenka leads Albany defensemen with 14 points (4g, 10a). Darcy Zajac leads the team in penalty minutes with 63. Starting goalie Scott Wedgewood has appeared in 14 games, posting a 3.23 goals-against average and .883 save percentage.

Crunch at Binghamton- Saturday, 7:05 p.m.

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

The Crunch continue their New York road swing when they travel to Binghamton for a Saturday skate against the Senators. Syracuse holds a 2-1 edge in the season series; Binghamton won the latest meeting 6-3 Nov. 28 at the War Memorial. The Senators scored four unanswered goals in the third period to earn the victory.

Defenseman Chris Wideman leads the team in scoring with 28 points (12g, 16a). That total also ranks Wideman first in the AHL in points by a defenseman. Shane Prince leads the forwards in points with 25 (10g, 15a). Darren Kramer leads the Senators with 110 penalty minutes, fourth most in the AHL. Andrew Hammond has appeared most frequently in the Binghamton net, posting a 3.41 goals-against average and .903 save percentage in 19 games.

Philippe Paradis has posted four points against the Senators this season, including a natural hat trick in their last meeting. Kristers Gudlevskis has started all three games against Binghamton, stopping 95 of 105 shots. The Senators have 31 points on the campaign, three back of a playoff spot.

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