“The first 10 minutes were the only time we weren’t happy with our game. They took it to us… They’re a desperate hockey team that has only won once in its last 10 games. We let them get out to that [2-0] lead, but I thought we did a lot of good things. We had a lot of good looks but were just not fortunate enough to put one in. We can take that and be happy about [the comeback], but we’re still not happy about the outcome.”
– John Gruden
The Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde dichotomy of the 2025-26 Toronto Marlies was no more evident than in their previous two games. After a comprehensive win over high-flying Syracuse, the Marlies put themselves in an early hole against a Rochester team mired in a nine-game losing streak. The Marlies gave up odd-man rushes to gift the Amerks a two-goal lead, spent too much time killing penalties, and weren’t clinical enough in the first 40 minutes.
First Period
After a sluggish, slow start notable only for a fight between Blake Smith and Kaleb Lawrence, the Marlies should have struck first. With 3:40 on the clock, Matt Benning sent Logan Shaw on a breakaway. With a rookie netminder to beat, Toronto’s captain found the glove hand of Scott Ratzlaff, who was playing in his eighth AHL game.
The Marlies were trailing two minutes later. After a miscommunication in the neutral zone, Dakota Mermis sat on the pass defending a 2v1, and Olivier Nadeau had all the time in the world to measure a shot into the far corner of the net.
After Cédric Paré (closing his hand on the puck) and Henry Thrun (high-sticking) took penalties, Dennis Hildeby played a huge part in both kills with excellent saves on Konsta Helenius and Trevor Kuntar.
It took until the final five minutes for the Marlies to generate a second high-danger chance. Ryan Tverberg cut across the crease from left to right but ran out of room when attempting to bank the puck in behind the netminder.
Tempers were frayed from the early stages of the game and boiled over in the final 30 seconds of the opening frame. Borya Valis and Carson Meyer were tabbed for offsetting roughing minor until a cheap shot by William Villeneuve in front of the officials landed him in the box — a brain-dead decision when down 1-0 on the road against one of the best power plays in the AHL.
Second Period
The Marlies killed off the remainder of Villeneuve’s penalty but quickly conceded a goal back at even-strength. Luke Haymes whiffed on a pass from Tverberg in the neutral zone, leading to a potential odd-man rush against. Thrun got back to negate the 2v1, but Helenius cut across the slot in front of Benning and ripped a stoppable shot against the grain past Hildeby.
Tverberg drew a penalty after the resumption of play as the Marlies searched for an immediate response. Two good looks for Shaw and Borya Valis passed Toronto by, as the power play didn’t convert. Back at five-on-five, Haymes couldn’t score five-hole on Ratzlaff, and Tverberg couldn’t bury on a breakaway. Brandon Baddock also didn’t find the net from the hashmarks as the opportunities kept slipping through the Marlies’ grasp.
Hildeby stepped up with a key save to rob Jagger Joshua on a breakaway as Rochester nearly scored a dagger third goal while shorthanded.
Just as they did in the first frame, Toronto finished the second period strongly. Tverberg hit the post flush with a shot on the spin. Some excellent work below the goal line resulted in a gilt-edge chance for Paré, but the Quebec native didn’t bear down, and the Amerks retained their 2-0 lead through 40 minutes.
Third Period
The Marlies began the third period by generating sustained pressure, with Matthew Barbolini in the middle of it. He escaped on a 2v1 and didn’t score but created a big rebound. Less than 60 seconds later, Barbolini broke through with a dart of a finish from the right faceoff dot after a good hustle and setup pass from Marc Johnstone.
17 minutes remained for Toronto to find a tying goal, but Rochester looked the likelier team to score next. Dennis Hildeby kept the Marlies in the game by turning aside five high-danger chances for Rochester, the best of which was a tremendous double save on Joshua from point-blank range.
The Marlies’ goaltender could only do so much, though, and was hung out to dry one too many times. With the Marlies scrambling, Vsevolod Komarov scored with a long-range shot back against the grain. With 3:45 remaining, the goal appeared to be the death knell for the Marlies.
However, after Hildeby headed for the bench inside the three-minute mark, the Marlies got one back at 6-on-5. Tverberg provided the redirect on a point shot by Villeunve to draw the Marlies within one.
The restart was scrappy until Johnstone launched the puck deep into the Rochester end. Johnstone raced after the dump-in and outmuscled a defender behind the Amerks’ goal. Paré swept the puck into the slot, where Barbolini tied the game with another quality finish.
Overtime
Once Nylander relinquished possession from the opening puck drop at three-on-three, the Marlies didn’t touch the puck again. Rochester lapped the zone looking for an opening until it arrived 80 seconds into the extra frame. Kuntar wristed a shot by Hildeby’s glove side with the help of a screen.
Post Game Notes
– The Marlies went 0-for-2 on the power play and 5-for-5 on the penalty kill. The Marlies are now 4-5 in overtime this season.
– Matthew Barbolini recorded the first multi-goal game of his AHL career. After hitting the net four times last season in 51 games, he’s doubled that number in the same number of appearances. Barbolini showed the quality finish touch that many of his teammates lacked in this game.
– Marc Johnstone recorded his 20th point (8G/12A) of the campaign (44 games) by registering a pair of assists. As he did during his last stint with the Marlies two years ago, Johnstone is providing some handy secondary scoring.
– Friday’s lineup:
Forwards
Paré – Shaw – Valis
Nylander – Haymes – Tverberg
Barbolini – Johnstone – King
Baddock – Kirwan
Defensemen
Thrun – Benning
Mermis – Villenueve
Smith – Chadwick
Sharpe
Goaltenders
Hildeby
Akhtyamov
