Crunch host Rocket for second time
The Crunch (26-17-2-3) face the  Laval Rocket (18-23-6-2) at the War Memorial Arena in the middle game of a three-in-three for Syracuse. The teams have squared off five times this season, but only once in Syracuse. Laval has three wins to the Crunch's two. 
 
Last time out
The Crunch rallied from a 3-1 deficit to force overtime, but dropped a 4-3 decision to the Hartford Wolf Pack in a shootout at the War Memorial Arena last night. 
 
Hartford grabbed the first goal in an opening period that saw a combined 30 shots on goal. Adam Tambellini picked up a loose puck in the Crunch's zone and scored unassisted at 10:23 for the only goal of the period. 
 
Syracuse tied the game 1:04 into the second period on Alex Volkov's 14th tally of the season. He received a pass from Olivier Archambault and scored from the left circle. The 1-1 score lasted for just 10 seconds before Filip Chytil put the Wolf Pack up 2-1 on a spin-o-rama from the left circle. Six minutes later Ryan Gropp made it 3-1 on a shot from the left circle.
 
The Crunch began their comeback bid with a power-play goal by Mitchell Stephens at the right circle. He unloaded a shot off the crossbar and in for his team-leading 17th goal. In the third, Mathieu Joseph tied the game with his ninth of the year exactly eight minutes into the final period. 
 
The Crunch would fire 15 shots in the third and another five in overtime, but the game would go to a shootout tied at three. The Pack scored on two of their three attempts while the Crunch scored once as Hartford won the game, 4-3, ending the season series at a win apiece.
 
Scouting the Crunch
The Crunch have two wins in their last nine games (2-5-1-1) and are winless in their last four games, their longest span of games without a win this season. Syracuse has been held without a win in their last three home games, also a season-long drought. Despite the downturn, the Crunch are still currently in a playoff position, sitting in fourth place in the North Division. Their 57 points are 13 points clear of Laval and Belleville for that final playoff spot.
 
Syracuse failed to win a game when scoring three or more goals for just the third time all season (25-0-0-3). The Crunch have just one win (Dec. 1 vs. Laval) when scoring fewer than three goals. In their 26 wins, the Crunch are averaging 4.35 goals per game and 1.92 goals-against per game. In their 22 losses, the team is scoring 1.86 goals per game and giving up 3.73 goals per game.
 
Eddie Pasquale made his home debut as a member of the Crunch last night, entering in relief of Connor Ingram in the second period. Pasquale faced only six shots over the final 37:42 of regulation and overtime, holding Hartford off the board. He absorbed the shootout loss, allowing two goals and dropping his record to 6-5-5 between the Crunch and Bakersfield Condors. He has a 2.50 goals-against average and .911 save percentage in 18 total games this season. 
 
Rookies on a roll
The Crunch's top four active scorers are rookies, making them the only team in the league that can claim that distinction. In all, Crunch rookies have combined for 152 points, 36.5% of the Crunch's 417 total points. Only Rockford's rookies have accounted for a higher percentage (43.2%)
 
Mathieu Joseph leads the Crunch and is ninth among AHL rookies with 33 points. Only once in Crunch history has a rookie finished the season as the team's leading scorer; Boris Protsenko led the 1998-99 team with 48 points in 65 games.
 
First-year players have scored a goal in 11 straight games for the Crunch, dating back to Jan. 13. Over those 11 games, the Crunch have goals from Joseph (2), Anthony Cirelli (3), Jonne Tammela (3), Dennis Yan (2), Mitchell Stephnes (7) and Alex Volkov (4).   
 
Scouting the Rocket
Laval has three wins in their last 10 games and at 18-23-6-2 the Rocket are in fifth place in the North Division, but 13 points behind the Crunch. The Rocket have had more success on the road than at home, posting an 8-15-2-1 record at Place Bell and a 10-8-4-1 mark on the road. They are 6-2-1-0 in their last nine road games since Dec. 27.
 
Laval's leading scorer Chris Terry (20g, 23a) has missed seven of the last 10 games with an injury. He has two points (1g, 1a) in the three games he has played in during that span. The AHL All-Star is seventh in AHL scoring with 43 points, but is just three behind leader Phil Varone despite playing nine fewer games.
 
Former Crunch defenseman and fellow AHL All-Star Matt Taormina is second in scoring on the Rocket, but he has missed the last three games with an injury, the first three games he's missed all season. 
Charlie Lindgren has seen the bulk of the action this season for Laval, appearing in 28 games. He is 7-13-7 with a 3.15 goals-against average and an .893 save percentage. 
 
Head-to-head
Tonight is the sixth of eight matches between the Crunch and Rocket; Laval has three wins and the Crunch have two. The teams play twice in Syracuse in a two-week span in March to close out the series. The Rocket are outscoring the Crunch, 19-14, over five games. 
 
Mathieu Joseph paces all players in the series with seven points (3g, 4a) in five games, recording at least one point in four games. Laval is led by Chris Terry's five points (3g, 2a) in just two games. Matt Taormina also has five points (1g, 4a) in five games.
 
Special teams
The Crunch snapped their four-game skid without a power-play goal by going 1-for-4 against Hartford last night. With the man advantage, Syracuse is now 35-for-224 (15.6%) on the season. Against the Rocket, the Crunch are 6-for-32 (18.8%). 
 
The Rocket rank 10th in the league on the power play at 18.4%, (41-for-223). Only Utica (20.4%) has a better conversion rate with a man up in the North Division. Syracuse ranks sixth out of seven teams in the North.
 
The Crunch penalty kill was perfect last night (2-for-2), and sits at seventh in the AHL, killing 210-of-248 opportunities while down a man (84.7%). Before last night, Syracuse had given up a power-play goal in a season-high seven straight games, allowing 10 goals on 32 chances (68.8%) in that span.
 
Laval's penalty kill is at the bottom of the league, allowing a league-high 52 power-play goals in 222 man-down situations (76.6%).