“We just played simple and got back to our game: Playing hard, fast, getting pucks in, and doing all the little things we need to do to play a full 60 [minutes].”
– Matthew Barbolini on the Marlies‘ keys to victory
“The puck moves faster than anything, but when guys are in the right spot and willing to understand when to make a play and when to put it in, it makes it hard on the opposition, especially if you set that tone early. I thought we did a good job of that in the first 20 minutes.”
– John Gruden
As John Gruden alluded to above, the Toronto Marlies set the tone early against Manitoba with an aggressive, fast-paced game. The Marlies had the Moose on the ropes through the opening period and could quickly have taken the game away from them on the scoreboard.
The new-look third line — Nikita Grebenkin, Jacob Quillan, and Matthew Barbolini — was easily Toronto’s most potent offensive threat throughout the game.
First Period
If Toronto took more of their high-quality scoring chances in the opening frame, the game might have been over as a contest through 20 minutes.
Logan Shaw and Nick Abruzzese spurned Grade-A scoring chances inside the opening 90 seconds as the Marlies tore through the Moose defense.
The Marlies deservedly broke the deadlock with five minutes on the clock.
Grebenkin led the way by driving inside to generate scoring opportunities. After a nice pass from Matt Benning to the back post, Jacob Quillan followed suit, causing carnage in the slot, and the puck fell kindly for Matthew Barbolini to finish off the rebound for his first professional goal.
The Moose were reeling, but a power play afforded them some breathing room, at least for a short while. Despite relentless zone pressure, Toronto’s penalty kill stood firm, conceding just a single shot.
Quillan then delivered a dagger to the hearts of the Moose with a wonderful shorthanded tally. In the defensive zone, Quillan poke-checked a loose puck away from Mason Shaw and outbattled Dylan Anhorn at the blue line to create a breakaway. The centerman showed courage as he cut across the crease from right to left, producing a deft finish for the first shorthanded goal of his career.
The Marlies power play went to work inside the final five minutes. Despite not producing a goal, there were some promising signs, and it certainly wasn’t the momentum killer it had been in recent outings.
The Marlies almost struck within seconds of five-on-five action resuming. Ryan Tverberg and Zach Solow combined, but the latter couldn’t force the puck behind Kaapo Kähkönen from close range.
Second Period
Toronto started the middle frame strongly but couldn’t generate the same quality of scoring chances as in the first period.
Quillan went close to scoring a second goal, but his redirect and follow-up effort were both blocked.
The Marlies killed a second penalty with another solid kill but fell asleep at five-on-five, losing their way for a few shifts.
Shaw fired wide of the target when left unattended in the slot before Manitoba caught Toronto in transition, and Dylan Coghlan forced Matt Murray into a good save.
The Marlies settled down after those two scares and easily saw off a third Manitoba power play without giving up any quality scoring chances.
With the period meandering to a close, a fight broke out between Mark Liwiski and Zach Solow. Liwiski was likely trying to fire up his struggling team and the home crowd, but Solow landed more punches and the takedown.
The scrap appeared to inspire Toronto more than Manitoba. A one-time slapshot from Topi Niemelä created a juicy rebound that Quillan couldn’t corral with the net at his mercy.
In the dying seconds, Shaw was denied by Kähkönen from the slot. The rebound fell to Steeves, who hurriedly got off his shot as the intermission horn sounded, but the puck drifted wide of the post.
Third Period
The Marlies dodged some bullets early in the period, mostly of their own making.
Mnaiutoba’s speed is threatening in transition, and they showed an example 30 seconds into the final frame. Murray produced a flying glove save to rob Coghlan and prevent the Moose from establishing a foothold in the game.
A turnover from Marshall Rifai in the Moose zone resulted in a similar play, but Murray stepped up to the plate again, stopping Parker Ford on this occasion.
From then on, the Marlies did a good job of shutting the game down, demonstrating the calibre of game management that led to so much success early in the season.
Murray was called on to make only five saves in the following 12 minutes as Toronto stifled a Manitoba comeback attempt.
The Moose were forced into going for broke early, opting for an extra attacker with 3:33 remaining. Despite losing a defensive-zone draw, Toronto’s relentless work rate was rewarded. Rifai and Solow won individual puck battles, releasing Barbolini down the right side, where he took the team-first option of teeing up Tverberg to score into the vacated net.
Post Game Notes
– This was Toronto’s fifth shutout of the season and second on the road. Toronto is 10-2-0-1 when scoring first and 5-1-0-0 when scoring a shorthanded goal.
– It’s somewhat fitting that Matt Murray’s 23-save shutout victory was his 200th career professional win (NHL: 147-87-24, AHL: 53-27-8). It wasn’t a busy evening, but he produced clutch saves at key times. Murray is now 6-4-2 with a 1.89 goals-against average and a .925 save percentage.
– Matthew Barbolini scored his first professional goal to cap off a strong performance. His physical presence and efforts on the forecheck created turnovers and space for his linemates when driving to the net.
– Jacob Quillan registered the first multi-point (1G/1A) game of his professional career and led the line superbly with Barbolini and Grebenkin on either flank. He recorded a season-high five shots, indicative of his desire to drive to the dirty areas.
– He may not have registered a point or a shot, but Nikita Grebenkin produced a mature performance. The Russian forward performed more of a playmaking role, often pulling up and surveying for options when the situation allowed for it. His unpredictability made him hard to defend, and it didn’t come at the detriment of his physical play.
“[Grebenkin – Quillan – Barbolini] were the drivers,” said Gruden. “They can skate. They’re strong. They continue to gain more and more confidence. Every time you score pretty early in the game, it always seems to give you more confidence and jump. It definitely did. It was a huge bright spot for us.”
– Friday’s lineup:
Forwards
Abruzzese – Shaw – Nylander
Clifford – Paré – Steeves
Grebenkin – Quillan – Barbolini
Mastrosimone – Tverberg – Solow
Defensemen
Mermis – Villeneuve
Rifai- Niemelä
Webber – Benning
Goaltenders
Murray
Peksa
