The Syracuse Crunch came out of a rare 12-day stretch with just one game and still couldn’t find a win in Week 6, dropping both ends of a busy back-to-back. First came a 5-2 loss on the road to the Utica Comets on Friday, then a 3-2 overtime defeat at home against the Hartford Wolf Pack on Saturday night.
That leaves Syracuse at 5-5-2-0 on the season and in sixth place in the North Division.
Jakob Pelletier kept rolling anyway. The forward scored in both games to push his goal streak to four straight, pulling the Crunch within 3-2 against Utica with a second-period goal and then knotting things at one early against Hartford.
It’s the third four-game goal streak of Pelletier’s career, following one from Dec. 6-13, 2025, and a career-best six-game run from Nov. 18 to Nov. 27, 2022.
Pelletier now leads Syracuse and is tied for fifth in the AHL with nine goals. He also tops the Crunch with 14 points, putting up 9 goals and 5 assists in 12 games.
The roster also shifted during the week. Rookie forward Sam O’Reilly was recalled to the Tampa Bay Lightning on Monday.
O’Reilly, 20, appeared in 12 games for Syracuse and recorded two goals and four points. He made his AHL debut on Oct. 2 at Laval and picked up his first pro point, an assist, in the Crunch’s 2-0 win.
A Toronto native, O’Reilly was originally drafted by the Edmonton Oilers in the first round, 32nd overall, of the 2024 NHL Draft before Tampa Bay acquired him in a trade on July 8, 2025. If he gets into an NHL game this week, he’ll become the 106th player to skate for both the Crunch and Lightning during the clubs’ affiliation.
Syracuse now turns to a three-game week that begins Wednesday night against Laval. The Crunch host the Rocket for the fourth meeting of the six-game season series, with the first three all played in Laval. Syracuse won the opener, then Laval answered with two straight victories.
The Rocket arrive with plenty of momentum. They’re one of three AHL teams with 10 wins, sit atop the North Division with 21 points in 14 games, and own a 10-3-1-0 record.
On the road, Laval is 5-1-0-0, with its only setback away from home coming in Calgary on Oct. 29.
Reilly Walsh and Sasha Pastujov have given Syracuse trouble in the series. Each has scored three goals, while Walsh leads all players with six points in three games.
Friday brings Toronto to Upstate Medical University Arena for the first of six meetings with the defending Calder Cup champions. The Marlies are in the middle of a six-game road trip that has already taken them to Belleville, Hamilton and Manitoba.
They’re 1-1-2-0 on the trip and close it Sunday in Providence. Overall, Toronto is 7-4-3-0 and starts the week in second place in the division.
Toronto took three of four from Syracuse last season, including both games in Syracuse.
The week wraps up Saturday with another trip to Utica, where the Crunch will see the Comets again just over a week after that 5-2 loss. Utica enters the week at 8-2-0-0, riding a four-game winning streak and owning the best points percentage in the AHL. The Comets have spread the offense around, with 21 different players recording a point and no one above eight.
Friday’s loss in Utica saw Syracuse trail early and spend the night chasing the game. The Crunch got goals from Duke and Pelletier in the second period, but Utica controlled enough of the night to finish it off. Syracuse was outshot 21-26 and went 1-for-5 on the power play.
Saturday’s home game against Hartford had a different feel, with both teams trading leads before the Wolf Pack got the overtime winner. Pelletier scored in the first period, Mercuri added a second-period goal, and Syracuse finished with a 26-25 edge in shots. The Crunch went 0-for-4 on the power play.
Through 12 games, Syracuse’s team numbers show where the work still needs to be done. The power play is at 18.9 percent, the penalty kill at 76.5 percent, and the club is averaging 2.92 goals for and 3.25 against per game.
The Crunch are also near the bottom of the league in shots for, averaging 25.83 per game, while allowing 26.42. They remain the AHL’s most penalized team at 25.50 penalty minutes per game.
Individually, Pelletier leads the way in points and goals, while Abruzzese has nine assists. Mercuri’s 43 penalty minutes top the team, Gill sits at plus-7, and Sogaard leads the goaltending group with three wins, a 2.33 goals-against average and a .907 save percentage.
In Other News...
Lightning Center Depth Suddenly Faces A Test Fans Can't Ignore
The Lightnings center depth is getting an early-season stress test after Brayden Point was sidelined, forcing the team to look down the organizational ladder for help. Tampa Bay turned to AHL Syracuse and brought up Sam OReilly, giving the 19-year-old a chance to step into a bigger role at a time when the middle of the ice suddenly matters a lot more.
OReilly is already practicing with the club and is expected to be part of the mix, including on the power play, as the Lightning adjust their forward group. For a team that leans so heavily on its top centers, the next stretch will be a revealing one, with Tampa Bay trying to keep its structure intact while waiting for one of its most important players to get back. [Read more 🡒]
Leafs Suddenly Have A Bigger Problem Than Their Recent Slide
The Maple Leafs recent slide has already put some pressure on the room, but the injury report only deepened the concern heading into the next game. Toronto said forward Colton Sissons is out week-to-week with a lower-body injury, while defenseman Morgan Rielly is day-to-day, and winger Kirill Marchenko is still week-to-week with the same issue. It is the kind of update that forces a team to adjust quickly, especially when it is already trying to steady itself in the standings.
Toronto also made a roster move to help patch things together, recalling forward Ryan Tverberg from the AHL and sending Vinni Lettieri back down. With Sergei Bobrovsky slated to start in net for the upcoming game, the Leafs will be looking for answers in a hurry, and the bigger concern now is not just the slump itself but how long the lineup can hold up while key pieces are unavailable. [Read more 🡒]
Lightning Suddenly Need A Lot From Sam OReilly
The Lightning have turned to a familiar kind of midseason pressure test, recalling prospect Sam OReilly from AHL Syracuse as they try to patch together the middle of their lineup. OReilly, who came over from Edmonton in a trade and is in the first year of his entry-level contract, has been getting his first real look at what life could become in Tampa Bay, and the timing could hardly be more demanding.
The move comes as the Lightning search for answers down the middle and look to a young player with little NHL experience to help steady things. OReillys next step is expected to be his debut, and the organization is suddenly asking a lot from a player who was still building his pro resume in the minors not long ago. [Read more 🡒]