1
0
Max Crozier take Syracuse one step closer to the postseason.
SYR-2
UTI-1 (OT)
Brandon Halverson allowed one goal on 23 shots for the victory.
First Period
11:36 SYR Groshev (6), (Allard, Angello)
Second Period
10:31 UTI Parent (15), (Schmelzer, Willman)
Third Period
NO SCORING
Overtime
0:38 SYR Crozier (9), (Sheary)
Crozier and Halverson were the game’s first and second stars.
I give a lot of credit to Utica. They had as bad a first month and half you can have to start their season and they’ve just about battled back to .500 on the year and have been a difficult out for the Crunch all year. But, I give even more credit to this Crunch team that looked like it was about to fall out of the playoff picture for playing with such urgency and focus over the last couple of months, and now they’re an eyelash from punching their ticket for the postseason and may finish as high as the third seed in the division. One of the kingpens of that surge has been Crozier, whose consistency has been remarkable from just after the Christmas break on. He has 8 goals and 30 points in his last 34 games and I am of the opinion he’s an NHL caliber player right now.
Lucas Mercuri made his AHL debut in Syracuse’s last game and tonight was Connor Kurth’s first taste of the pro game. Unfortunately, word also hit today that top Lightning prospect Isaac Howard’s camp is saber rattling about returning to Michigan State for his senior season with a view toward becoming a UFA in a year. I hope that’s just posturing in the midst of a contract negotiation, because if the Lightning can’t reel Howard into the boat and find themselves in a compromised leverage situation trying to trade his rights it’s going to be a painful fumble. No two ways about it. The Lightning simply haven’t had a homegrown high impact prospect like this in a while.
Syracuse cut its magic number to four points with the win. Unfortunately, both Belleville and Cleveland won tonight so they didn’t get any additional help. With five regular season games left, the Crunch have a scant one point edge on the Monsters, a three point advantage on the Toronto Marlies, and a seven point lead on Belleville (whose fall off the playoff bubble now seems inevitable).
Box score from TheAHL.com.
