Crunch Outlast Belleville Senators, 2-1

SYRACUSE, N.Y. – The Syracuse Crunch outlasted the Belleville Senators to earn the win, 2-1, tonight at CAA Arena.  02-18 Recap

Syracuse jumped out to an early lead just over a minute into the first period, but Belleville tied the game at one with two minutes to play in the frame. The Crunch found the back of the net to make the score 2-1 at the close of the second period and maintained their lead through the final frame.

Four Crunch skaters saw the scoresheet tonight with a goal apiece from Mitchell Chaffee and Dylan Duke and assists added by Conor Geekie and Tristan Allard.

The Crunch advance to 29-16-3-1 on the season and 4-2-0-0 in the eight-game seasons series with the Senators.

Crunch goaltender Brandon Halverson earned the win putting a stop to 21-of-22 shots. Leevi Meriläinen turned aside 21-of-23 shots in net for the Senators. Syracuse was held scoreless on four power-play opportunities while keeping Belleville off the scoresheet on two man advantages.

The Crunch were on the board early with a goal from Mitchell Chaffee just 1:13 into the opening frame. Chaffee and Conor Geekie skated up the ice on a 2-on-1 and Geekie fed the puck from the right circle across the slot. Chaffee then connected with the pass and fired a one-timer home from the left circle. The Senators knotted the score with 1:52 remaining in the period as Scott Harrington potted a snapshot from the bottom of the right circle.

Syracuse regained a one-goal advantage with 10 seconds to play in the second period. Tristan Allard intercepted a pass at the red line and skated the puck into the offensive zone. He dished it over to the left circle for Dylan Duke to slide home under the pads of Meriläinen.

The score remained the same through the third period to give Syracuse the win.