The Syracuse Crunch ran into a wall Saturday night and never found a way through.
Laval shut out Syracuse 5-0 at the Upstate Medical University Arena, handing the Crunch their first blanking of the season and dropping them to 5-6-2-0 overall. The Rocket also improved to 1-3-0-0 in the six-game season series.
Kaapo Kähkönen was perfect for Laval, turning away all 31 shots he faced. Syracuse got 17 saves from Mads Sogaard before he was relieved by Olivier Rodrigue in the third period.
Rodrigue stopped the only shot he saw. The Crunch went 0-for-3 on the power play, while their penalty kill held up at 4-for-4.
The game stayed scoreless through the opening period, but Laval broke through midway through the second and quickly took control. Tyler Thorpe opened the scoring with a wrister from the faceoff dot after skating down the left side. Just 1:01 later, the Rocket doubled the lead when Sogaard denied David Reinbacher’s shot, only for Samuel Poulin to clean up the rebound with a backhand.
Laval kept rolling early in the third. Dillan Bentley carried the puck down the left wing and sent a backhand feed across the crease for Josh Nadeau, who finished at 5:29.
A little more than a minute later, Sasha Pastujov wrapped behind the net and stuffed one in. Brett Berard capped the night for Laval with a goal from the right circle at 8:08, which sent Sogaard to the bench and locked up the shutout.
The Crunch return home to face the Toronto Marlies on Friday.
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Lightning Face A New Test As Point Absence Changes Buffalo Rematch
The Lightning head into their first regular-season visit to Buffalo this season with a different look up front, and not just because it is a rematch with the Sabres. Brayden Points injury has opened the door for prospect Sam OReilly, who was called up from AHL Syracuse and is set for his NHL debut, adding another layer of intrigue to a game that already carries the usual division-game edge.
J.J. Moser said the group has to be ready to adjust, and the projected lineup reflects just how much the absence changes the night for Tampa Bay. Andrei Vasilevskiy is expected to start in goal, while OReilly is lined up between Jake Guentzel and Yanni Gourde, a combination that gives the Lightning a fresh test as they try to navigate a familiar opponent with a new center in the mix. [Read more 🡒]