“The guys were committed to blocking shots and sacrificing their bodies. It was huge for us. We needed it. Usually, your goaltender is your best penalty killer. Without it [penalty kill], we wouldn’t have won that game.”
– John Gruden on Toronto’s perfect seven-for-seven PK
After three straight loser points, the Toronto Marlies won their first game of the season in overtime on Sunday. As John Gruden alluded to, the penalty kill was exceptional, as was the third-period performance of Artur Akhtyamov, who ensured the Marlies earned at least a point.
First Period
Toronto was down a skater within three minutes but held the Amerks’ power play to a single shot.
The Marlies‘ first power play was excellent in terms of creating high-quality scoring chances, but some bad puck luck and good goaltending kept them off the board.
The Marlies were fortunate not to fall behind just before the midway mark. A failure to clear the zone resulted in a chance from the slot for Kyle Clague, who seemingly had the goal at his mercy. Artur Akhtyamov showed great athleticism to rob the Amerks forward.
It looked like an even bigger save when Toronto took the lead 40 seconds later. After Ryan Tverberg’s inch-perfect pass sprung a 2v1 break, Logan Shaw teed up Nick Abruzzese at the far post, where the winger netted his third of the campaign.
Akhtyamov continued to shine with two quality saves to keep the lead intact. Brendan Warren and Brett Murray were stonewalled from close range as the Marlies took a slender lead into the first intermission.
Second Period
Toronto once more found themselves in penalty trouble early in the middle frame.
Beginning the period with Alex Nylander already in the box, Jacob Quillan joined him to present Rochester with a 5-on-3 for 17 seconds. It was another excellent kill, helped along by another ten-bell save from Akhtyamov, who denied Josh Dunne from the slot.
The Marlies swayed between sequences of brilliance and bonehead decisions in the second period.
Another threatening effort on the powerplay went unrewarded, as Fraser Minten was twice robbed, and the puck just wouldn’t fall for the Marlies.
Whether it was frustration or switching off mentally, Toronto gave Rochester a gilt-edge chance to level at 5v5. Ryan Johnson had yet to score in his previous 40 AHL games and was left wondering if he ever would after another high-quality save by Akhtyamov.
Ryan Tverberg and Braeden Kressler nearly doubled the Marlies’ lead, but Felix Sandstrom’s performance matched that of Akhtyamov at the other end.
After killing the second penalty of the period, Toronto finished the frame strongly and looked like the likelier team to score before the intermission buzzer. That was until a late brain fart should have resulted in a tying goal.
After winning a neutral zone battle along the wall, Rochester sprung a 2v1 break. Anton Wahlberg attempted to pick the top corner, but the Amerks’ nemesis between the Marlies’ pipes denied them once again.
Third Period
This season, Toronto has often reserved their best hockey for the third period. It wasn’t the case this time, although events may have transpired differently if the Marlies pounced on an early chance. A turnover behind the Amerks’ net led to Kressler teeing up Zach Solow from point-blank range, but Sandstrom robbed him.
The Marlies imploded from that point, playing some incredibly sloppy and lackadaisical hockey.
Akhtyamov made another tremendous stop to turn aside Johnson but could do nothing to prevent Warren from tying the game with 13 minutes remaining. After a bad turnover on the d-zone half-wall by Solow, the Rochester forward spun off the right boards and easily worked his way into the slot past Niemela before firing home.
Akhtyamov earned Toronto the trip to overtime with 15 saves in the third period. None were better than denying Viktor Neuchev and Isak Rosen, especially the former, who seemingly had an empty net to score into on a rebound opportunity.
Captain Logan Shaw somehow didn’t score on one of the easiest chances he’ll have this season after good initial work from Solow in Toronto’s last offensive foray of regulation.
The Marlies almost lost the game due to another poor decision from the officials. Tverberg was somehow ruled to have tripped an opponent during a play in which a blatant elbow was missed.
It was almost the seventh time the charm for Rochester was on the man’s advantage, but Mason Jobst’s effort crashed off the crossbar and away to safety with eight seconds remaining.
Overtime
It was a disastrous start to overtime for the Marlies, who were under the pump for 30 seconds. After losing the initial faceoff, Toronto twice turned over possession and looked set for another overtime loss.
Rochester was their own worst enemy as Nylander picked off a cross-slot pass to set in motion one of the longest breakaways I’ve seen.
An emphatic finish past Sandstrom’s glove hand sent the home crowd wild and enabled Toronto to break its overtime curse.
Post Game Notes
– Toronto has incurred the fewest regulation losses (one) this season in the league, but four OT/SO defeats have seen them slip down the standings. They are currently third in the North Division with an 8-1-4 record.
– After seven successful kills, the penalty kill is back over 90%. The procession to the penalty box is a concern that must be addressed sooner rather than later.
– Besides a restricted-area, delay-of-game penalty, Artur Akhtyamov produced another performance full of promise. Undoubtedly, Toronto would have lost in regulation but for the Russian netminder, who turned aside 30 shots for his fifth victory of the season. His .926 save percentage ranks 12th in the AHL and second among rookies.
“[Akhtyamov] is competitive, for one,” said Gruden. “He is square to the puck and quick. There is a lot to like… He reminds me a lot of Sorokin when I had him with the Islanders — very quick side-to-side and athletic, quick. It is always an adjustment coming over to play a North American game with more traffic, but he is handling it well. We wouldn’t have won the game without him.”
– Ryan Tverberg broke a six-game pointless streak with the secondary helper on the regulation goal. The sophomore season is always going to be tougher, as opponents know what you’re about, but I’ve really liked Tverberg’s last four performances.
“[Tverberg] can make plays in tight spots, and he made a really nice play to Shaw,” said Gruden. “He can skate. We have been playing with lines a little bit to see what works, and he has taken advantage of it.”
– Another player breaking a slump is Alex Nylander. After seven games without a goal, he showed a ton of composure and confidence to score the winner. As opposed to Tverberg, I don’t think Nylander’s performances have been up to scratch after a hot start, and he’s been outshone by his two rookie linemates, who have both been recalled as the injuries pile up for the Maple Leafs.
“I think it should propel [Nylander] to hopefully start stringing some good games together,” said Gruden. “I really liked his game, so I am glad he got rewarded. He was much better hounding pucks and stopping and starting.”
– Sunday’s lineup:
Forwards
Abruzzese – Shaw – Tverberg
Grebenkin – Minten – Nylander
Hirvonen – Quillan – Mastrosimone
Solow – Kressler
Defensemen
Webber – Benning
Rifai – Myers
Kokkonen – Niemelä
Villeneuve
Goaltenders
Akhtyamov
Hildeby
