“Not good enough. We are paid professionals. It’s our job to be ready to go, and I thought we got outworked for the most part. Every guy needs to look in the mirror and be better. It should be visible from the drop of the puck tomorrow that we’re not happy with the way things were tonight.”
– Alex Steeves
“[Laval] were all over us. We had no answer until [a few minutes] into the second period. Other than Steeves’ shorthanded goal, we weren’t ready to go. I’ll take responsibility for that. We were chasing the whole night. We gave them everything as far as their chances.”
– John Gruden
Those were brutally honest assessments from the Marlies‘ best player and head coach following an unacceptable performance on home ice against Laval on Friday night. As well as the Rocket played, the Marlies were guilty of countless individual mistakes, poor defensive coverage, and a second-best work ethic.
First Period
From the opening puck drop, Laval dictated the pace of play. Toronto was frequently scrambling in the defensive zone, and it was no surprise that the Marlies took the game’s first penalty. A superb block by Cade Webber denied Joshua Roy a power-play goal, as Toronto almost paid for a giveaway on the PK.
Defensive-zone turnovers kept handing momentum to Laval, who required no second invitation to pile on the pressure. Dennis Hildey pulled off six quality saves to turn aside Laurent Dauphin, Filip Mešár, Sean Farrell, and Rafaël Harvey-Pinard as the ice remained firmly tilted against the Marlies. Even Kyle Clifford winning a fight did nothing to change the momentum, nor did killing off a second penalty.
The opening goal arrived inside the final five minutes after another Toronto giveaway. Matt Benning was the guilty party this time, and Farrell beat Hildeby’s short-side.
The Marlies again found themselves on the PK, but at least there was something to smile about. Mikko Kokkonen sprung Alex Steeves on a breakaway, and the crowd rose to its feet in anticipation of witnessing franchise history. Steeves beat Cayden Primeau to become the Toronto Marlies’ all-time leading goal scorer with his 95th career goal.
Timed at 17:42, the goal was Toronto’s first recorded shot of the game.
Laval quickly restored the lead on the same power play. Jared Davidson’s shot took a wicked deflection off a shinpad, giving Hildeby no chance.
Second Period
Whatever was said in the Marlies’ room during the first intermission did not produce the desired effect.
Laval doubled their advantage at the 3:30 mark. After a lost puck battle on the end boards, multiple Marlies didn’t react quickly enough to pick up Farrell, who sniped a one-time shot by Hildeby.
The fourth line breathed some life into Toronto at the seven-minute mark. A chipped pass by Matthew Barbolini allowed Ryan Tverberg to escape down the left wing. After cutting inside a sprawling defender, Tverberg drove across the crease and showed excellent patience before slotting home with a bunch of traffic in front of Primeau.
Hildeby was called on to make a good save on Gustav Lindström as Toronto almost gave the goal back with another giveaway.
It mattered little as Toronto delivered another gift to Laval seconds later. This time, a bad line change left the Marlies shorthanded, and Florian Xhekaj sent Farrell in alone on Hildeby for his first AHL hat trick.
Cade Webber dropped the gloves with Jared Davidson and hung tough in the first fight of his professional career. It did nothing to spark the Marlies, who could not sustain any offensive-zone time.
There was a Toronto scoring chance late in the frame, but Zach Solow couldn’t beat Primeau’s glove hand on a similar play to Tverberg’s goal.
Third Period
Toronto registered 13 shots in the final frame, equalling the total they mustered through the opening 40 minutes. The Marlies generated three Grade-A scoring chances, but Jacob Quillan, Joseph Blandisi, and Zach Solow could not bury them.
Barring those opportunities, Laval shut the game down effortlessly. It’s easy to see why they lead the North Division with their defensive, opportunistic brand of hockey. The Marlies fed right into it.
Toronto created some good looks late in the game with Hildeby on the bench, but Primeau was never troubled. Lucas Condotta sealed the deal with an empty-net goal to rub salt into the wound.
Post Game Notes
– The Marlies have now lost five consecutive home games, outscored 20-8 in the process.
– With his 26th goal of the season in just his 35th game, Alex Steeves is now the Toronto Marlies’ all-time goals leader. He scored his 95th goal in his 223rd AHL game, overtaking former Captain Ryan Hamilton. Hamilton recorded his final goal for Toronto on Mar. 19, 2013. He played four seasons in Toronto (222 GP).
“A great individual accomplishment, but I am sure [Steeves] would be the first guy to say he would take it back any day for a win,” said Gruden. “That is the type of teammate he has turned out to be.”
– Matt Benning skated in his 500th professional game. He has appeared in 464 NHL games with Edmonton, Nashville, and San Jose, as well as 36 AHL games with Bakersfield and Toronto.
– A third goal of the season for Ryan Tverberg will boost his confidence. It was more than the goal, though, as he drove one of Toronto’s better forward trios down on the fourth line.
“It was a nice play,” said Gruden. “We had a good entry with the 2-on-1. [Tverberg] made a nice move, and with time and space, he was able to bury it. It’s a positive moving forward. Good to see him get on the scoreboard.”
– Friday’s lineup:
Forwards
Hirvonen – Shaw – Steeves
Abruzzese – Blandisi – Nylander
Clifford – Quillan – Paré
Barbolini – Tverberg – Solow
Defensemen
Webber – Benning
Kokkonen – Villeneuve
Rifai – Niemelä
Goaltenders
Akhtyamov
Hildeby
