The Belleville Senators continued their strong run of play on home ice on Friday night, outlasting the Toronto Marlies (AHL affiliate of the Toronto Maple Leafs) 3-2 at CAA Arena in round eight of their ten-round Battle of Ontario season series.
Leevi Merilainen stopped a season-high 37 shots, with Jan Jenik, Angus Crookshank and Wyatte Wylie all scoring in consecutive games, to help Belleville keep pace with the Syracuse Crunch (AHL affiliate of the Tampa Bay Lightning) and Cleveland Monsters (AHL affiliate of the Columbus Blue Jackets), who were also victorious on Friday and lead the Sens by two points for the final two playoff spots in the AHL’s North Division.
As the entire season series has been so far, the first period was feisty and competitive, with both teams finding the net twice. Reigning Howie’s Hockey Tape/AHL Player of the Week, Jan Jenik picked up where he left off after registering eight points (one goal, seven assists last week). The first-year Senators, acquired in an offseason trade for Egor Sokolov, got the puck behind the net and snuck his way out front to tuck it past Dennis Hildeby for his 10th goal of the season about five minutes in. Toronto countered at 11:19 with a power play deflection from Jacob Quillan, but Belleville would get in front again. Angus Crookshank was left alone in the high slot, and he ripped a low wrist shot by Hildeby to reinstate the Belleville lead, score his 22nd of the season, and set a new Belleville Sens franchise goals record with the 77th of his career. However, Toronto got one more before the end of the frame when Nick Abruzzese’s pass went off Topi Niemela’s skate and past Leevi Merilainen.
The teams would trade power plays and scoring chances in the second period, with Belleville eventually cashing in on a weird play at 14:35 after killing off a two-minute-long two-man advantage. Wyatte Wylie flipped a puck towards the Toronto net from the right point, and a crowd in front took the view away from Hildeby, who could do nothing but watch it trickle by him and over the goal line. It was 3-2 Belleville after 40 minutes, with the Marlies outshooting the Senators 23-21 to that point.
Toronto put a barrage of shots on Merilainen in the third, but the “Finnish Firewall” turned aside all 16 he faced, and the Senators hung on for the win.
The Sens and Marlies will tangle again on Saturday afternoon at Coca-Cola Coliseum, with a 4:00 p.m. puck drop, with coverage on the Belleville Sens…
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