An impressive performance and victory Friday night was all but forgotten after a mostly-abject showing Sunday afternoon in Albany.
Toronto looked and played like a tired road team, while Albany, also playing a 3-in-3 weekend and without some key players, seemed to find more jump when it really mattered.
The opening 20 minutes felt more like boxers sizing each other up without throwing a punch.
Alex Stalock, making his second start as a Marlie, did well one minute into the game to cling onto a long-range shot that he found through traffic.
The Marlies managed some possession but were generating little with it, allowing Scott Wedgewood too easy of a time between the pipes.
Albany should have struck first at the first minute mark after a turnover handed them a 2-on-1 break. Ryan Kujawinski faked the pass and tried to bank the puck in behind Stalock, who made a smart left toe save to deny him.
Toronto were handed a powerplay after a delay of game, but they were unable to make hay on the free opportunity. A couple of efforts were fired on net; neither looked like beating Wedgewood, and the rebounds were easily cleared.
The lack of chances were evident as the shot-clock favoured the Marlies 4-2 with eight minutes left in the first period.
The Marlies‘ best, if not sole, good chance of the period came as Josh Leivo broke with Matt Frattin on an odd-man rush. The former sent a cross-ice feed to the latter, but Frattin was hauled back as he attempted to fire past Wedgewood. The resulting powerplay proved fruitless, as did a third straight opportunity that carried over into the second period.
The middle frame saw Toronto take an early lead but ultimately play some poor and ill-disciplined hockey.
Sam Carrick stripped the puck from an opponent just outside the Marlies blue line and immediately found Brendan Leipsic. The winger dished the puck off to Frattin down the left, who weighed up his options before ripping a shot that Wedgewood did well to stop. The rebound fell in front, where Leipsic was on hand after driving the net to finish off the second opportunity.
That’s as good as it got in the period for the Marlies. Stalock had to deny another odd man rush for Albany, this time turning aside Max Novak.
A double minor, with Doherty the guilty party, put Toronto on the back foot, and they survived only to head right back on the penalty kill a minute later. Once again the penalty kill unit stood tall; towards the end, some impressive play from Connor Brown ran down the final seconds of the penalty and drew a powerplay for his team.
The Marlies generated just one chance with subsequent man advantage, and it was a missed opportunity as Leivo’s shot was blocked and Carrick fired the rebound just wide.
A fourth penalty taken by Toronto proved their undoing despite Stalock’s best efforts. Two fine saves went to waste as twice the Marlies failed to clear their zone. A resulting scramble in front ended with Raman Hrabarenka putting the final touch past Stalock.
Kasperi Kapanen was then guilty of a boneheaded cross-checking penalty — the fifth infraction by the Marlies in just 14 and a half minutes of the second period. It took mere seconds for the home team to take the lead. Hrabarenka, the beneficiary of a huge rebound, made no mistake in putting his team ahead 2-1.
Albany were now firmly on top and dominating at even strength, and will probably feel they should have further increased their advantage heading into the intermission.
Brown and Leivo tried to combine early in the third period but the former’s shortside effort was dealt with comfortably by Wedgewood.
Toronto appeared a tired team and a tying marker looked an unlikely prospect. Enter into the fray Eric Faille.
T.J Brennan found Faille with a smart outlet pass and he appeared remarkably fresh as he sped down the right wing. The right winger did enough to tempt the Devil’s goaltender out his crease before scooting around the back of cage and scoring with a fine wraparound goal.
Despite going close on one occasion, yet another powerplay for Toronto went to waste and with it probably their best opportunity of winning in regulation.
Albany responded by collecting themselves and controlling the play. Stalock held firm with a few solid saves and it looked like he would earn his teammates at least a point.
That was not the case due to a calamitous 15 seconds of play. Turning the puck over with a pass up the middle of their own zone, the Marlies were left chasing and left Nick Lappin alone in front to receive a pass from Matt Lorita. Lappin manoeuvred the puck around Stalock and finished a deft chip over the goaltender’s pads with 40 seconds remaining.
Toronto wouldn’t even record a shot in the time remaining, falling 3-2 in a performance that left much to be desired.
Post Game Notes
– Toronto fired just three efforts on net in the final period. The 19 shots taken overall is the Marlies’ lowest total this season.
– Alex Stalock made 21 saves on his second start and again the team failed to turn up in front of him. Certainly not at fault, he was a steadying presence when Marlies were under siege.
– Brendan Leipsic’s goal was his 17th of the season. The winger has six points during a four-game point streak.
– Matt Frattin recorded an assist and extends his point streak to four games.
– Mark Arcobello was scratched due to illness for the second straight game.
Game Highlights
Marlies Player Stats — Albany 3 vs. Toronto 2
| PLAYERS | Position | G | A | +/- | SH | PIM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Campbell, Andrew | D | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Brennan, T.J. | D | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Faille, Eric | F | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
| Percy, Stuart | D | 0 | 0 | -1 | 1 | 2 |
| Leivo, Josh | RW | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 |
| Carrick, Sam | C | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Clune, Richard | LW | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
| Leipsic, Brendan | LW | 1 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 |
| Lindberg, Tobias | RW | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Gauthier, Frederik | C | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Kolomatis, David | D | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Brown, Connor | RW | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Findlay, Brett | LW | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Smith, Colin | C | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Frattin, Matt | RW | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Holl, Justin | D | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Kapanen, Kasperi | RW | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| Doherty, Taylor | D | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
