CRUNCH BATTLE BELLEVILLE
 
The Crunch make their final regular season trip to Canada tonight as they take on the Belleville Senators at CAA Arena.
 
It's the final game of their eight-game season series. The Senators grabbed a 5-2 win over the Crunch less than two weeks ago and have won six of the first seven head-to-head.
 
 
LAST TIME OUT
The Crunch rallied from deficits of 2-0, 3-2 and 5-3 before falling in their second straight shootout, 6-5, Saturday against the Toronto Marlies.
 
The Crunch went into an early 2-0 hole just 3:25 into the game after a pair of goals for the Marlies from the right circle. Syracuse struck for the next two goals to get the game tied. Ilya Usau converted on a give-and-go with Alex Barré-Boulet to make it 2-1. Waltteri Merelä deflected a power-play goal to tie the score at 14:42 while snapping an eight-game goal drought. Toronto re-took the lead on a Cameron Gaunce tally late in the first period.
 
Gage Goncalves tied the game again in the second period with a power-play snipe at 9:34. The Marlies answered with two straight goals in less than three minutes to take a 5-3 lead and chase Hugo Alnefelt from the game. Max Crozier ripped a power-play goal a minute after that to cut the deficit to 5-4.
 
The Crunch tied the game for the third time early in the third period when Quinn Schmiemann fired home his first goal for the Crunch at 4:25. The game remained tied through regulation and overtime before the Marlies won the shootout, 1-0, to win the game, 6-5. 
 
 
TEMPERS FLAIR
Saturday's Crunch-Marlies contest featured a pair of fights and 80 combined penalty minutes, a season-high for a Crunch game this season. Toronto racked up 50 PIMs while Syracuse notched 30.
 
Gage Goncalves engaged in his second career fight (also March 11, 2022) in the first period against Topi Niemelä. He also had a first-period assist, then scored a power-play goal in the second period for his first Gordie Howe hat trick (goal, assist and fight in the same game).
 
Later in the game, Tristan Allard picked up his second career fight (also March 6, 2024) in a bout against Matteo Pietroniro. 
 
Through all of that, the Crunch scored a season-high three power-play goals (3-for-7). It's the first time since Feb. 18, 2023 they've scored at least three power-play goals in a game.
 
SCOUTING THE CRUNCH
 
The Crunch have three games remaining in the regular season, and enter tonight with a slim lead for the top spot in the North Division. They carry 84 points and a 38-23-4-4 record. Their magic number to clinch the division title is five.
 
Syracuse is winless in its last three games, marking its first three-game winless stretch since Dec. 20-23; it's only their fourth all season.
 
Alex Barré-Boulet paced the Crunch with four points (1g, 3a) in two games last week. He ripped home a game-tying goal with less than five minutes remaining in the third period on Friday against the Marlies. He then notched his first three-point game of the season on Saturday in the rematch against Toronto.
 
In the process, Barré-Boulet became the first Crunch player to record at least 300 points with the franchise. He holds the franchise record with 301 points (113g, 188a) in 291 career Crunch games. He has 18 points (4g, 14a) in 20 games with the Crunch this season. 
 
SCOUTING THE SENATORS
 
The Senators can get closer to nailing down to the North Division's final playoff spot tonight. They enter the final week of the season in fifth place in the division with 76 points (35-28-3-3) and a magic number of four to clinch the final berth in the playoffs.
 
Belleville had won five straight before getting thumped, 8-2, in Rochester on Saturday. They've made their run despite leading scorer and All-Star Angus Crookshank being up and injured with Ottawa. He paces the team with 24 goals and is now tied for the team lead with 46 points (Garrett Pilon). Pilon's 18 goals have matched a career high (2019-20) and he just eclipsed the 200-point mark in his AHL career.
 
Mads Sogaard has earned nearly half of Belleville's 35 wins. He has a 16-9-3 record with a 2.52 goals-against average and a .915 save percentage in 30 games this season.
 
HEAD-TO-HEAD  
 
The Crunch and Senators wrap up their eight-game season series tonight. The Crunch have earned just one win (1-4-1-1), which came March 15 in Syracuse. They are 0-2-0-1 in three games at CAA Arena.
 
Cole Koepke leads Crunch players with four goals in the series, followed by Lucas Edmonds and Jack Finley with three apiece. Alex Barré-Boulet has been held scoreless in his two appearances against the Sens after beginning the season as a point-per-game player (23 points in 23 games) in his career against Belleville.
 
Garrett Pilon's two-goal outing against the Crunch in the previous match gives him three goals and seven points in the series. Mads Sogaard has posted a 5-1-0 record against the Crunch. The Senators are operating at 27.3% on the power play in the series, up from their 18.0% overall this season. 
 
DUKE JOINS SYRACUSE ON ATO 
 
Forward Dylan Duke has joined the Crunch on an amateur tryout, and has signed an entry-level contract with the Tampa Bay Lightning that will begin in the 2024-25 season.
 
Duke, 21, just completed his junior season at Michigan, where he helped the Wolverines advance to their third straight Frozen Four. He led Michigan with 26 goals and was third with 49 points while serving as an alternate captain. He finished his three seasons at Michigan with 100 career points in 123 games.
 
Duke was selected in the fourth round, 126th overall, in the 2021 NHL Draft by the Lightning.