“It was one of our better games, I thought. Over 60 minutes, we did a lot of good things. We were better tonight than we were in Game 1. We have to bottle up a lot of what we did there and use it. We have to realize that, at the end of the day, it will still be a grind. We don’t expect anything else. We know how good this team is. But I think we did a lot of good things that we can show regarding how we had success tonight. That will be important.”

– John Gruden

Game 2 was a truly captivating, low-scoring playoff game. Both the Toronto Marlies and Wilkes-Barre/Scranton generated periods of control but were frustrated by the brilliance of the two young Russian goaltenders, who combined for 70 saves. Overall, the Marlies produced arguably their best performance of the playoffs to date and once more found a way to win.

First Period

In a game of small margins, the Marlies dodged an early bullet. Cédric Paré turned the puck over in the slot and took a hooking penalty, but a fantastic shift from Ryan Tverberg nullified the power play, drawing a penalty as he looked set to create a 2v1. On Toronto’s shortened power play, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton almost scored shorthanded; Joona Koppanen forced Artur Akhtyamov into a top-drawer save to keep the game scoreless.

The new-look third line, Sim – Haymes – Tverberg, found chemistry in the opening frame, generating a pair of chances that Tverberg was unable to bury.

Paré should have done better with time and space in the high slot, sending a shot into the chest of Sergei Murashov, who continued to frustrate Toronto. Alex Nylander and Jacob Quillan combined to nearly tee up Bo Groulx from point-blank range, but a fantastic poke-check took the chance away.

The Marlies broke through first with a beautifully worked power-play goal involving some good movement on and off the puck to open up a seam. Noah Chadwick and Nylander exchanged passes at the blue line, and then Nylander found Luke Haymes in the left circle before switching the zone. Haymes’ return pass to Nylander on the give-and-go was a thing of beauty, and Nylander buried it at the far post.

The Marlies finished the period strongly and might have cushioned the lead with some better finishing. It capped off one of the Marlies’ better first-period showings in this playoff run.

Second Period

Sublime goaltending at both ends kept the middle frame scoreless.

Ben Danford set the tone for Toronto with a piece of individual brilliance. The rookie defenseman beat two defenders at the blue line before driving low in the left circle, but he couldn’t solve Murashov. The Marlies threatened again through Nylander and Groulx, but neither could beat the Penguins’ netminder.

The ice was tilted in the Marlies’ favour for the first eight minutes, but WBS reversed the game’s flow and generated five high-danger scoring chances afterward. Akhtyamov stepped up as he has consistently done throughout the postseason, making particularly good saves on Ville Koivunen, Atley Calvert, and Aidan McDonough.

After surviving the barrage, the Marlies finished the period strongly and could easily have led by two or three heading into the intermission. More outstanding work from Danford set up Tverberg, but he never fully got the puck under control in behind the defense. Landon Sim was stopped from the slot, as was Tverberg on a strong drive to the net, as the new third line continued to cause havoc.

Third Period

Some stout defense from the Marlies generated a breakaway for Tverberg five minutes into the third period, but Murashov prevailed again with a stellar save. WBS tied the game up three minutes later.

A wild shot rang off the boards, allowing WBS to attack in transition, and the Marlies were never able to reset, caught chasing the puck in the defensive zone. Chase Pietila’s shot generated a rebound that Tanner Howe seized and spun on, sending the puck low through traffic in the crease and into the net.

Akhtyamov kept the game tied with four saves of note, denying Howe a second goal on three occasions. The Marlies generated the higher-danger scoring chances late in regulation, though. Murashov rejected both Reese Johnson (partial breakaway) and Tverberg (breakaway). 

Overtime

The Penguins brought their A game in the extra frame, taking the game by the scruff of the neck as the Marlies hung on by a thread. Akhtyamov simply took his game to a new level. After a sharp save on Avery Hayes less than a minute in, the Russian netminder pulled off a world-class double stop to rob Koivunen from point-blank range. In between times, Danford made an incredible sweeping defensive play to break up a potential 2v1.

The Marlies’ pushback started with their top line. Logan Shaw recovered possession on the forecheck and teed up Vinni Lettieri, who whiffed on his customary one-timer, but he got enough of the puck to turn it into a pass back to Shaw, who couldn’t bury from close range.

After several other good looks, the Marlies won the game on a controversial goal that has divided opinion in the aftermath. An odd lofted pass/shot by Michael Pezzetta toward Marc Johnstone at the net front somehow found its way into the net. Initially waved off by the officials, a lengthy video review process ensued.

Sergei Murashov made a strange decision to come out and take a swing at the puck with his blocker, and he had his stick way above his head during the play. It appeared as if the puck struck the goalie’s blocker or paddle and dropped into the net. Johnstone reached up to attempt to grab the puck, but he didn’t touch it. The Toronto forward was outside the blue paint when minimal contact was made with the goalie.

Goaltender interference isn’t reviewable in the AHL and wasn’t called at the time. The purpose of the video review was to determine whether Johnstone handled the puck into the net. When it was clear he hadn’t touched the puck, a good goal was the ruling, and the Marlies’ bench emptied in celebration.

I’ll let you make your own minds up as to whether it was the right call, but it looks like a good goal to me. From my vantage point, Murashev’s strange decision to leap out and punch at the puck with his blocker is ultimately all WBS has to blame here.

Post Game Notes

– Michael Pezzetta scoring consecutive game-winning goals not on my bingo card heading into this series. He’s certainly a gamer, and the fourth line had itself another tremendous game.

– Artur Akhtyamov remains a rock between the pipes. A 33-save performance boosts his playoff save percentage to .928. He kept his composure in a more rough-and-tumble game, while his opposite number lost his cool a couple of times. Less than a minute before the game-winner, when he was involved in a lengthy conversation with an official.

– I cannot speak highly enough of Ben Danford and his Game 2 performance, highlighted by the defensive play in OT to break up a potential 2v1 and a couple of chances generated offensively. It’s quickly become easy to forget this is not only a rookie but a kid fresh out of junior. His teammates deservedly awarded him the belt after the game.

– Landon Sim once again added a notable spark when inserted into the lineup, this time on a line with Haymes and Tverberg. The trio was excellent all night long and generated a host of Grade-A scoring chances.

– Back in the lineup after missing Game 1, Bo Groulx looked more like his old self and was more of a threat offensively while impacting the game positively at both ends of the ice.

– Kudos to Alex Nylander for creating the power-play goal out of nothing to give the Marlies the all-important first goal. Luke Haymes‘ return pass on the play was a really nice piece of vision and skill as well.

– John Gruden, on Easton Cowan’s status: “He had an upper-body (injury). He has been dealing with something. It is a maintenance thing. Again, we just want to make sure that he is healthy, number one, and is okay moving forward. If it is something that is minor, he’ll take care of it. When he is ready, he is ready. If he is not, he won’t go until he is.”

– The Marlies went 1-for-1 on the penalty kill and 1-for-2 on the power play while outshooting Wilkes-Barre/Scranton 39-34. Toronto now takes a 2-0 lead home for Games 3, 4, and 5 (if required) in Toronto.

– Game 2 lineup:

Forwards
Paré – Shaw – Lettieri
Groulx – Quillan – Nylander
Sim – Haymes – Tverberg
Pezzetta – Johnstone – Johnson

Defensemen
Thrun – Rifai
Mermis – Villeneuve
Chadwick – Danford

Goalies
Akhtyamov
Hildeby

Extended Game 2 Highlights: Marlies 2 vs. Penguins 1 (OT)

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