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Game Notes: 12/19/07 v. Toronto Marlies
Crunch Lose Heartbreaker in Toronto
Toronto, ON (December 19, 2007) – The Syracuse Crunch fell to the Toronto Marlies tonight, 4-3 at the Ricoh Coliseum in front of 4,066 fans.
The Crunch looked to carry-over the momentum from Saturday night’s dominant 9-2 victory over Hamilton. A well-played period by both teams was the story of the first 20 minutes of hockey. Syracuse got on the board first at the 6:19 mark when Clay Wilson fed Adam Pineault back at the point. Pineault took his time and blasted a shot towards Toronto starter Justin Pogge. Derek Dorsett, who was planted in front, deflected Pineault’s shot and gave the Crunch a 1-0 lead.
The Marlies answered five minutes later as Darryl Boyce knocked in his sixth marker of the season. Crunch starter Karl Goehring made an initial save, but then a pile ensued in pursuit of the rebound. Boyce found it and stuffed it in to tie the game, 1-1.
The Crunch jumped back on top with a power play marker just 2:15 into the second period. Joakim Lindstrom found Wilson streaking down the middle and got him the puck. Wilson took the rolling puck, settled it down and calmly slipped a backhand through the five-hole of Pogge to give Syracuse a 2-1 advantage.
Andrew Murray’s goal less than two and a half minutes later gave Syracuse their first two-goal lead of the game. Murray retrieved the puck from a battle in the corner, skated out to the hash marks and sniped a wrister to the top corner over the glove of Pogge for the 3-1 lead.
Toronto battled back and picked up their play after the Crunch went up by two tallies. The Marlies rushed up the ice and Robbie Earl fed a waiting Derrick Walser in the slot. Walser’s shot was denied by Goehring, but Kris Newbury was there to slam home the rebound for his tenth of the year to cut the Crunch’s lead to 3-2.
The Marlies tied the game halfway through the third stanza when Simon Gamache tallied his third of the year. After a neutral zone turnover committed by the Crunch, Gamache came in down the right wing and blasted a shot past the stick side of Goehring to tie the game, 3-3.
With Lindstrom in the box for and unsportsmanlike conduct penalty, Toronto took the lead on the power play with just 20 seconds remaining in the game. Goehring made the save on a Walser shot from the point, but David Ling got to the rebound and swatted the puck in for the game-winner.
CRUNCHABLES: Former Crunch players David Ling and Derrick Walser continue to torture their former team…Ling has 8 points (5g, 3a) in three games and Walser now has 6 points (1g, 5a) in four games against Syracuse…With two more assists tonight, Joakim Lindstrom now has 11 points (2g, 9a) in his last four games since returning from Columbus…He now has 35 points (13g, 22a) in 26 games this year, good for fourth in the American Hockey League…Coming into tonight’s game, the Crunch power play was 36-for-169 (21.3 %), good for third in the AHL.