12/1: Marlies This Week
After improving to second in the North Division thanks to a 10-2-0-3 November record, the Marlies begin their December games with a back to back set against the Abbotsford Heat on Friday and Saturday. In the meantime, your weekly report from the Marlies:
“LAST WEEK:
The Marlies won all three games on their schedule last week. They opened their week on Wednesday morning with a 3-1 victory over Grand Rapids in their first school day game of the season. Christian Hanson, Joey Crabb and Marcel Mueller provided the scoring for Toronto. Mueller’s game- winning tally was his first career AHL/pro goal.
On Friday night in Rochester the Marlies held onto a 3-2 victory for their eighth road win of the season. Jussi Rynnas made 26 saves on 28 shots for his second consecutive win. The Marlies were out-shot 13-2 in the final 20 minutes of the game.
Toronto closed out their week with a 2-1 victory over the Griffins on Saturday. Josh Engel’s power play goal with under a minute remaining in regulation propelled the Marlies to the win.
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NOTES:
- Jussi Rynnas kept up his strong play this past week, registering a pair of victories in two starts. The rookie netminder ranks fifth in the league in both goals against average (1.81) and save percentage (0.940). During the month of November in which he’s appeared in 10 games, Rynnas has yet to allow more than two goals in any game. Over his past 10 stars, he’s posted a 5-2-2 record with a 1.33 goals against average and 0.957 save percentage.
- Ben Scrivens made his second career AHL start on Saturday and made 32 saves in the club’s 2-1 win over Syracuse. Scrivens has a 2-0-0 record with a 1.94 goals against average and 0.942 save percentage.
- Joey Crabb scored his team-leading ninth goal of the season on Friday night in Rochester. The goal came late in the second period and held up to be the game-winning tally. Crabb was recalled by the Maple Leafs on Tuesday morning.
- This season the Marlies have been solid on the road, posting a record of 8-2-0-3 away from Ricoh Coliseum this season. They’ve collected points in 10 of their past 11 road games. Last season the Marlies won only 11 times on the road.
- The Marlies penalty killing unit has only allowed four goals over their last 10 games and rank third in the AHL with an 88.3% success rate. They’ve only allowed one goal over their opponent’s last 17 opportunities.
- The first 3,000 fans in attendance for Saturday’s game against the Heat will receive a Dion Phaneuf bobblehead.
- The Marlies game on Sunday is their third annual Pink At The Rink game sponsored by Mary Kay.
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UPCOMING OPPONENTS:
The Marlies begin their three game week with back-to-back games against the Abbotsford Heat on Friday and Saturday. It will be the second and third meetings between the two clubs this season. The Heat won the first matchup on October 11, 3-2 on a late goal by Cam Cunning. Both of the Marlie goals were scored by defencemen, as Mike Brennan and Matt Lashoff each tallied a goal. Abbotsford currently sits a point
behind the Marlies in the North Division standings.
Toronto takes on the Chicago Wolves on Sunday afternoon at 3:00 p.m. at Ricoh Coliseum. The Wolves enter the week ranked seventh in the West Division with a 10-12-1-0 record. They’ve won only four of their past 10 games. Former Marlie forward Andre Deveaux ranks fifth on the Wolves in scoring with 16 points (nine goals, seven assists) to go along with 56 penalty minutes.
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READING REPORT:
The Reading Royals currently rank second in the Atlantic Division with a record of 11-7-0. The Royals have won 10 of their past 13 games. The Royals play two games this weekend. In 18 games with Reading, Robert Slaney has notched five assists and six penalty minutes.”
