“We have no time to feel sorry for ourselves. We have to get right back after it. We have to find ways to play with the lead because chasing is a tough thing to do, especially at this time of the year.”
– John Gruden
The Toronto Marlies‘ struggles against North Division rivals continued in this ill-tempered loss against Belleville. The Marlies came from behind twice in the first period and should have gone on to win the game comfortably. Instead, John Gruden’s men found another way to lose a tight hockey game.
First Period
The Marlies were on their heels early after another slow start and were fortunate not to concede inside two minutes. A Dakota Mermis mistake at the Belleville blue line resulted in Dennis Hildeby robbing Tyler Boucher on a breakaway.
On his first shift wearing a Marlies uniform, Brandon Baddock was tabbed for charging, sending Toronto’s PK to work less than a minute later. Stephen Halliday struck the iron from point-blank range, but Belleville didn’t have to wait long to break through. Baddock had barely exited the box and returned to the action when Mermis had another brain fart moment, allowing Jan Jenik to walk out from below the goal line into the slot area and score.
Toronto responded positively, but Baddock, Ryan Tverberg, and Nick Abruzzese couldn’t capitalize on Grade-A chances.
The Marlies tied the game on their first power play. The lead-up to the tying tally wasn’t textbook by any means, but Jacob Quillan delivered a deft finish on a beautiful feed from Abruzzese.
As they have many times this season, Toronto gave up a quick goal after scoring. Nicolas Mattinen’s consecutive defensive-zone giveaways started the Marlies’ undoing. Hildeby made one excellent save on Angus Crookshank but couldn’t repeat the feat when the same player had an almost identical chance.
Toronto couldn’t make it two-for-two on the power play but struck during 4v4 action late in the frame. The teams exchanged chances off the rush as Hildeby denied Wyatt Wylie on a partial breakaway while William Villeneuve struck the post at the other end. Abruzzese then made Belleville pay for some sloppy coverage as he split the Senators’ defense before delivering a cross-slot pass. The puck found the net via the right skate of Topi Niemelä, who was long overdue for his first goal of the season.
Second Period
Penalties and missed opportunities were the themes of the middle frame.
Toronto began the period with 1:59 remaining on a power play. Tverberg couldn’t bury the only chance of note, and the Marlies were fortunate not to give up a shorthanded tally. Hildeby produced another top-notch save to turn aside Zack MacEwen.
Hildeby kept the game tied with another excellent save during 4v4 play. Wylie was turned aside as the trailer on a swift transition play, and Toronto’s netminder wasn’t happy with the officials after he was run on the same play. It wasn’t the first time Belleville stormed through the blue paint without enough pushback, and it wasn’t the last.
The turning point of the game arrived just before the midway mark. Alex Steeves was the victim of interference as he attempted to clear the zone, and a scrum ensued. Steeves ended up in the box, and so did three Belleville players, with one penalty assessed for abuse of officials.
With a 5v3 power play for a full two minutes, Toronto did not apply enough concerted pressure on the Senators’ PK. Leevi Meriläinen comfortably handled all five shots with little traffic in front to throw him off.
Inevitably, Belleville drew inspiration and momentum from the kill and scored with five minutes remaining. A floated wrist shot from Hayden Hodgson hit Wylie parked out front, and the puck dipped and bounced through Hildeby’s pads.
Toronto generated two Grade-A chances to tie the game for a third time. Neither Cedric Paré nor Reese Johnson could seize on opportunities as the Marlies trailed 3-2 through 40 minutes.
Third Period
Toronto enjoyed long spells camped inside the Belleville without turning the puck domination into high-quality scoring chances. The Marlies didn’t generate enough traffic in front of Meriläinen, rendering point shots almost useless.
Hildeby had to make five outstanding saves at the other end in the opening seven minutes to keep the Marlies within a goal. When Belleville finally defeated the netminder, Keean Washkurak’s effort rang off the crossbar.
Through 19 minutes, the only quality scoring chance Toronto generated fell to Blandisi, who couldn’t provide the killer finish.
As tempers frayed late in the game, Wylie took a cross-checking penalty and saw his night prematurely end after abusing the officials. The result was Toronto playing the remaining time with a 6v4 advantage. With 19 seconds remaining, it appeared that Paré had at least forced overtime by scoring on his own rebound from point-blank range.
The goal was waved off because Meriläinen kicked the net off its moorings. Although Paré’s initial shot was saved, the puck appeared to be spinning back toward the net and may have crossed the goal line had it not been batted in.
The Marlies felt hard done by, but this was a game they should have won in regulation rather than scrambling to secure a point.
Post Game Notes
– Nick Abruzzese had just one point in his last eight games before this outing. He registered two primary assists, the Marlies need him to find offensive consistency down the stretch.
– Jacob Quillan recorded his fifth goal in his last eight games and now has 14 in 55 games this rookie season.
– This was an interesting Toronto debut for Brandon Baddock. It began with a bad penalty but got better from there. He was solid on the forecheck and brought some physicality to the fourth line. He helped create space for Ryan Tverberg to generate scoring chances alongside Sam Stevens.
– Dennis Hildeby likely won’t be happy with his part in goals two and three. Aside from those, this game would have been a blowout loss, given how many quality scoring chances Belleville generated.
– Friday’s lineup:
Forwards
Paré – Shaw – Abruzzese
Nylander – Quillan – Steeves
Barbolini – Blandisi – Johnson
Baddock – Stevens – Tverberg
Defensemen
Mermis – Villeneuve
Rifai – Niemelä
Miller – Mattinen
Goaltenders
Hildeby
Akhtyamov
