
Syracuse Crunch Weekly
March 31, 2016 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Syracuse Crunch News Release
News and Notes
Jonathan Drouin has four goals in three games. In 15 contests with Syracuse he' has nine goals and two assists. . . . Yanni Gourde has more assists this year, 29, than he had last year, 28. With eight points over his five-game scoring streak, he's risen to third in Crunch scoring at 42 points. . . . Kristers Gudlevskis has started-and won-five consecutive games. His record stands at 14-10-6 with a goals-against average at 2.81, tumbling from 3.06 before the streak. . . . Joel Vermin was reassigned by Tampa Bay to Syracuse Tuesday. . . Ben Thomas made his professional debut Saturday. The 19-year-old defenseman from Calgary had 90 points (22g, 68a) in 213 career WHL games. . . . Over the last six games, the Crunch power play is 6-for-25 (24.0%) and its penalty kill is 18-for-19 (94.7%).
WEEK IN REVIEW
Game 66: Syracuse grabs another round from Comets
The Crunch downed the Comets Mar. 23 in Utica, 3-1. After falling behind, 1-0, the Crunch potted the last three unanswered. Adam Erne (12) tied the game midway through the second period, from Tanner Richard and Yanni Gourde. Joel Vermin (6) gave Syracuse the lead on the power play late in the second, from Matthew Peca and Ryan Martindale. The eventual game-winner was Vermin's first of the year.
Vermin assisted on a Peca empty-net goal (6) with 15 seconds left in the third; the two have three and nine multi-point games, respectively. Jeff Tambellini had his goal streak snapped, but extended his point streak to five games.
Kristers Gudlevskis earned his third straight win, stopping 28 of 29 shots. The Crunch penalty kill was 3-for-3. The Comets hold a 4-3 advantage in the 10-game Galaxy Cup series; they next play in Syracuse April 16.
Game 67: Crunch earn first victory vs. Devils
Syracuse earned a 3-1 victory over the Devils Friday at the War Memorial, the first time in five meetings Albany has lost to the Crunch. Dylan Blujus, Ryan Martindale and Jonathan Drouin provided the Crunch goals as Kristers Gudlevskis posted his fourth win in seven days, denying 29 of 30 shots.
The Crunch scored first, at 8:41 of the opening frame. Blujus (6) converted on a right-point shot to cap a series of chances. Matthew Peca and Tye McGinn earned helpers. Albany's Ben Johnson tied the score three minutes later, but Ryan Martindale regained the Crunch advantage 1:17 after that. Yanni Gourde and Slater Koekkoek assisted.
Jonathan Drouin provided an insurance marker at 7:42 of the third. Tanner Richard andAdam Erne assisted. Richard's 40th assist leads the Crunch as the third-year center becomes the first on the team to reach 50 points.
Game 68: Win streak extended to five with victory over Amerks
Syracuse defeated Rochester Saturday at the War Memorial, 3-1, the team's fifth straight victory. The Crunch jumped the Amerks in the standings to fourth in the North Division.Ryan Martindale posted his second three-point performance in as many Saturdays, assisting on the first two Crunch scores and potting the third.
Jonathan Drouin recorded his ninth, a power-play score at 8:11 of the first, from Matthew Peca and Martindale. Yanni Gourde potted his 13th later in the frame with Henri Ikonen and Martindale setting it up. The trio produced the last Crunch score at 11:55 of the second. Martindale has eight points (4g, 4a) in five games.
Ikonen's multi-point effort is the second of his career and first since Dec. 12, 2014. Gourde has 10 multi-point performances in 63 games; he had 15 in 76 games last season.
Kristers Gudlevskis was the game's No. 2 star with 39 saves, his most in a win since a season-high 47 Nov. 14 vs. Utica. This month (5-0-0 in six appearances) his goals-against average is 1.92 and his save percentage is .936.
WEEK AHEAD
Game 69: Fri., April 1 vs. Toronto, 7 p.m.
Toronto became the first AHL team to clinch a postseason berth on March 19, but a slew of Marlies have been plucked by the Maple Leafs, the NHL's last-place team. Eleven players have made their NHL debut with Toronto this year. Since the Feb. 29 trade deadline, 15 players have been recalled by the Maple Leafs. All-Star William Nylander (18g, 27a) is among those remaining in the NHL. Six players have signed ATOs with the Marlies since Mar. 19.
T.J. Brennan, the Marlies' top scorer at 67 points, has almost double the goals of any other AHL defenseman, 24. His 43 assists are third in the AHL. Only Hershey's Chris Bourque has more points, 72. Brennan has seven points (2g, 5a) vs. Syracuse to lead the team. Marc Arcobello has 10 points in March (3g, 7a) and 54 for the season (23g, 31a).
Game 70: Sat., April 2 vs. Rochester, 7 p.m.
The Amerks have lost three straight and five of six. They've fallen six points behind Syracuse at 32-32-2-1 (.500), fifth in the division. Their goals-against average is 3.25, 26th in the AHL. Linus Ullmark (10-12-0, 3.26) is winless in five appearances, allowing 20 goals in that span; he is 4-0 vs. Syracuse despite 15 goals against. Andrey Makarov (7-8-2, 3.03) missed 11 weeks due to injury and is 1-1-0 in three appearances since returning with a loss vs. the Crunch.
The team's top three scorers started this year with other North Division teams: Cole Schneider (19g, 33a) and Eric O'Dell (23g, 22a) with Binghamton, and Justin Bailey (17g, 23a) with Toronto.
Game 71: Sun., April 3 at Utica, 3 p.m.
The third-place Comets (33-23-7-4) have three more victories than Syracuse and one game in hand. Utica has won its last two (5-1 at Binghamton and 3-2 vs. Rochester) after going winless in five games (0-2-2-1) with only six goals.
New Hartford native Mike Zalewski (14g, 14a) returned after missing 11 games and scored the Comets' first goal in Tuesday's win vs. Rochester. Alexandre Grenier (14g, 25a) had the second goal in that contest, his third appearance since being loaned from Vancouver. Carter Bancks (12g, 22a), who's played in all 67 games, had the game-winner.
Syracuse Crunch single game and season tickets are on sale now and can be purchased either in person at the Crunch Box Office located in the War Memorial at 800 South State Street in Syracuse or by calling the office at 315-473-4444. For the latest Crunch news, visit www.syracusecrunch.comor follow the club on Facebook (www.facebook.com/syracusecrunch), Twitter (@SyracuseCrunch) and Instagram (@officialsyracusecrunch) using #SyrCrunch and #BelieveInBlue.
LAST WEEK
Wed., March 23 - Crunch at Utica - W, 3-1
Fri., March 25 - Crunch vs. Albany - W, 3-1
Sat., March 26 - Crunch vs. Rochester - W, 3-1
THIS WEEK
Fri., April 1 - Crunch vs. Toronto - 7 p.m.
Sat., April 2 - Crunch vs. Rochester - 7 p.m.
Sun., April 3 - Crunch at Utica - 3 p.m.
NEED TO KNOW
- Syracuse holds a 30-25-10-3 record (.537), four points behind Utica for a playoff spot with eight games to play.
- The Crunch's five-game win streak is the AHL's longest active streak and the team's longest since February 2015.
- Yanni Gourde has a five-game scoring streak with three goals and five assists and now ranks third in scoring (42 pts).
American Hockey League Stories from March 31, 2016
- Iowa Assigns Brassart to Quad City - Iowa Wild
- Stars Sign Mike McMurtry to Amateur Tryout - Texas Stars
- Derek Hulak Named the Texas Stars 2015-16 IOA/American Specialty Man of the Year - Texas Stars
- Bears Sign Goaltender Adam Carlson to Amateur Tryout - Hershey Bears
- Moose Re-Assign Olkinuora to Tulsa - Manitoba Moose
- Syracuse Crunch Recall Charlie Dodero from Greenville Swamp Rabbits - Syracuse Crunch
- Leighton Named IceHogs 2015-16 IOA/American Specialty AHL Man of the Year - Rockford IceHogs
- Chris Summers Named Wolf Pack's 2015-16 IOA/American Specialty AHL Man of the Year - Hartford Wolf Pack
- Wear Orange on April 2 in Support of Syracuse Orange Basketball, Receive Crunch Ticket Discount - Syracuse Crunch
- Sean Backman Named Ontario Reign's 2015-16 IOA/American Specialty AHL Man of the Year - Ontario Reign
- Former Buffalo Bill, Pro Football Hall of Famer Thurman Thomas to Appear at Amerks Game April 3 - Rochester Americans
- Kurtis Gabriel Named Iowa's 2015-16 IOA/American Specialty AHL Man of the Year - Iowa Wild
- Syracuse Crunch Weekly - Syracuse Crunch
- Brandon Defazio Named Bruins' 2015-16 IOA/American Specialty AHL Man of the Year - Providence Bruins
- Matthew Ford Named Condors 2015-16 IOA/American Specialty AHL Man of the Year - Bakersfield Condors
- Andrew Campbell Named Toronto Marlies 2015-16 IOA/American Specialty AHL Man of the Year - Toronto Marlies
- Davis Drewiske Named Lehigh Valley's 2015-16 IOA/American Specialty Man of the Year - Lehigh Valley Phantoms
- Tom McCollum Named Griffins' 2015-16 IOA/American Specialty AHL Man of the Year - Grand Rapids Griffins
- Zack Stortini Named Binghamton Senators 2015-16 IOA/American Specialty AHL Man of the Year - Binghamton Senators
- Shane Harper Named Portland Pirates 2015-16 IOA/American Specialty AHL Man of the Year - Portland Pirates
- Pat Cannone Named Wolves' 2015-16 AHL Man of the Year - Chicago Wolves
- Hagel Named Checkers' Man of the Year in the Community - Charlotte Checkers
- Van Brabant Named Stockton's 2015-16 IOA/American Specialty AHL Man of the Year - Stockton Heat
- Domenic Monardo Named Springfield Falcons 2015-16 IOA/American Specialty AHL Man of the Year - Springfield Falcons
- Ben Street Named San Antonio Rampage 2015-16 IOA/American Specialty Man of the Year - San Antonio Rampage
- Nathan Walker Named Hershey Bears' 2015-16 IOA/American Specialty AHL Man of the Year - Hershey Bears
- Fucale Named IceCaps' IOA/American Speciality AHL Man of the Year - St. John's IceCaps
- Joe Piskula Named San Diego Gulls 2015-16 IOA/American Specialty AHL Man of the Year - San Diego Gulls
- Josh Morrissey Named Manitoba's 2015-16 IOA/American Specialty AHL Man of the Year - Manitoba Moose
- Patrick Kaleta Named Rochester Americans 2015-16 IOA/American Specialty AHL Man of the Year - Rochester Americans
- Oligny Named Admirals 2015-16 Man of the Year - Milwaukee Admirals
- Ryan Craig Named Monsters' 2015-16 IOA/American Specialty AHL Man of the Year - Cleveland Monsters
- Matt Carkner Named Bridgeport's 2015-16 IOA/American Specialty AHL Man of the Year - Bridgeport Islanders
- IOA/American Specialty AHL Man of the Year Team Award Winners Announced - AHL
- Mike Angelidis Named Syracuse Crunch's 2015-16 IOA/American Specialty AHL Man of the Year - Syracuse Crunch
- Dan Kelly Named Albany Devils 2015-16 IOA/American Specialty AHL Man of the Year - Albany Devils
- Will O'Neill Named Penguins' IOA/American Specialty AHL Man of the Year - Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins
- Carter Bancks Named Utica Comets' 2015-16 IOA/American Specialty AHL Man of the Year - Utica Comets
- Wolf Pack Sign Two Forwards to ATOs - Hartford Wolf Pack
- Dennis DeYoung Performs the Music of STYX Saturday Night - Milwaukee Admirals
- Admirals Sign AJ White to ATO - Milwaukee Admirals
- Falcons Sign Montgomery, Johnson - Springfield Falcons
- Foster Recalled from Wheeling, Palazzese Released from PTO - Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins
- IceCaps to Hold be a Buddy - Caring Schools Initiative - St. John's IceCaps
- Goaltender Nick Schneider Marvelous in Pro Debut But Gulls Foil Heat 4-2 - Stockton Heat
- Carruth's Shutout Snaps Road Skid - Rockford IceHogs
- Gulls Extinguish Heat in 4-2 Victory - San Diego Gulls
- SJ Barracuda Close out Home Stand All Smiles - San Jose Barracuda
- Barracuda Slip Past Reign 3-1 in Final Regular-Season Meeting - Ontario Reign
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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