By Stan Smith
The Toronto Marlies played a series of games this week. They had a rough start to this week’s action, followed by a strong finish, with four games surrounding the trade deadline. The uncertainty of deadlines may have affected the team’s performance in the first two games. The Marlies seemed tentative in a 4-2 loss to the Cleveland Monsters on Wednesday and a 5-2 defeat at the hands of the Providence Bruins on Friday. However, they bounced back with two spirited victories: a 3-2 overtime win over the Bridgeport Islanders and a 4-2 win in the rematch against the Providence Bruins.
Cleveland Monsters 4, Marlies 2
The Marlies entered these games looking to end their two-year, 16-game losing streak against the Cleveland Monsters. They started strong, with Alex Steeves, returning from the Maple Leafs, getting a breakaway on his first shift. Monsters’ goalie Jet Greaves thwarted him, but after serving a high-sticking penalty at 5:54 of the first period, Steeves received a pass from Logan Shaw as he exited the box and converted on another breakaway to put the Marlies up 1-0.
Steeves played a role in Cleveland’s tying goal as a point shot from Madison Bowey deflected off his body and fooled Dennis Hildeby to make it 1-1 at 1:47 of the second period. Cleveland then took a 2-1 lead at 8:33 on a goal by Rocco Grimaldi. The Marlies responded at 17:49 when Nikita Grebenkin, behind the Monsters’ net, found Matthew Barbolini for a one-timer that deflected off Jacob Quillan into the goal.
The Marlies came out flat in the third period and ultimately paid for it. After Steeves had one of the few scoring chances for Toronto, Grimaldi and Trey Fix-Wolanski broke out on a 2-on-1. The puck moved quickly from Grimaldi to Fix-Wolanski and back to Grimaldi, who tucked it into the open net. That goal seemed to demoralize the Marlies, who were completely shut down by the Monsters from that point. Cleveland added an empty-net goal at 1:56, extending their losing streak against the Monsters to 17 games. The Marlies will have two more chances to end the streak when they visit Cleveland for two games on April 16th and 18th.
Providence Bruins 5, Marlies 2
This game came after a strange pregame scenario. Nikita Grebenkin was traded to the Philadelphia Flyers for Scott Laughton earlier in the day, and Fraser Minten was pulled from the Marlies’ pregame skate and sent to the Providence dressing room after being part of the deal that sent Brandon Carlo to the Maple Leafs. Minten was ineligible to play due to needing a U.S. work visa before playing for an American team.
The stress of the trade deadline seemed to affect both teams, as they played a boring and uninspired first period. Penalties by the Marlies played a significant role in the outcome, as Toronto took three consecutive penalties, two of which the Bruins capitalized on with power-play goals by Oliver Wahlstrom early in the second period. Providence added two more 5-on-5 goals in 31 seconds midway through the period to take a 4-0 lead. Akhtyamov was replaced in goal after the fourth goal. Jacob Quillan scored with 12 seconds left in the second to make it 4-1, but Wahlstrom completed his hat trick 25 seconds into the third period. Roni Hirvonen added a late goal for the Marlies, but Providence closed out the game 5-2. The Marlies’ eight minor penalties prevented them from establishing any rhythm or flow during the game.
Marlies 3, Bridgeport Islanders 2 (OT)
This game mirrored the previous two to start. Neither team mustered much offense in the first period, which ended 0-0. The Marlies came out strong in the second period, scoring two goals in 27 seconds. The first came on a one-timer from Steeves on the power play, and the second was a wrist shot by Alex Nylander that beat Bridgeport goalie Henrik Tikkanen glove side. The Marlies sat back a bit too much after taking a 2-0 lead, allowing the Islanders to claw their way back with two goals of their own, one at 13:22 in the second period and another at 13:45 in the third.
The overtime period was spirited, with both teams creating excellent scoring chances. After Hildeby made a key save to preserve the tie, Steeves and Quillan broke out on a 2-on-1. Tikkanen seemed to expect Steeves to shoot, but Steeves dished off to Quillan, who scored glove side to give the Marlies the win.
Marlies 4, Providence Bruins 2
This was by far the Marlies’ best outing of the games this week. The players seemed more relaxed and focused with the trade deadline behind them. Despite giving up the first goal at 10:54 of the game, the Marlies remained confident. Roni Hirvonen tied it up with a wicked wrist shot from the high slot that beat Providence goalie Mike DiPietro glove side with 1:30 left in the first period.
Steeves gave the Marlies a 2-1 lead just 30 seconds into the second period, capitalizing on a juicy rebound from a Logan Shaw shot. Although the Marlies’ penalty kill struggled at times, including a double minor to Marshall Rifai for high-sticking that led to a Bruins’ power-play goal, the Marlies retook the lead on a controversial goal credited to Robert Mastrosimone. Despite some confusion on the play, Mastrosimone’s goal restored the lead. The Marlies did a solid job shutting down the Bruins for the remainder of the game, even after Providence pulled their goalie. Jacob Quillan found Joe Blandisi for a breakaway on the empty net to finish off the scoring at 4-2.
Fraser Minten suited up for Providence in this game after receiving the necessary paperwork but was kept off the score sheet by the Marlies.
Marlies Individual Highlights
Alex Steeves
While he struggles with the Maple Leafs, Steeves is the driving force in his games with the Marlies. He scored the team’s first goal after returning and finished the week with three goals and one assist. With 32 goals, Steeves holds a seven-goal lead over second-place Matej Blumel and John Leonard, who each have 27 goals.
Jacob Quillan and William Villeneuve
Quillan led the Marlies with five points this week, scoring three goals and adding two assists. He has proven to be a valuable asset after moving into the top-6 and continues to rise in the team’s goal-scoring ranks. Villeneuve also tallied five points, all assists, and leads the Marlies’ defensemen in scoring with 27 points.
Five other players had two-point weeks: Roni Hirvonen (2G), Joe Blandisi (1G, 1A), Marshall Rifai (2A), Logan Shaw (2A), and Matthews Barbolini (2A).
Dennis Hildeby
Hildeby had a stellar week, playing all four games and allowing just eight goals on 105 shots. He posted a 2.25 GAA and a .934 SV%, with a 2-1 record. Artur Akhtyamov had a brief appearance, allowing four goals on 25 shots before being replaced in the 5-2 loss to the Bruins.
What’s Next for the Marlies?
Despite their recent struggles, the Marlies are still firmly in third place in the AHL’s North Division, three points ahead of the Cleveland Monsters. They are five points behind second-place Rochester Americans, with a game in hand, and eight points behind the first-place Laval Rocket. Both teams have 16 games remaining.
The Marlies will host the Charlotte Checkers in two day games this weekend before traveling to Laval to take on the Rocket next Wednesday night.
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