Game 40: Syracuse Crunch (24-10-5-0) at Bridgeport Sound Tigers (18-16-4-1)
3 p.m., Webster Bank Arena, Bridgeport, Conn.

Syracuse and Bridgeport square off for the second time in as many days, following a 6-2 Crunch victory Saturday at Webster Bank Arena. The victory pulled Syracuse within three points of idle Springfield for the Northeast Division lead with one game in hand. At 53 points Syracuse is fourth in the Eastern Confernece and the AHL. Bridgeport, stuck on 41 points, remains last in the Northeast Division and drops from 11th to 12th in the conference. 

Broadcast Coverage | Countdown to Crunch Time at 2:45 p.m.
Radio: ESPN Radio | 1200 AM Syracuse | 1440 AM Oswego |
Streaming Video: Pay-to-watch on AHL LIve.com and mobile devices with the AHL Live App

Last Time Out
Three-point performances from Mike Blunden (1g, 2a) and Jonathan Marchessault (3a) lifted Syracuse to its largest margin of victory on the road this year in a 6-2 win in Bridgeport Saturday. The Crunch took the first of eight matchups with their new division rival.

Kristers Gudlevskis, who'd been perfect in relief with 21 saves Friday, made 24 saves Saturday and improved to 13-6-0. 

Joey Mormina's power-play goal opened the scoring in the first and Slater Koekkoek scored 11 seconds later. Blunden and Tanner Richard goals in the second were assisted by Dylan Blujus. Vladislav Namestnikov scored shorthanded to cap the second period with a 5-1 Crunch lead. Mike Angelidis scored seven minutes into the third to extend the lead to 6-1, tying Yanni Gourde for the most goals on the team.

John Persson got one back for the Sound Tigers as a 5-on-3 power play became a 5-on-4 late in th third; the AHL's top power play was held to 1-for-5. Justin Courtnall scored the earlier goal for Bridgeport.

Scouting the Sound Tigers
Former Penguin Harry Zolnierczyk tops Bridgeport in scoring with 32 points (13g, 19a), 19 of which are on special teams: 15 on the power play and four shorthanded. Colin McDonald trails close behind with 31 points (12g, 19a). Both players are in the top 15 in scoring in the AHL.

Aaron Ness leads Sound Tigers defensemen in points with 22 (5g, 17a) and was added to the Eastern Conference's All-Star roster to replace injured Bridgeport defenseman Ryan Pulock.

After David Leggio allowed six goals to the Crunch Saturday, dropping to 6-8-0, Kevin Poulin (12-8-5) is slated to start Sunday. He sports a .926 save percentage and 2.45 goals-against average in 25 games.

Cory Conacher
Former Lightning prospect Cory Conacher was scratched for Bridgeport Saturday. He has not played against the Crunch since Tampa Bay traded him to the Ottawa Senators for Ben Bishop April 3, 2013. Conacher played 36 games with Syracuse to start the 2012-13 season producing 28 points (12g, 16a). He played another 35 games for the Lightning before the trade, closing the year with five points in 12 games for Ottawa.

Conacher, a Canisius alum, played the first 60 games if the 2013-14 season with Ottawa, but recorded only four goals and 15 assists, and was placed on waivers. The Buffalo Sabres claimed the Burlington, Ontario native, and got six points from him (3g, 3a) in 19 games to finish the year. The New York Islanders signed Conacher to a one-year NHL contract July 1, 2014, and he played 15 NHL games with three points before being loaned to Bridgeport Dec. 13, his fifth AHL club. 

Special teams
The Crunch were 1-for-7 on the power play Saturday, improving to 26th in the league and 12.8%. The penalty kill was 4-for-5 and remains 25th in the AHL, slipping to 80.8%. The Crunch have allowed one power-play goal in each of the last five games.

The Sound Tigers own the AHL's best power play at 23.6% with 42 goals on 178 chances, almost double the Crunch total (22). The second highest total of power-play goals is Manchester's 36. The Bridgeport penalty kill ranks 24th in the league, improving to 81.1% after stopping six of seven Crunch chances Saturday.

2013-14 Season Series
Syracuse and Bridgeport split their season series in 2013-14. The Crunch won, 5-0, Oct. 26, 2013, exploding for five goals in the second period. J.P. Cote recorded a goal and an assist, and Kristers Gudlevskis made 22 saves to earn a shutout in his AHL debut. Meeting again Jan. 26 at Webster Bank Arena, the Sound Tigers won a wild contest, 6-5, in which Syracuse tied the score 1-1, 4-4 and 5-5, but never took the lead. John Persson recorded a hat trick for Bridgeport, while Angelidis potted two for the Crunch.