CRUNCH CLASH WITH FIRST PLACE MONSTERS 
 
The top two teams in the North Division go head-to-head as the Crunch host the Cleveland Monsters at Upstate Medical University Arena.
 
Tonight is Cleveland's first of two appearances in Syracuse this season. The clubs spilt a two-game set in Cleveland during the second week of the season.  
 
LAST TIME OUT
 
The Crunch saw a pair of one-goal leads slip away in a 3-2 loss to the Laval Rocket Wednesday at Upstate Medical University Arena.
 
Gabriel Dumont - skating in his 800th pro game - opened the scoring with a redirection 3:48 into the first period. Jack Thompson's shot from the point was tipped home by Dumont for the early lead. Tobie Bisson tied the game at 10:47 of the opening frame when he skated into open space and ripped home his third goal of the season.
 
Gage Goncalves made it 2-1 early in the second period. A hounding forecheck forced a steal, and Felix Robert set up Goncalves for a quick left circle shot just 1:16 into the period. They controlled play the rest of the period, but a bad bounce resulted in a second Bisson goal to tie the game with 2:04 left on the clock.
 
Laval grabbed its first lead in the third period on a Brandon Gignac tally at 8:58, which stood as the game-winning goal, as the Rocket earned their first win in three tries against the Crunch.
 
SCOUTING THE CRUNCH
 
The Crunch are in the midst of their final homestand of 2023. After tomorrow, the team won't play again at Upstate Medical University Arena until Jan. 12. Their loss Wednesday against Laval was their second straight regulation home loss, which is the first time they've lost two straight at home in regulation this season. It was also only their second regulation loss when scoring the first goal (14-2-0-1, 0.853).
 
Gabriel Dumont skated in his 800th pro game Wednesday against the Rocket. The Crunch captain celebrated by scoring his third goal in the last two games to give him eight on the season. Dumont has 451 points between the NHL (9) and AHL (442) since turning pro in 2010-11.
 
SCOUTING THE MONSTERS
 
The Monsters (17-7-1-0) come into Syracuse atop the North Division with a three-point lead over the second-place Crunch. Cleveland has won three in a row to jump into a tie for the second-best record in the entire AHL, locked up with Texas and Hartford, nine points behind the defending champions in Hershey.
 
Cleveland has been one of the best road teams in the AHL this season. With just three road regulation losses (9-3-1-0), the Monsters have collected more road points (19) than all teams except for Coachella Valley (20). Two of those three defeats have come in December in back-to-back setbacks to the Penguins and Bears.
 
Left winger James Malatesta is also on a run of his own with points in three-straight contests including a pair of goals and assists. Cleveland is 6-2-1-0 in games when the 2021 fifth-rounder records a point.
 
Cleveland has been great at jumping on the board early, outscoring opponents 27-20 in the first frame. The Monsters are 12-2-1-0 when scoring the first goal. 
 
DAY SHUTTLES BACK TO TAMPA 
 
After dressing with the Crunch Wednesday, defenseman Sean Day was recalled to Tampa Bay yesterday for his second recall with the Lightning in a week. Day did not play during his first stint with the Lightning at the tail end of their western road trip over the weekend.
 
The 25-year-old has eight assists in 17 games for the Crunch this season. Day ranks 10th in Crunch history in scoring among defensemen with 77 points (11g, 66a) in 178 Crunch games. 
 
HEAD-TO-HEAD
 
The Crunch and Monsters split a two-game set in Cleveland on Oct. 20 and Oct. 21. Syracuse's 5-0 win came in the Rocket's home opener, but the Monsters responded with a 4-2 win the following night to deal the Crunch their first defeat of the season.
 
The Crunch had production up and down their lineup with 15 players registering a point over the two games. Felix Robert led the way with a pair of goals – one in each game. Jake Christiansen logged a multi-point outing in Cleveland's win with a pair of assists.
 
Hugo Alnefelt made 35 saves for his first shutout of the season in the first match. Jet Greaves got chased out of the net in the first game, but bounced back with 31 saves to earn a win the next day.
 
MILESTONES 
 
Defenseman Phil Myers is set to skate in his 200th AHL game tonight. The veteran has also appeared in 154 NHL games. The 26-year-old has played for Lehigh Valley, Toronto and Syracuse during his time in the AHL; he has six assists in 22 games this season with the Crunch and his plus-14 rating is tied for second in the AHL.
 
Devante Stephens could skate in his 200th AHL contest as early as tomorrow. The defenseman is in his second stint with the Crunch, and has also dressed for Rochester, Abbotsford and Tucson since 2017-18. He leads Crunch defensemen with three goals in 18 games this season.
 
Second-year defenseman Jack Thompson sits at 98 career games played entering tonight. A third-round pick in 2020, Thompson leads Crunch blueliners with 17 points. 
 
LIGHTNING FLASH
 
The Tampa Bay Lightning approach the holiday break with a 16-13-5 record after a 5-4 win against the Vegas Golden Knights last night at Amalie Arena. Their final game before Christmas is tomorrow at Washington.
 
Crunch alum Nikita Kucherov (2013-14) picked up three more points and leads the NHL in scoring with 57 points (23g, 34a). Fellow alum Brayden Point (2014-15) grabbed three points to eclipse 500 points in his NHL career. The center required just 533 games to reach that milestone.