The Syracuse Crunch had two chances to clinch a playoff spot coming off a sweep last week, but didn’t. One night was because the Belleville Senators ended up winning their game, and the second one was at their own will.
The Crunch struggled against the Comets all season long and happened to play against them at the worst possible time, with a playoff spot on the line. Connor Kurth also made his Crunch debut, having a solid game with a couple of SOG and nearly scoring his first goal on his first AHL shot. He was noticeable.
Syracuse started the game off rocky in the first half of the first period with many turnovers in the defensive zone, leading to solid chances for Utica. Brandon Halverson, being as good as he is, stopped them all and stood on his head.
Halfway through the first, the Crunch rewarded Halverson for his hard work with a goal. Max Groshev, the former center earlier this season before his ten-game suspension, is now a defenseman and set up the play from his zone. He maneuvered up the ice, brought it past the logo, and found Tristan Allard.
Allard dropped it back off for Groshev on a nifty behind-the-back pass, and Groshev sniped it home past Nico Daws for the lead.
Even though the Crunch had a 1-0 lead, you could sense a Comets goal coming, and they did just that, as Xavier Parent tied the game for Utica. ‘Cuse struggled to clear the puck all game long, and it finally came back to bite them.
Late in the third, Utica made an interesting decision. They’re eliminated from playoff contention now; however, they weren’t on Wednesday when this move was pulled. With about two minutes to go in the third period, the Comets decided to pull Daws and make it a 6-on-5 attack.
They just needed wins—nothing to do with overtime or anything like that—to make the playoffs, yet they still pulled the goalie. Fortunately for the Comets, nobody scored, and the game went into overtime.
Max Crozier made quick work of the overtime frame, scoring a little over half a minute in. Conor Sheary gave a cross-crease pass on a two-on-one chance, and Crozier ripped it past Daws. Halverson got a well-earned win, but don’t take anything away from Daws, because he played great, too.
The Crunch played their first home game of the weekend last Friday night against the Lehigh Valley Phantoms, and they didn’t disappoint.
Syracuse got off to a hot start, with multiple quality chances, but they just couldn’t score. Parker Gahagen, the Phantoms’ goalie, was incredible, even though he got shelled with 37 shots. He made sprawling saves and was lying on his back or stomach a few times, but he still had the puck under him.
A flukey goal happened when Daniel Walcott knocked the net off in the Crunch’s offensive zone. The referee looked right at it but didn’t call the play dead. Instead, he let Lehigh pick the puck up and play on, and they scored on the other end, with the net still knocking off its posts in Lehigh’s defensive zone.
Both goals suffered throughout the game. Because of this, the Phantoms carried a 1-0 lead going into the second period. Syracuse didn’t let this stop them. They scored two quick goals in the second period before the ten-minute mark, back-to-back. Allard scored the first goal, who had a phenomenal weekend, and Gabriel Fortier scored the second.
From there on out, it was a steady slope, with Ryan Fanti stopping 20/21 and the Crunch holding on to get the 2-1 win. Unfortunately, the Belleville Senators had to lose for the Crunch to clinch, and they didn’t. That was the first clinching opportunity gone.
The Crunch had a chance to sweep the week for the second time in a row, but the Laval Rocket said no. The Rockets are the best team in the AHL, and the Crunch put up a good fight against them, showing that they can hang out with the grown-ups.
Syracuse didn’t play relatively well against Utica and Lehigh Valley, and they came out flat in this game, which hurt them in the long run.
Laval got on the board first with a goal from Riley Kidney early in the game. That was assisted by Owen Beck, one of the Montreal Canadiens’ top prospects—go figure. The second and last goal scored by the Rocket was by Lucas Condotta. Laval had a 2-0 lead going into the first intermission.
Allard continued to stay on fire as he scored another goal. The puck just happened to find Allard after a touch from Dylan Duke, and Allard, with the quick release, sneaked it in the back of the net. Derrick Pouliot got his 45th assist of the season on that goal.
The Crunch couldn’t do anything else offensively and lost 2-1. Their second chance to clinch was gone, and they only had to win.
The Crunch got off to a blazing hot start but cooled off against the top dog in the AHL. They will continue to have an advantage going into this week.
Syracuse faces the Hershey Bears, the second-best team in the league, on the road on Wednesday. They then return to Utica on Friday night and play their final regular-season game against the Comets, once again, at home.
The Crunch control their destiny. One win or one Senators loss (overtime doesn’t work for them, they need two points) and they’ve clinched their spot to dance in the playoffs. They shouldn’t have to rely on Belleville, though. But the question is, will they take the third, fourth, or fifth seed?
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