The Belleville Senators and Toronto Marlies know each other pretty well, and that rivalry will grow as the two teams head into the 2024 Calder Cup Playoffs.
Not only have the provincial rivals met 10 times in the 2023-24 American Hockey League regular season alone, but the North Division foes have also met 75 times since Belleville joined the league in 2017-18 and, they’ll continue their rivalry into the first round of the postseason. Belleville (4th) and Toronto (5th) matchup as the bottom two seeds in the North and will begin a best-o-f-three series on Wednesday night at CAA Arena, in Belleville. The winner will go on to face the division’s best regular season team, the Cleveland Monsters (AHL affiliate of the Columbus Blue Jackets) in the North Division Semi-Finals.
Here’s a breakdown of how the two teams match up, heading into an AHL first series between the affiliates of the Ottawa Senators and Toronto Maple Leafs.
Season Summary
Belleville: 38-28-3-3 (82 points – 4th in North Division)
David Bell’s first full season as an AHL head coach proved successful, helping the Sens post 38 victories (tied for second in Belleville franchise history with the pandemic-abbreviated 2019-20 season).
The Sens got hot down the stretch drive, winning eight of their final 10 games, including three straight games to clinch a Calder Cup Playoff spot and lock down an extra home game in the play-in round.
Belleville was steady defensively during the year, allowing 211 goals (second fewest in the North Division behind Syracuse), but only registered 209 goals (fewest in the seven-team circuit), and needed to win several close, nail-biting games, which should bode well going into the postseason.
Toronto: 34-26-10-2 (80 points – 5th in North Division)
Always a competitive, deep unit, the Marlies employed a powerful offence with 249 goals scored (2nd most in league, behind Coachella Valley), led by former Senators captain Logan Shaw’s 30 markers.
The Marlies also iced three other 20-goal scorers including Alex Steeves (27), Kieffer Bellows (27) and Joseph Blandisi (25), along with shifty playmaker Nick Abruzzese (36 assists) and top-flight defenceman Topi Niemela (39 points), making this team a threat.
Toronto dropped its final three in a row to fall to fifth place in an air-tight North Division with 80 points, two behind Belleville.
Key Scorer:
Belleville
#22 Garrett Pilon – 62 GP / 18 G / 29 A / 47 PTS / +10 / 12 PIM
The 26-year-old native of…
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