Marlies Steal Win From Amerks

The Marlies got the Amerks again Saturday night, sweeping a home-and-home with a 3-2 overtime win in Toronto. Rochester fell 4-2 at the Blue Cross Arena Friday night. It was the fifth loss in six games for the Amerks.

Toronto's Nazem Kadri scored a pair of goals, including the game-winner just 1:06 into the extra session for the hometown Marlies, who improved to 3-0-0-0 against Rochester this season with the win. Toronto netminder Ben Scrivens got the nod again for the Marlies, finishing with 36 saves on 38 shots to earn his seventh win of the campaign.

Amerks defensemen Brayden McNabb and Alex Biega each scored their second goals of the season, while David Leggio stopped 32 of 35 shots he faced in his fifth consecutive start between the pipes. Marcus Foligno assisted on both Rochester goals, snapping a two-game scoring drought to give the second-year pro four helpers over his last five games.

The Amerks scored first in the contest with a power play goal at 6:49 of the opening period. Foligno took a pass from T.J. Brennan and sent it back to the blueline, where McNabb wound up and fired a slap-shot that made its way through traffic and past Scrivens for the goal. For McNabb, it was his second goal of the season.

As the teams traded power-play chances in the latter stages of the second period, Toronto got on the board at the 15-minute mark. Skating with a man-advantage, the Marlies moved the puck around the zone, and Keith Aucoin sent a long pass from the left half-wall to the far post, where Kadri one-timed it in for the goal for his first of the night. Former Amerk Mike Kostka also assisted on the tying goal.

 

The Amerks quickly regained their lead just over a minute later. Biega pounced on a loose puck in the neutral zone and rushed into the Toronto end on the right wing side. When he reached the top of the face-off circle, the defenseman released a quick wrist shot that got a piece of Scrivens' glove and ricocheted into the net for Biega's second goal of the season.

 

Toronto once again tied the game when Paul Ranger scored at 15:12 of the third period to make it a 2-2 game. Ranger gained control of the puck along the right wing boards, skated out to the face-off dot and put a wrist shot just underneath the cross bar for the goal to push the game to overtime.

Kadri would seal the victory for the Marlies just over a minute into the extra frame as he converted Matt Frattin's cross-ice pass and sent a low shot between Leggio's glove and the near post to give Toronto the 3-2 win.

 

The Amerks return home on Friday, Dec. 7 as the Adirondack Phantoms journey west to The Blue Cross Arena. The 7:05 matchup will be the third of four get-togethers between the intrastate rivals.