SYRACUSE RENEWS ROCKET RIVALRY
 
The Crunch (10-7-2-0) square off against the Laval Rocket (11-8-3-0) tonight at the War Memorial Arena. The game marks the first of six meetings between the two teams this season.
 
Syracuse won five of six against Laval last season, including all three faceoffs at the War Memorial Arena, and the Crunch maintain a 9-3-1-1 record against the Rocket over the previous two seasons. Laval's last win in Syracuse came in a 5-4 overtime victory March 3, 2018.
 
LAST TIME OUT
 
Utica ended Syracuse's three-game win streak with a 4-1 decision Wednesday at the Adirondack Bank Center.
 
The Crunch and the Comets combined for 56 penalty minutes throughout the game, and the Comets scored the first two goals of the game on the man advantage.
 
Mitch Eliot's slap shot from the blue line beat Scott Wedgewood, giving Utica a 1-0 lead late in the first period. 11:18 into the second period, Reid Boucher finished a back door feed from Sven Baertschi to double the Comets' lead.
 
The Crunch responded with a power-play goal of their own, as Danick Martel snuck the puck over the Comets' goal line with 1:16 remaining in the second period.
 
The Comets pulled away with a pair of goals in the third period, including an empty-net marker, to skate away with the 4-1 win.
 
SCOUTING THE CRUNCH 
 
The Crunch return to the War Memorial Arena having won three of their last four outings and two of their last three home games. Syracuse's 22 points rank seventh in the North Division, but the team sits just three points behind both the third-place Comets and fourth-place Rocket. Heading into their first game against Laval this season, the Crunch maintain a 7-4-2-0 record against North Division opponents.
 
Danick Martel enters tonight's match riding a two-game goal streak. Following his second power-play goal of the season Wednesday night, the 24-year-old winger has netted four goals in his last six contests. The Quebec native's eight goals on the season tie him with Alex Barré-Boulet for the team goalscoring lead, and his 17.8% shooting percentage ranks fifth among Crunch skaters.
 
Cameron Gaunce's 13 assists pace the Crunch and rank third among AHL defensemen. Gaunce has been particularly effective on the power play, as he leads the Crunch with six power-play assists. His 14 points (1g, 13a) rank third on the Crunch and tie for sixth among AHL defensemen.
 
Forward Daniel Walcott is poised to play in his 200th AHL game tonight. The 25-year-old, who played his junior hockey just outside of Laval, has played all but one of those games in a Crunch sweater. The converted defenseman has 47 career AHL points (12g, 35a), including three in 14 games this year.
 
Scott Wedgewood and Spencer Martin have defended the Crunch net throughout November. Wedgewood has posted a 6-3-1 record and .896 save percentage in his first season with the Crunch, including a 5-2-0 record in eight November appearances. Martin has earned a 2-3-0 record, 2.84 goals-against average and .890 save percentage in five appearances.
 
SCOUTING THE ROCKET 
 
The Rocket enter tonight's meeting on a two-game losing streak following a 5-3 loss in Belleville Wednesday night. Laval has played five of its last seven matchups at home (2-3-2-0 in that span), and tonight begins a stretch of four of five games away from Place Bell, two of which are in Syracuse. The Rocket sit at fourth place in a crowded North Division, tied in points with third-place Utica and just three ahead of the seventh-place Crunch.
 
Six Laval players have tallied double-digit points on the season, led by centers Alex Belzile (6g, 6a) and Lukas Vejdemo (6g, 6a). Belzile has not played since last Wednesday following a hit in Toronto—he led the Rocket in goals (19), assists (35) and points (54) a year ago.
 
In its last three games, Laval has 11 goals, the most the team has scored in any three-game stretch this season. Riley Barber (4g, 7a) has three of those markers.
 
Cayden Primeau and Charlie Lindgren have split time in goal for the Rocket. The son of 15-year NHLer Keith Primeau, Cayden was Montreal's seventh-round pick in 2019, in part thanks to a 2.09 goals-against average last year as the third-youngest player in college hockey. Through his first 11 AHL appearances, the 20-year-old has earned a 2.35 goals-against average. Lindgren, a 25-year-old American, spent time at the NHL level last season and sports a 2.77 goals-against average in 11 games for the Rocket this season.
 
SPECIAL TEAMS 
 
With three goals on the power play in the past two games, Syracuse has upped its man-up conversion rate to 21.1%, second-best in the North Division and sixth in the AHL. Alex Barré-Boulet and Chris Mueller have combined for eight power-play goals this season.
 
Meanwhile, the Rocket recorded one power-play goal on four chances against the Senators Wednesday. The team's power-play success rate stands at 18.3%, fifth in the North Division and 15th in the league. Charles Hudon paces Laval with five power-play tallies this season.
 
The Crunch's penalty-kill unit has been a puzzle to solve all season long. Syracuse kills off penalties successfully 88.2% of the time, the second-best mark in the North Division and the fourth-best mark in the AHL. The Rocket is fourth in the North Division and seventh in the league in penalty killing at 86.5%. Each side has registered four shorthanded goals this season.
 
In six meetings last year, Laval netted a power-play goal in all but one game and finished 6-for-30 against the Syracuse penalty kill. Conversely, the Crunch's power play was hot against the Rocket, finishing 8-for-24.
 
FAMILIAR FACES 
 
Laval's roster features former Crunch forwards Matthew Peca and Kevin Lynch, who both participated in the team's run to the 2017 Calder Cup Finals.
 
The 26-year-old Peca spent four seasons in Syracuse, posting 134 points in 204 career games. He is one of 10 players in franchise history to record 100 assists. He totaled 14 points in 22 playoff games in 2017 and netted the game-winning goal in Game 7 of the North Division Finals against Toronto. In 2017-18, his final year in the Lightning organization, Peca recorded a career-high 46 points (13g, 33a) for the Crunch in the regular season then added nine more (3g, 6a) in six playoff games. He has points in nine of his last 11 games and has 10 points this season.
 
Lynch also spent parts of four seasons in Syracuse. He missed all of last season with an injury, but logged a career-best 26 points (14g, 12a) in 57 games for the Crunch in 2017-18. In his first season with the Rocket, Lynch has four points (2g, 2a) in 14 games.