Toronto Marlies Host Utica Comets in Game 1 of Second Round of 2023 Calder Cup Playoffs
April 27, 2023 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Toronto Marlies News Release
The Toronto Marlies return to action on Thursday night as they host the Utica Comets in Game One of Round Two of the 2023 Calder Cup Playoffs.Toronto returns to the postseason for the 12th time in franchise history.
The regular season series between Toronto and Utica was closely contested. Toronto won the first four matchups by just a single goal. The Marlies took the regular season series 5-1-0-0. Toronto finished the regular season atop the North Division, while Utica placed in fourth.
"At the end of the day it's the post season. It's a new season," said Marlies Head Coach Greg Moore. "We can't rely on what happened in the regular season or have the expectations of how things went there. We got to be ready for game one."
The Marlies had the second-best power play (23.6%) in the AHL during the regular season. Logan Shaw led the team in power play goals with 10. On the other side, the Comets had the best defense in the North Division, allowing 222 goals against.
As a result of finishing first in the North Division, Toronto secured a first-round bye. The Marlies last game was on April 16th against the Belleville Senators.
"Every practice so far, guys have been competing," Shaw said. "Guys have been working and it's a playoff like atmosphere right now."
In the first round, the Comets won their best-of-three series against the Laval Rocket to advance to the second round. Utica held the conference-leading Laval offence to just one goal over two games.
"They're a very tight group defensively and fast in transition," Marlies defensemen Carl Dahlström said. "It's playoff hockey now. Most games are either won in overtime or close games. We know every single play matters and we just gotta nail down."
Mac Hollowell makes his return to the lineup on Thursday. The defensemen sustained an injury in January and underwent surgery for a fractured kneecap.
"To be here with the team and to be in the dressing room with the team it's great," said Hollowell.
Players to look out for on the Marlies side include Logan Shaw who led the team in the regular season with 69 points (21G, 48A), and Alex Steeves who has 51 points (19G, 32A). On the Comets side, Graeme Clarke led the team with 58 points (25G, 33A).
Puck drop is at 7:00pm on the Toronto Maple Leafs app and AHLTV.
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