CRUNCH IN CONNECTICUT STATE OF MIND
 
The Syracuse Crunch begin their longest stretch of road games tonight with a contest against the Bridgeport Islanders at Total Mortgage Arena.
 
It's the final game of the two-game series between the clubs, and the first of six straight road games for the Crunch. Syracuse earned a 5-3 win over the Islanders on Nov. 22.
 
BROADCAST COVERAGE
 
Countdown to Crunch Time at 6:45 p.m.
Streaming: Pay-to-watch video via AHLTV on FloHockey | www.syracusecrunch.com/watch
Radio: ESPN Radio Syracuse | www.espncny.com
 
LAST TIME OUT
 
The Crunch scored a season-high seven goals to thump the Hartford Wolf Pack, 7-2, Saturday at Upstate Medical University Arena.
 
The Crunch overcame a pair of one-goal deficits in the first period by scoring two shorthanded goals — one by Jack Finley and one via a penalty shot by Jakob Pelletier.
 
Syracuse scored five unanswered goals over the final two periods. Brendan Furry scored what turned into the game-winning goal before Ethan Gauthier and Pelletier extended the lead to 5-2. Matteo Pietroniro and Lucas Mercuri tallied in the third to set the final score.
 
PELLETIER NAMED PLAYER OF THE WEEK
 
Forward Jakob Pelletier was selected as the Howies Hockey Tape/AHL Player of the Week. Pelletier scored four goals — two of them shorthanded — and totaled five points and a plus-5 rating in three games.
 
Pelletier scored a goal in all three games, and he has at least one goal in seven of the last nine games. After scoring goals in four straight games, Pelletier ranks fourth in the AHL with 15 goals. He is tied for the AHL lead with 31 points in 23 games.
 
Pelletier is the first Crunch player to be selected as AHL Player of the Week since Alex Barré-Boulet for the period ending April 2, 2023.
 
SCOUTING THE ISLANDERS
 
The Islanders have won three straight games — their first such streak since March 2-9, 2024 — to improve to 10-11-1-1. They are tied with Hartford for sixth place in the Atlantic Division with 22 points. They are 4-6-1-1 at home this season, which matches the total number of home wins they had all last season (4-28-1-3).
 
Alex Jeffries leads the way with five points (1g, 4a) during the winning streak. He is also tied for the team lead this season with 17 points (5g, 12a) in 22 games. 
 
Henrik Tikkanen has won all three games in net to improve to 4-0-0 with a 1.92 goals-against average and a .919 save percentage.
 
DOWN A MAN
 
The Crunch have busted out an opportunistic penalty kill that has scored three shorthanded goals in the last two games. Jakob Pelletier scored one in Friday's win against Lehigh Valley and then he and Jack Finley scored Saturday versus Hartford.
 
Saturday was the first time the Crunch have scored more than one shorthanded goal in a game since Nov. 23, 2019, also against the Wolf Pack. Pelletier is the first Crunch player to score shorthanded goals in consecutive games since Gabriel Dumont March 6-8, 2019.
 
Syracuse is tied for the league lead with five shorthanded goals.
 
RACKING UP THE MILES
 
Today kicks off a stretch of six straight road games, which is the longest of the season for the Crunch. The games will take place in five different cities with the lone two-game stay in one city taking place in Laval following the Christmas Break.
 
The Crunch started the season with an 8-3-0-0 road record, but they have now lost four straight road games (0-3-1-0). Three of the four setbacks have been decided by one goal.
 
GAUTHIER ON THE BOARD
 
Forward Ethan Gauthier scored his first pro goal in Saturday's win against the Hartford Wolf Pack. The rookie has skated in 17 career games since joining the Crunch at the end of last season. He also picked up an assist to notch his first career multi-point game.
 
Gauthier was selected by the Lightning in the second round, 37th overall, in the 2023 NHL Draft. The 20-year-old has four points (1g, 3a) in 14 games this season.