Crunch host Laval for first time 
The Crunch (8-9-1-2) look for their fifth consecutive victory tonight at the War Memorial Arena against the Laval Rocket (9-8-3-2). Syracuse has won three straight at home since its last home loss Oct. 27 vs. Toronto. The Crunch are 0-1-0-1 so far this season against the Rocket, but this is the first matchup between the teams in Syracuse. 

Last time out
The Crunch extended its winning streak to four games with a 3-1 win over the Toronto Marlies at Ricoh Coliseum Wednesday. 

New Crunch forward Chris DiDomenico scored his first goal with the team 10:35 into the game to give the Crunch a 1-0 lead. He and Cory Conacher worked a give-and-go through the neutral zone and DiDomenico skated to the right wing circle before snapping a shot under the crossbar.

Syracuse doubled the advantage in the second period on a tip in by Kevin Lynch nine minutes into the period. The goal came just as the Crunch's five-minute major power play expired. The Marlies cut into the deficit with a power-play goal 4:24 into the third period, but Conacher's empty-net goal late in the third sealed the win. Louis Domingue turned aside 27 of 28 shots for his third straight win.   
  
Scouting the Crunch
The Crunch ride a four-game win streak into Friday's matchup with the Rocket. All four wins came during a seven-day span, winning twice at home and twice on the road. The Crunch are still sixth in the North Division with a points percentage of 0.475 (8-9-1-2), but sit only .025 percentage points behind the Comets and Senators, who are tied for fourth place.

For the second year in a row, Cory Conacher leads Syracuse in scoring. The 27-year-old has posted 15 points (7g, 8a) in 18 games with the Crunch, including a pair (1g, 1a) at Toronto Wednesday. The performance extended Conacher's point streak with Syracuse to three games and marked Conacher's return after a one-game stint in Tampa Bay, where he scored a goal against Pittsburgh last Saturday.

Kevin Lynch also found the net against the Marlies. It was the center's third goal in his last five games and fifth this season, which matches his AHL career high. Lynch scored five goals in 37 games with the Crunch last year; this season, he has buried the same number in just 18 outings. With 10 points (5g, 5a), Lynch is one of six Syracuse skaters in double figures this year.

Newly-acquired goaltender Louis Domingue has started three of the four games during the Crunch's win streak. In total, Domingue has stopped 80 of 88 shots (.909 save percentage) on the way to his first victories in a Syracuse uniform. The team acquired the 25-year-old Domingue from the Coyotes organization in a mid-November trade in exchange for forward Tye McGinn and goalie Michael Leighton.

Scouting the Rocket
The Laval Rocket visit the War Memorial for the first time ever Friday. The team—formerly the St. John's IceCaps—is 9-8-3-2 (.523) in its first season in its new home, good for third place in the North Division.

 Laval has not won a game since November 15. The Rocket have dropped six in a row (two in shootouts, one in overtime); each of their last four losses have ended with a 3-2 final score.

Matt Taormina returns to the War Memorial for the first time since he played a key role in the Crunch's run to the Calder Cup Finals last season. The defenseman ranked third on the Syracuse roster with 20 points (5g, 15a) in the playoffs after he tied for the team lead with 60 (15g, 45a) in the regular season. Taormina's point total also left him in a tie for first place among all AHL defensemen, and he won the Eddie Shore Award as the AHL's most outstanding blueliner. Taormina is again pacing his own team and the league's defensmen in scoring this season. The 31-year-old has 20 points (2g, 18a) in 22 games.

The Canadiens and New York Rangers swapped AHL forwards yesterday. Adam Cracknell  joins the Rocket in exchange for former Crunch forward Peter Holland.

 Charlie Lindgren has appeared in 11 games as the Rocket's goaltender. His .888 save percentage is best among the three goalies who have seen time between the pipes for Laval. Laval has allowed 82 goals this season, the most in the league. Lindgren appeared in eight games for the Montreal Canadiens in place of the injured Carey Price, going 3-4-1 with a 2.43 goals-against average and a .924 save percentage. 
  
Special teams
Despite going 0-for-4 on the power play Wednesday in Toronto, the Crunch have scored with the man advantage in nine of the last 12 games, going 12-for-54 (22.2%). Over their four-game win streak, the Crunch power play is 2-for-11 (18.2%). On the season, they are 14-for-105 (13.3%) on the power play, ranking 26th in the AHL. Syracuse has scored only four times in 48 opportunities (8.3%) at home. 

During their six-game winless streak, the Rocket are 3-for-23 (13.0%) on the power play. They still rank fifth in the league at 20.2% (21-for-104). Laval was 4-for-13 (30.8) in their two wins over the Crunch.

The Crunch have killed off 95 of 115 penalties (82.6%). Syracuse has five shorthanded goals in its last five games and pace the AHL with seven total. Forward Michael Bournival is tied for the league lead with three shorthanded goals and four shorthanded points. 

The Rocket penalty kill has allowed a league-high 26 power-play goals in 107 chances. Their 75.7% penalty kill ranks next to last in the AHL, ahead of San Diego (74.7%).

Lightning flash
The Tampa Bay Lightning (17-6-2) have lost three of their last four games, but still lead the NHL in points (36). On Wednesday night, the Bolts fell to the Bruins, 3-2. In that game, former Crunch defenseman Andrej Sustr scored his first goal of the season for the Lightning. Forward Steven Stamkos, who leads the NHL in points with 37, added his 11th goal of the year. Between the pipes, Crunch alum Andrei Vasilevskiy made 33 saves for the Lightning. Tampa Bay returns to Amalie Arena to take on the San Jose Sharks on Saturday for its first home game since Nov 22.