“I thought it was a carbon copy of the first game. 10 minutes they dominated, 10 minutes we dominated, and at the end of the day, they got it done in overtime. I’m proud of the guys for the way they battled back in the third period twice to tie both games up. I loved their effort, I loved how they came back, and I feel for them.”
– John Gruden
“I’m proud of our guys. All season, we didn’t quit. We fought until the end every night. There are a lot of guys in there that may never play for the Marlies ever again, but a lot of them I’ll call my best friends forever.”
– Logan Shaw
It was an all-too-familiar end for the Toronto Marlies, who found a way to lose to their arch nemesis in another game they should have won. He wasn’t the only player distraught on the ice after the game, but Nick Abruzzese was visibly shattered by how this season came to a shuddering halt.
There was a distinct feeling of finality to the last post-game presser of the 2024-25 season. This is not unsurprising as 19 members of the current roster are free agents this summer, presenting Brad Treliving with the opportunity to greatly shake it up and mould the farm team in his image.
First Period
Cleveland couldn’t build a sizeable lead despite dominating the first 12 minutes of a fast-paced opening frame. The Monsters feasted on turnovers and defensive breakdowns but couldn’t get the puck by Matt Murray. Murray stonewalled Roman Ahcan, Rocco Grimaldi, Trey-Fix Wolanskey, Gavin Brindley, and Mikael Pyyhtiä as the Marlies leaned on their veteran goaltender.
Against the run of play, Toronto struck with five minutes remaining. Topi Niemelä was the architect, driving through the neutral zone and across the blue line on the right side. After a give-and-go with Roni Hirvonen, Niemelä found Zach Solow at the back post, where Solow delivered a one-time finish.
The Marlies came within a whisker of doubling their lead from the restart. After a marauding drive by Matthew Barbolini, his shot snuck through Jet Greaves. Nick Abruzzese touched the puck toward the net but couldn’t get full contact, and Greaves reached back to grab the puck before the winger could finish it off.
Second Period
The middle frame was a wild affair that ended badly for Toronto after a bright start.
After two good saves from Matt Murray, Solow struck again. A strong forecheck down low resulted in a giveaway by James Malatesta, and Niemelä was the grateful recipient at the point. The Finnish defenseman’s feed into the slot was finished off by Zach Solow’s clinical one-timer.
The Marlies were on top for the first time in the game and ran riot for the next three minutes. A Barbolini shot took a wicked deflection, but Greaves made a desperation left pad save. Greaves made two more key saves, robbing a frustrated Robert Mastrosimone, who feasted on consecutive turnovers by the Monsters without finding the back of the net.
After that surge of momentum and a two-goal lead, Toronto handed Cleveland a lifeline with some awful defensive-zone play. An inability to clear the zone after some pressure down low led to a breakdown. After closing down the point, Joseph Blandisi looped out of the zone and got caught out of position. Solow got a partial block on the initial shot, and Hirvonen couldn’t scramble across to stop Hunter McKown scoring from between the circles.
After not calling a penalty through 29 minutes despite some obvious opportunities, the officials decided it was time to blow the whistle on Reese Johnson for one of the least nefarious interference calls you’ll see in a playoff game. Toronto responded with an excellent penalty kill and almost scored shorthanded; Mastrosimone intercepted a pass to create a 2v1 rush and found Luke Haymes out front, but the rookie sent his effort narrowly wide.
The Marlies let themselves down with some poor game management in the last five minutes. McKown cleanly won a faceoff on the right dot back to Denton Mateychuk, and Grimaldi was left wide open in the left circle to rip a one-time shot by Murray.
Luca Del Bel Belluz was the beneficiary of another defensive breakdown and would have been disappointed not to beat Murray from point-blank range. It mattered not as the Monsters received a dollop of help from the officials to secure a 3-2 lead.
Marshall Rifai was slew-footed inside the Marlies’ blue line and couldn’t get back into the play, and Denton Mateychuk fired a stoppable shot low through Murray to put his team ahead for the first time in the game.
Third Period
The Marlies roared out of the gates with their season on the line. Alex Steeves went so close with an individual drive to the net, and Hirvonen ripped a shot off the crossbar.
Mastrosimone was producing the performance of his life, although he couldn’t capitalize on a breakaway. The officials ruled that he had been impeded and awarded a penalty shot. It was about the only debatable officiating decision Toronto benefited from. Mastrosimone composed himself and delivered a brilliant finish to tie the game at 3-3.
The Marlies killed off a second penalty with a bend-not-break mentality. Matt Benning and Logan Shaw made vital shot blocks and cleared pucks from the slot as Toronto supported their netminder.
The Marlies generated three chances of note to win the game in regulation. Jacob Quillan should have done more with two chances from the high slot, while Mastrosimone didn’t hit the net after some sharp puck movement cut Cleveland open.
Murray produced two excellent saves to send the game to overtime, turning aside Del Bel Belluz and McKown.
Overtime/Shootout
A big early save by Murray to rob Grimaldi inspired Toronto after Cleveland dominated the first seven minutes of the extra frame.
The Marlies fired 11 shots in the first overtime period, with eight of those Grade-A chances. Mastrosimone was again leading from the front and nearly scored the goal of his career. After dangling his way past three defenders, Mastrosimone fired wide of the post with just Greaves to beat.
Down to 11 forwards due to Alex Nylander’s injury in the first period, Toronto began to wilt late in the frame but held on to force double overtime.
Cleveland took a stranglehold in the game’s fifth room. Toronto opted to sit back and look to counter when the opportunity presented itself. Inevitably, the one chance for Toronto fell to Mastrosimone. Greaves turned him aside and wasn’t otherwise troubled.
Triple overtime looked in the cards until the Monsters struck with 55 seconds remaining. A tired defensive effort saw Cleveland win possession on the wall, with Barbolini undercut by a pinching defenseman down the boards, and Malatesta capitalized on the feed out front with a one-time shot short-side past Murray.
It was an anticlimactic finish to a series for the home crowd. Overall, Cleveland won all the big moments and deserved to progress. For Toronto, it was a case of what might have been against their biggest nemesis in the North Division.
Post Game Notes
Writing meaningful player notes would feel hollow given the circumstances. So, to wrap up the season, I’d first like to thank Alec, as he edits all these game recaps and other articles I produce. It remains an honour and privilege to write for MLHS.
And to you, the reader. Thank you for reading. Your support, comments, and engagement mean the world. I will take a break here, but I have some future articles in mind. If there are any topics or players you would like covered, please leave a comment below.
Until then, stay safe, and Go Leafs Go!
– Game 2 lineup:
Forwards
Abruzzese – Shaw – Nylander
Mastrosimone – Quillan – Steeves
Hirvonen – Blandisi – Solow
Barbolini – Haymes – Johnson
Defensemen
Kokkonen – Benning
Rifai – Villeneuve
Webber – Niemelä
Goaltenders
Murray
Hildeby
