“I thought we were opportunistic. I even told them after 40 minutes of play. Our special teams were outstanding, but we were giving up too many [high-danger scoring chances for Hartford]. We made some plays when we had to, and you’re going to have nights like this, but it’s not a recipe for success moving forward.
“At the end of the day, we’re at the point of the year where we have a lot of injuries, and new guys coming in, and we’re still doing a lot of good things. The special teams were definitely a plus, as was the goaltending.”
– John Gruden
Timely scoring, excellent goaltending, and a dominant special teams performance were the difference between victory and defeat for the Toronto Marlies against Hartford on Saturday. The Wolf Pack could consider themselves unfortunate to be trailing by three goals through 40 minutes after largely outplaying and out-chancing the Marlies.
First Period
Several misplays in the early stages led to transition opportunities in both directions, but a lack of quality in the final pass or shot meant neither goaltender was tested.
The Wolf Pack struck first with the first meaningful attack just inside the five-minute mark. After Artur Akhtyamov made consecutive right pad saves on Carey Terrance from point-blank range, William Villenueve didn’t make a solid play in a loose-puck battle before Bryce McConnell-Barker snagged it and found Scott Morrow in the right circle. With Toronto’s defenders collapsed below the dots, Morrow picked his spot into the far top corner of the net.
It took nearly seven minutes for Toronto to record a shot, and it was a nothing shot from the point by Chas Sharpe with no traffic.
Hartford’s head coach would not have been pleased by his team offering Toronto a route back into the game. Trey Fix-Wolansky took a bad hooking penalty with eight minutes remaining, and the Wolf Pack paid the price.
The Marlies‘ power play almost struck immediately but Ryan Tverberg couldn’t find the telling touch from close range on a great feed. Martin lost a skate blade as he slid across and screamed at the officials about the equipment malfunction, but play continued. The Marlies crashed the net with the goaltender struggling, and Logan Shaw applied the last touch to send the puck across the goal line, tying the game at 1-1.
Toronto responded in kind by handing the Wolf Pack a power play shortly after scoring. The Marlies‘ penalty kill held up, not allowing a shot and sustaining their impressive form from recent outings.
Second Period
The Marlies began the middle frame on a power play carrying over from the previous period, and they made it count inside 40 seconds. Haymes deftly redirected Villenuev’s point shot only to see the puck clang off the crossbar, but the rebound fell kindly for Shaw, who finished off a tap-in to give Toronto a 2-1 lead.
Riding the high of scoring early, the Marlies struck 24 seconds later. Haymes took a cross-ice pass in stride from Marc Johnstone down the right side. After a give-and-go with Henry Thrun, Haymes drove to the net untouched from the right side. Brimming with confidence since the Christmas break, Haymes made no mistake with his low finish.
Toronto didn’t build on a great start to the period, and Hartford scored to halve the deficit at the three-minute mark. Brody Lamb gained inside positioning on Dakota Mermis and scored with a body part rather than his stick on a feed off the wall from McConnell-Barker.
John Gruden was clearly unhappy as his group appeared content to play rope-a-dope hockey, inviting pressure from Hartford. The Wolf Pack recorded 18 shots in the middle frame, but they couldn’t solve Akhtyamov for a second time. The netminder stopped six high-danger chances, and the Marlies killed off two penalties to prevent a Hartford tying goal.
Against the run of play, the Marlies restored their two-goal lead at the 12-minute mark. Toronto turned defense into offense quickly, with Borya Valis providing the catalyst through the neutral zone. Outnumbered across the blue line, Valis spun and sent a reverse pass to Haymes, who was storming through the middle of the ice. Haymes’ quick shot produced a rebound off the pads of Martin, and Ben King was on hand to tap in his first goal for the Marlies.
Toronto doubled up once more in the period, netting 47 seconds later. A floated clearance by Alex Nylander sent his two forward linemates away on a 2v2. Shaw opted for a speculative shot, producing a looping rebound into the left circle. Tverberg’s backhand swat was a brilliant piece of hand-eye coordination, handcuffing the Wolf Pack netminder, who had now conceded four goals on 13 shots.
Third Period
The Marlies killed off three penalties in the first half of the final frame, including a delay-of-game by Cédric Paré and a questionable hooking infraction called on Dakota Mermis. Other than the penalties, Toronto produced an excellent third-period performance to snuff out any Hartford designs on a comeback.
Shaw, Haymes, and Mermis (on a breakaway) all had chances to extend the lead before a rookie got on the scoresheet. The goal was created by the man-mountain Brandon Baddock, whose hustle forced turnover in the offensive zone. Johnstone took control and found Baddock in the slot, where his attempted finish struck the base of the post. Following up was Landon Sim to score his first AHL goal with a tap-in. The enthusiastic celebrations spoke to Sim’s trying, injury-plagued first year as a professional, and his teammates were delighted for him.
The goal knocked the wind out of the Wolf Pack, but they did find a consolation prize by scoring with 63 seconds remaining. A point shot was tipped home from the slot, albeit with a major suspicion of offside. Thankfully, it mattered little as the Marlies picked up a big win to pull within one point of third-place Cleveland.
Post Game Notes
– The Marlies went 2-for-3 on the power play and 5-for-5 on the penalty kill. The PK continues its strong form, while the PP has chosen a good time to heat up.
– William Villeneuve recorded his 104th assist with the Toronto Marlies on Shaw’s second-period goal. With the assist, he becomes the franchise’s all-time assists leader among defensemen and now ranks sixth all-time among all Marlies skaters.
– Logan Shaw’s first goal saw him take second place among the Marlies’ all-time points scorers. With a three-point haul (2G/1A), Toronto’s captain is just two points away from overtaking Alex Steeves to become the Marlies’ all-time points leader.
– Ryan Tverberg is now enjoying the puck luck his recent form deserves. His goal was his fourth in five games and his seventh point in that span.
– It was a 36-save winning performance by Artur Akhtyamov, who continues to produce the goods on home ice this season. He outplayed his counterpart at the other end of the ice, and despite the three stars saying otherwise, he was probably Toronto’s first-star performer over the 60 minutes.
“[Akhtyamov] is doing a lot of good things,” said Gruden. “I am sure the contract helps him with some confidence as far as knowing he will be a part of this organization. For now, he is a big part of ours. I love his work ethic and what he brings to the table. He brings that calming influence, and the guys definitely have confidence when he is in the net.”
– Ben King and Landon Sim both scored their first goals as the Marlies produced some secondary scoring to back up the top six. King is a reliable player at this level who will probably sit out when the big guns return. Sim’s first AHL goal is a nice story for a player who has suffered injury problems this season. He has taken on the Michael Pezzetta role when the veteran has been called up, is willing to perform any task asked of him, and is obviously well-liked in the room.
“[Sim] is a hockey player, that’s for sure,” said Gruden. “He wants to be a good player. He has lots of energy. He is engaged at all times. You can see he has a little bit of scoring touch, too. He made a nice entry on a curl-and-drag where he got a lot of wood on it as well. He is a work-in-progress, but he has a huge upside.”
– Brandon Buhr’s debut wasn’t much to write home about. With the Marlies’ underwhelming play for large chunks of the game, the rookie wasn’t put in a position to succeed. He was a deer in headlights through the first period, as everything happened a step too quickly for him, but I don’t think that’s unexpected. On the defensive side, Buhr’s coverage was fine, and he didn’t turn the puck over inside the red line, as he attempted to make the high-percentage plays on breakouts. This was a steep learning curve, and I look forward to seeing how he responds in his second game.
– After three games without a point, Luke Haymes registered a three-point haul, including a goal and two primary assists. Embracing a more shoot-first mentality is working to his advantage.
– Matthew Barbolini didn’t return for the second period after a crash into the boards.
– Saturday’s lineup:
Forwards
Nylander – Shaw – Tverberg
Barbolini – Haymes – Valis
Sim – Paré – Buhr
Baddock – Johnstone – King
Defensemen
Mermis – Villenueve
Thrun – Sharpe
Smith – Chadwick
Goalies
Akhtyamov
Hildeby
