BRIDGEPORT, CONN. – Kristers Gudlevskis made 31 saves in his first shutout of the season as the Syracuse Crunch blanked the Bridgeport Sound Tigers, 4-0, tonight at the Webster Bank Arena.
Mike Blunden contributed two goals, while Philippe Paradis, Tanner Richard and Nikita Nesterov all recorded multi-point games as the Crunch improve to 9-6-2-1 and take a 1-0 lead in the two-game season series with the Sound Tigers.
Crunch goaltender Gudlevskis earned his fifth win of the season, turning aside 31 shots. His Sound Tigers counterpart, Stephon Williams, stopped 27 of 30. Syracuse went 1-for-4 on the power play and was successful in shutting down all six Bridgeport man-advantages. 
Blunden opened scoring at the 4:05 mark of the first period. He ripped a shot between the legs of a Sound Tigers defender and over William’s glove to light the lamp. Matt Peca and Nesterov tallied the assists.
Syracuse struck twice in the middle frame to build a three-goal lead after forty minutes. With 4:19 remaining, Joey Mormina let off a wrist shot from the left face-off dot that was stopped by Williams. Paradis found the rebound and shot it through an opening for his fourth of the season. Richard recorded the secondary assist.
Just three minutes later, Blunden scored his second of the game. The right-winger was parked in front of the cage while on the man-advantage to redirect Nesterov’s slap shot from the right point. Anthony DeAngelo picked up his eighth power-play assist on the goal.
Yanni Gourde threw the puck down the ice for an empty net goal with just 1:29 remaining in the contest to top the Sound Tigers, 4-0. Richard and Paradis both collected their second point of the night on the final tally.
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