Crunch extends win-streak to nine games
Jonne Tammela scores first professional goal after missing more than a year with knee injuries
By
Megan Cahill / <b>SyracuseCrunch.com</b>
LAST WEEK
Wed., Jan. 10 - Crunch at Binghamton - W, 4-1
Fri., Jan. 12 - Crunch at Utica - W, 3-2
Sat., Jan. 13 - Crunch vs. Rochester - W, 4-0
Mon., Jan. 15 - Crunch vs. Binghamton - W, 3-0
THIS WEEK
Wed., Jan. 17 - Crunch at Belleville - 7 p.m.
Fri., Jan. 19 - Crunch vs. Toronto - 7 p.m.
Sat., Jan. 12 - Crunch at Utica - 7 p.m.
Crunch cap four-win Week 15 with two shutouts
Syracuse extended its winning streak to nine games with four wins in six days in Week 15. The Crunch allowed just three total goals in the four games, outscoring their opposition 14-3. Their nine-game winning streak is tied for the second-longest in the AHL this season, only behind their earlier 10-game streak from Nov. 22 to Dec. 15. Since the beginning of that first winning streak the Crunch have won 20 of their last 23 games. At 24-12-1-2, the Crunch's 0.654 points percentage is third in the North Division, but is fifth overall in the AHL.
Syracuse started the week with road wins in Binghamton, 4-1 Wednesday night, and Utica, 3-2 Friday night, before playing their first home games of 2018. They earned two shutout wins in their first two home games, 4-0 over Rochester and 3-0 over Binghamton to begin the second half of the season.
Syracuse ends its stretch of nine games in 15 days with matches against Belleville, Toronto and Utica in Week 16.
Top Performers
Goaltenders
Connor Ingram
and
Louis Domingue
both won two starts in Week 15, allowing a combined three goals. Between the two, the goalies stopped 115 of 118 shots against for a .975 save percentage over four games.
Ingram has won six straight starts and nine of his last 10 games since Nov. 25. He is 10-5-1 with a 2.55 goals-against average and .905 save percentage this season.
Domingue was assigned to the Crunch during the Tampa Bay Lightning's bye week and earned two straight shutout wins, totaling 44 saves. With the Crunch, Domingue is 11-4-0 with a 2.07 goals-against average-fifth in the AHL-and .921 save percentage.
---
Mitchell Stephens
paced the Crunch with five points (2g, 3a) in Week 15. He highlighted the week with his first career three-point game (1g, 2a) in Saturday's win against Rochester. He also had an assist Wednesday and a goal Monday in two games against Binghamton.
Stephens, 20, has a team-high 10 points (6g, 4a) during the Crunch's nine-game winning streak. He has 12 goals, tied for the team lead, and 20 points this season.
---
Michael Bournival
also had five points (2g, 3a) in Week 15. He opened the week with his second three-point performance (1g, 2a) of the season Wednesday in Binghamton. He scored Friday in Utica for his first three-game goal scoring streak since his first three games with the Crunch Oct. 15-21, 2016.
Bournival is tied for the team lead with a career-high 12 goals and the Crunch are 16-1-0-0 when he has a point.
Crunch rookie forward
Jonne Tammela
made his anticipated season debut Friday in Utica, his first hockey game of any kind in over a year. Prior to Friday, Tammela-recovering from surgery on both knees-hadn't appeared in a game since Nov. 11, 2016 with the OHL's Peterborough Petes.
After being held off the scoresheet in his first two games, Tammela netted his first AHL goal in his third game of the season Monday afternoon against the Devils.
Upcoming: Belleville, Toronto, Utica
The Crunch continue a stretch of 12 straight North Division matches with Week 16 games against Belleville, Toronto and Utica. Syracuse's four divisional wins in Week 15 give them 17 wins against the North Division, second to Toronto's 18.
The Crunch make their final visit of the season to Yardmen Arena in Belleville to battle the Senators. It's the sixth of eight overall matches and the Crunch lead the series with four wins. They've won the last two games in Belleville by a 14-2 combined score. Syracuse is back home Friday against the Marlies; the Crunch have won two straight against Toronto after the Marlies won the first three games of the series. Saturday features the sixth match with the Comets. The Crunch enter with two straight 3-2 wins over Utica.
Week 15 Results
Wednesday, January 10 | Game 36 at Binghamton | W, 4-1
Syracuse 0 2 2 - 4 Shots: 8-5-3-16 PP: 1/2
Binghamton 0 1 0 - 1 Shots: 11-11-13-35 PP: 0/5
2nd Period-Bournival 11 (Condra, McBain), 0:49 (PP). Erne 11 (Bournival, McNeill), 6:07. 3rd Period-McBain 5 (Stephens, Bournival), 1:05. Lynch 9 (Erne), 3:43 (SH). . . . Ingram 9-5-1 (35 shots-34 saves). A-3,673
Friday, January 12 | Game 37 at Utica | W, 3-2
Syracuse 2 0 1 - 3 Shots: 16-7-10-33 PP: 1/6
Utica 1 1 0 - 2 Shots: 8-17-14-39 PP: 0/8
1st Period-Walcott 2 (Verhaeghe), 5:08. Bournival 12 (Peca, Condra), 18:14. 3rd Period-Verhaeghe 8 (Bodie, Erne), 2:24 (PP). . . . Ingram 10-5-1 (39 shots-37 saves). A-3,917
Saturday, January 13 | Game 38 vs. Rochester | W, 4-0
Rochester 0 0 0 - 0 Shots: 6-13-8-27 PP: 0/6
Syracuse 1 3 0 - 4 Shots: 9-16-7-32 PP: 1/3
1st Period-Joseph 8 (Stephens), 7:20 (PP). 2nd Period-Erne 12 (Joseph, Peca), 2:11. Stephens 11 (Joseph, Condra), 14:21. Volkov 11 (Verhaeghe, Stephens). . . . Domingue 10-4-0 (27 shots-27 saves). A-5,956
Monday, January 15 | Game 39 vs. Binghamton | W, 3-0
Binghamton 0 0 0 - 0 Shots: 4-6-7-17 PP: 0/5
Syracuse 0 2 1 - 3 Shots: 15-20-7-42 PP: 1/7
2nd Period-Stephens 12 (Volkov, McBain), 1:43 (PP). Tammela 1 (Masin, Bournival), 7:32. 3rd Period-Masin 6 (Peca), 1:12. . . . Domingue 11-4-0 (17 shots-17 saves). A-4,625
Category Average/Total AHL Rank (Prev)
Power Play 15.8% (29-for-183) 20th (21st)
Penalty Kill 86.7% (182-for-210) 5th (9th)
Goals For 3.44 GFA (134) 4th (5th)
Goals Against 2.64 GAA (103) 4th (T-8th)
Shots For 30.15 SF/G (1176) 16th (17th)
Shots Against 25.92 SA/G (1011) 1st (1st)
Penalty Minutes 16.36 PIM/G (638) 3rd (7th)
Category Leader
Points 31 Peca
Goals 12 Erne, Bournival, Stephens
Assists 23 Peca
PIM 110 Gallant
Plus/Minus +23 Cernak
Wins 11 Domingue
GAA 2.07 Domingue
Save % 0.921 Domingue
