The Toronto Marlies defeated the Hartford Wolf Pack 4-1 on Friday night. The two teams split the season series, both winning one game each.
In the first period, Joseph Blandisi scored for the third straight game, tallying his 11th of the season. Both teams exchanged chances, but the Marlies maintained their 1-0 lead after the first 20 minutes.
Early in the second, Nick Robertson capitalized on a shorthanded breakaway opportunity to score his 12th of the season, and give the Marlies a two-goal lead. Anthony Greco managed to get one back for the Wolf Pack later in the frame on the power-play. But, Alex Steeves scored a power-play goal of his own before the frame was over, restoring the Marlies two-goal lead.
In the third period, both teams pressured hard, but it wasn’t until late in the frame when Bobby McMann sealed the deal for the home team, finding the back of an empty Hartford net for his 22nd of the season. Rookies McMann and Steeves now both lead the team in goals with 22. They are just two goals away from breaking the Marlies rookie goal scoring record.
Michael Hutchinson stood tall in the Marlies crease, stopping 28 of the 29 shots he faced. The team now heads to Syracuse for a tilt with the Crunch on Saturday. Puck drop is at 7:00pm ET.