Game 12: Syracuse Crunch vs. Hershey Bears
7:30 p.m. at War Memorial Arena, Syracuse, N.Y.
The Crunch continue a three-game home stand Friday against Hershey, hoping to end a three-game winless streak at home. Syracuse is 1-2-1-0 at the War Memorial in contrast to a league best 6-0-1-1 on the road. The only win at home for the Crunch came against the Bears in the home opener Oct. 13, 4-3. While Syracuse remains in first place despite the struggles at home, the Bears are under .500 overall at 5-6-1-0, last in the East Division and 11th in the Eastern Conference. Hershey has lost its last two games-both home games-Saturday vs. St. John's, 2-1, and Sunday vs. Portland, 3-1. Jeff Taffe leads the Bears with 12 points (4g, 8a) while Braden Holtby is the leading goalie at 3-3-1 with a 2.15 GAA.
Coverage
Listen to live play-by-play on TheScore1260 with pregame coverage starting at 7:15 p.m. For in-game updates on Twitter, follow @SyracuseCrunch and broadcaster @Dan_Duva. Check SyracuseCrunch.com for post-game recap. Pay-to-watch video is available on AHL Live. Following the game, "The Shootout Show" will be broadcast live from the War Memorial basement. All fans are welcome.
Limiting Opponents
Prior to Saturday's 5-2 loss to Rochester, Syracuse had not allowed five goals since Oct. 20 in Binghamton when the Crunch pulled off the biggest comeback in franchise history, overcoming a 5-0 deficit to win 6-5 in overtime. The only other occasion in which an opponent has scored five goals vs. the Crunch Oct. 12 when Syracuse lost at Rochester, 6-5 in a shootout. As a team, the Crunch have a 2.91 goals-against average, 14th best in the AHL.
Special Teams Adjusting
The Crunch began the season with eight power-play goals in their first five games (8-for-32) but have struck just three times with the man advantage in their last six games (3-for-36). Meanwhile, the Crunch penalty kill has not allowed a single goal in the last four games (16 chances). The combined penalty minutes per game has shrunk in Crunch games, as Syracuse has cut its PIMS per game from an average of 36 to under 27. Meanwhile, Saturday's 5-2 loss to Rochester had both the most penalty minutes served by an opponent (35) and the fewest served by the Crunch (21) among the four home games this season; Syracuse had one power play goal in five chances while Rochester was 0-for-3.
Last Time They Met
Nearly 6,500 fans packed the sold out War Memorial Oct. 13 to see the unveiling of Syracuse's new jerseys, new mascot and new prospects via the Tampa Bay Lightning. The Crunch never trailied and topped the Hershey Bears, 4-3. Cory Conacher was the game's first star with three points (1g, 2a).
In the first period, Mike Angelidis scored his second goal of the season thanks to his aggressive shorthanded forechecking; following a turnover, J.T. Wyman's point shot was tipped by Angelidis past goalie Braden Holtby for a 1-0 lead. Tyler Johnson's third score of the season - with assists from Cory Conacher and Ondrej Palat - put Syracuse ahead 2-0 in the second. Garrett Mitchell and Barry Almeida tied the game for Hershey, but the middle frame ended with Syracuse taking a 3-2 edge as Conacher controlled the long rebound of a Matt Taormina drive and beat Holtby on a turnaround shot.
Syracuse and Hershey traded power play goals in the third (Brett Connolly and Jon DiSalvatore, respectively)but the Crunch secured their first win of the season, 4-3. Riku Helenius earned his first AHL victory since December '09, making 23 saves.
