The Syracuse Crunch and Utica Comets teamed up for a back-and-forth thriller on Sunday. The teams combined for nine goals with Utica taking it in overtime, 5-4, on Adam Beckman’s second goal of the game. The teams combined for 53 shots and nine power plays with each team connecting twice with the extra skater.
After a scoreless first period, Steve Santini opened the goal fest with his fifth of the season. Utica responded with the next three goals as Ryan Schmelzer and Nolan Foote scored just over a minute apart. Beckman made it 3-1 with a power play goal. Jack Finley cut it to 3-2 with a power play goal of his own.
The scoring continued in the third as Santini tied things up. Max Crozier seven seconds into the Crunch’s fourth power play of the night to give Syracuse the lead. He was also in the penalty box for a delay of game penalty when Brian Halonen tied it for Utica at the 19:21 mark. Just two minutes into the extra frame, Beckman beat Brandon Halverson for the game winner.
Connor Sheary had three assists on the night, bringing his season total to 25 in 41 games with the Crunch. That goes along with 13 goals. Not a bad bit of business for the veteran.
Syracuse maintained their fifth-place position in the North Division and extended their lead over sixth-place Belleville to two points (although the Senators have two games in hand). The Crunch are off until Friday when they have a rematch with Utica.
Lightning News
Miskin’s Musings: On a transformational 10-game segment [Tampa Bay Lightning]
Dave Mishkin takes a look at the Lightning’s recent run of successful play.
Crozier making mental health a priority [The AHL]
Sunday’s game was also the Crunch’s Mental Wellness night, and the second-year defender spoke to Patrick Williams about the importance of the mental side of the game, giving credit to Calvin de Haan for making him feel welcome during his time in Tampa last season.
Hockey News
Rangers to sit Reilly Smith with trade deadline approaching [ESPN]
It’s that time of the season! What time is that? “Roster Management” season. Teams are going to start holding potential trade pieces out of the game. We saw it with Gus Nyquist on Saturday and now Reilly Smith with the Rangers. The next step in this process will be the “Player X was seen shaking hands before leaving practice/morning skate” reports from local media.
Three trade packages for Mikko Rantanen [Bleacher Report]
In our opinion, Rantanen is staying with Carolina for the rest of the season. Despite a slow start with his new team, there is plenty of time for him to make an impact with the Hurricanes. Pulling the chute on a major deal this soon has a whiff of panic to it, and Carolina’s front office isn’t going to do that. Still, it’s fun to speculate.
Four potential destinations for Dylan Cozens [Sportsnet]
Let’s keep the speculation going! It’s more reasonable to see Buffalo moving on from Cozens, and Sportsnet pontificates about four possible destinations (no, Tampa isn’t one).
NHL.com projects U.S. Roster for 2026 Olympics [NHL.com]
If things keep rolling the way they are, Jake Guentzel will don the red, white, and blue in Italy next year.
Brad Marchand out with upper-body injury [Daily FaceOff]
The veteran winger has been loosely linked with the Lightning at the trade deadline, but a recent injury might muddy the trade waters. He left Saturday’s game early, and missed Sunday’s game against the Wild. With Boston fading from the playoff race, the pending UFA has seen his name in trade speculation, and while he might not be the offensive force he was earlier in his career he is still a pain to play against.
Florida Panthers move Matthew Tkachuk to LTIR [Florida Hockey Now]
Following their acquisition of Seth Jones, the Florida Panthers moved Matthew Tkachuk to long-time injured reserve, which allowed them to recall Chris Driedger to back-up Sergei Bobrovsky. The move frees up $8.7 million in cap space for them. Tkachuk suffered a groin injury during the 4 Nations Face-Off and his return date is uncertain.
