Barberio, Mark

Beasts of the East.

SPR-0
SYR-3

Cedrick Desjardin (pictured) raised shields for a 26 save shutout.

First Period
NO SCORING

Second Period
NO SCORING

Third Period
SYR Barberio, (8) (Labrie, Connolly), 4:37
SYR Labrie, (10) (Cote, Wyman), 12:35
SYR Brown, (7) (Tyrell, Cote), 19:33 (EN)

Desjardins, Mark Barberio, and Pierre-Cedric Labrie were the game's three stars. J.T. Brown returned from injury and had an empty net goal in his first game back.

Syracuse came into this game 1 point ahead of Springfield for the top spot in the Eastern Conference. This was a battle of titans with a lot on the line, and ultimately Syracuse smoked the Falcons like a fine cigar. Mind you, Springfield netminder Allen York made it interesting, but Syracuse outshot Springfield 46-26 in this game, including 17-8 in the decisive final frame. That was a 1 versus 2 game. Think on that. Then think on the fact that the Crunch have won 6 in a row.

Uh oh, rest of the AHL. Jon Cooper sorted out the post-lockout madness. Jon Cooper has started to tune up the machine again. We've seen this movie before, folks, and we all remember how it ends.

Syracuse draws Connecticut next tomorrow afternoon.

Box score from TheAHL.com.

By Jeremy Houghtaling

The Syracuse Crunch's recent slide is the result of a myriad of factors.

After losing two straight games and six of their last seven, it is impossible for the Crunch to pinpoint one specific problem. With a little bit of everything to blame, the answers range from a mix of bad luck and tough opposition in net to defensive lapses and a lack of scoring.

“We just haven’t been playing the way we want to play,” said Crunch forward Tyler Johnson.

The Crunch hopes to remedy one of those problems, an absence of offense, by combining their top three point-scorers on the same line. With Tampa Bay Lightning prospects Johnson, Alex Killorn, and Brett Connolly practicing on the same unit, Syracuse hopes it becomes the team's slump-buster when Albany and Adirondack visit the Onondaga County War Memorial on Friday and Saturday.

By Jeremy Houghtaling

It was a night of firsts for the Syracuse Crunch.

Vladislav Namestnikov notched his first professional goal and Cory Conacher registered his first Gordie Howe hat trick Saturday at the Onondaga County War Memorial.

But unfortunately for the Crunch, the firsts didn't stop there.

The St. John's IceCaps registered their first victory of the year after trailing at the first intermission, as the Crunch blew a 4-0 lead in a 5-4 overtime loss.

"I wish I was a little happier about it," Conacher said of his achievement. "Maybe sometime down the road I can get it and get a victory out of it, too."

By Jeremy Houghtaling

As the Syracuse Crunch took the ice for warmups, they looked across the ice at something that gave them a range of emotions.

It was different. It was weird. It was somewhat-familiar.

It was the same bright blue, yellow and red Norfolk Admirals uniforms that most of the team wore last year during their amazing winning streak and ensuing run to the Calder Cup championship.

"You step out and you're skating around and you see them coming out of their lockerroom, and you're like 'Jeez, those jerseys look pretty familiar,'" Crunch defenseman Mark Barberio said. "After that, it comes down to you're playing hockey and they're the opposition."

Syracuse, the new affiliate of the Tampa Bay Lightning, scored three power play goals in a 4-2 win over Norfolk, the former farm team, at the Onondaga County War Memorial Friday.

Wherein #89 reminds us he's the reigning league MVP...

SYR-5
BNG-3

Dustin Tokarski allowed 3 goals on 20 shots for the victory.

First Period
SYR Barberio, (5) (Conacher, Connolly), 18:54 (PP)

Second Period
SYR Conacher, (11) , 0:28
SYR Gudas, (3) (Wyman), 9:51
BNG Da Costa, (4) (Hoffman, Silfverberg), 11:07

Third Period
SYR Brown, (6) (Palat, Conacher), 1:02 (PP)
BNG Silfverberg, (12) (Jessiman, Benoit), 5:23 (PP)
BNG Pageau, (2) (Jessiman), 11:35
SYR Angelidis, (5) (Wyman), 19:15 (EN)

Cory Conacher (pictured) and Mark Barberio were the game's first and third stars. Conacher's been exceedingly quiet with just 1 goal and 4 points in the 10 games prior to tonight, but his 3 point outburst signals perhaps "The Honey Badger" (not the LSU variety that ends up in rehab) is ready to start hitting the scoresheet regularly again.

Hard to believe Alex Killorn didn't score a goal tonight. His streak snaps at 6 games, although he did have 5 shots on goal tonight.

Syracuse outshot Bingo a mind-numbing 44-20 in the game, including 29-9 through the first 40 minutes. Almost dominant.

And now, the moment that we knew was coming and have been dreading. Norfolk comes to town Friday night, and the Crunch will try to take down the franchise for which they staked a record-breaking winning streak that may never be equaled. Mixed emotions.

Box score from TheAHL.com.