Mark Arcobello sparks Marlies comeback

Are the Toronto Marlies ever a beaten team until the final buzzer?

It’s a question that the Syracuse Crunch must be asking themselves after letting a two-goal lead slip in the third period.

Back at Ricoh Coliseum after a long road trip, Toronto had dug themselves a hole. The Marlies were arguably the better team for large parts of the game, but it may well have been Ryan Rupert who sparked his teammates to life shortly after they had conceded two quick goals and were trailing 4-2.

Scrapping like hell in front of the net with Daniel Walcott, Rupert drew the ire of Henri Ikonen. Though both were called for roughing, it was basically a fight in which the Toronto forward prevailed, taking down his opponent.

The Marlies responded with a terrific shift, with a particularly good effort from T.J Brennan, and they used the momentum to score less than two minutes later.

Zach Hyman carried the puck across both bluelines before handing off to Nikita Soshnikov. The Russian forward showed his skating prowess by dancing close to the blueline, evading Syracuse players before firing on net. Eric Baier was initially denied on the rebound, but Hyman was on hand to pull the Marlies within one with nine minutes to play.

Antoine Bibeau was having a game to forget at this point, but the 21-year-old goaltender come up big when his team needed him in the third.

A turnover from Rinat Valiev allowed Yanni Gourde to pick out Tanner Richard between the hashmarks. Bibeau stonewalled the Syracuse forward before the Marlies responded with a rush the other way. Another booming effort from Brennan ended with a mad scramble in front of the visitors net, but somehow Syracuse kept the puck out of their net.

It looked desperate for Toronto with time winding down as they were pinned deep inside their own zone for over a minute. Jeremy Morin made the defensive play to relieve the pressure and set up the tying goal; thrusting his stick into the passing lane, he was able to tip an intended pass to safety.

The puck ended up in the capable hands of Mark Arcobello, who sped away down the right side. The Marlies forward gave Luke Witkowski no chance of catching up before ripping his shot under the blocker of Kristers Gudlevskis to tie the game.

There was still time for drama with a minute and a half left to play in regulation.

A shot from Soshnikov hit the glove hand of Gudlevskis, looping over the goaltender and appearing as thought it might trickle back into the Syracuse cage. Another scramble ensued, but the Crunch survived and then probably should have won the game with ten seconds to play.

Richard, the best player for the visitors, snaked into the slot to receive a perfect pass. If the first save he forced from Bibeau was great, the second — a right pad stop — was absolutely outstanding.

The Toronto Marlies continued a tradition of excellence in overtime situations in the ensuing there on three. The teams exchanged a single chance each in the first 45 seconds before the game winner came on the third shot.

It might be the fanciest goal fans at the Ricoh Coliseum will witness this season, but it was also born from sheer hard work and desire. Matthew Peca had possession in front of his own net, but Ryan Rupert hunted him down like his life depended on acquiring the puck. Pinning Peca to the endboards, Rupert won the battle and lost his stick in the process. Undeterred, Rupert dug the puck out from beneath his skates before kicking a perfect pass to Brendan Leipsic waiting out in front.

What happened next is the sort of thing you typically only see at All-Star events. Leipsic pulled off a spin-o-rama move, showing great patience to wait until Gudlevskis went down before roofing the puck into the net off his backhand.

It was a victory that Toronto probably deserved on the balance of play — especially after the first period, when they couldn’t bury chances that should have seen them ahead by two or more after 20 minutes.

Matt Frattin contrived to fluff his lines on what looked a shoe-in chance after James Martin’s shot was denied. Frattin tried to redeem himself on the same shift, but his effort was turned aside with nobody on hand to convert the juicy rebound.

Playing with Brennan, Viktor Loov was an offensive force in this game and he really tested Gudlevskis on a feed from his new partner. It was a fast and furious opening ten minutes, and Loov was once again threatening — this time as a provider to Leipsic, who couldn’t get his effort up and over the pads of the Syracuse goaltender.

Hyman and Soshnikov combined to tee up Arcobello for a wicked one timer, but again Gudlevskis was equal to the task. The Syracuse netminder was even better at the midway point, robbing Brett Findlay in close.

The only opportunities the visitors were generating came courtesy of Marlie turnovers, but Toronto was able to undo most of their errors. That’s until Viktor Loov took a penalty. On the powerplay, Mike Blunden’s wrist shot was one that Bibeau would want back as it sneaked by him and trickled into the net.

It’d take the home a couple of minutes to regain their composure before they tied the game up with 1:31 remaining. Hyman’s shot was blocked, but Toronto’s desire for the loose puck was rewarded. Arcobello sent the puck back up for Brennan, who shifted the puck across quickly to Loov. From the top of the left circle, the Swedish man mountain fired home his first of the season

Bibeau would have to stay alert in the dying seconds to deny an absolute bomb of a shot from Jake Dotchin and then David Broll on the rebound.

The middle frame did not prove as action packed, with both teams guilty of not hitting the target from good openings.

The best spell of the game for Syracuse was halted by Broll’s ridiculous roughing penalty. Toronto’s powerplay orchestrated one good chance, but Casey Bailey lost an edge at the critical moment from the slot.

Back at even strength, the Marlies fourth line caused panic in the visitors ranks. Brett Findlay’s seeing-eye pass found Eric Faille, whose shot was a fraction high.

Findlay might be the unluckiest Marlies player this season in his short spell with the team. He again looked sure to score, but Gudlevskis moved right to left in the blink of an eye to deny the chance.

The Crunch were further indebted to their goaltender after his stop on Eric Faille, who is making a good first impression with the Marlies.

It wasn’t Bailey’s night, either, as he whiffed on a good opportunity after a nice feed from debutant Rylan Schwartz.

Syracuse took the lead into the final period of regulation as Cameron Darcy netted upstairs past Bibeau, who was perhaps cheating a little in expecting a cross-crease pass. A nice finish, but another that Toronto’s goaltender would want back.

The Marlies were lucky not to fall further behind early in the third period as Syracuse were unable to capitalize on countless turnovers.

Toronto finally got their act together and tied the game after five minutes. Leipsic’s drop pass found Arcobello, whose quick release was just enough to beat Gudlevskis. The reaction of the Syracuse goaltender told you he wanted that one back, but his team responded immediately.

A complete mental letdown by the Marlies allowed the visitors to score within 37 seconds. Tanner Richard won an offensive zone draw before Blunden swept the puck to Gourde, who returned it to Richard to fire a one-timer up high.

Only another 40 seconds passed before Syracuse doubled their advantage. A pass from Frattin was picked off before Richard took three Marlies out of the play with a pass to Gourde. Without hesitation, Gourde one-timed a pass to DeAngelo, who made no mistake, giving his team a 4-2 lead.

Cue another Toronto Marlies comeback victory.

Post Game Notes

– Mark Arcobello has five points in two games after his second three-point game of the season.

– Viktor Loov looked dynamite offensively paired with T.J Brennan. Less exuberant with the puck than his new partner but no less effective, Loov fired a team-high six shots in this game and scored his long-overdue first goal of the year.

– Brendan Leispic was largely ineffective in the team’s last outing, but he responded in a big way in this game. A goal and an assist takes him to 30 points on the season.

– It’s no secret that I’m a fan of Ryan Rupert’s game. He’s a real pest, happy to lay his body on the line for his team; a grafter, but not short of offensive talent as we witnessed last season. Rupert has four points in as many games as he’s struck up a nice partnership with Leipsic.

– Comprised of Casey Bailey, Brett Findlay and Eric Faille, Toronto’s fourth line had a noticeable and effective game. They could easily have been responsible for two or three goals with a little more luck.

– The game featured Marlies débuts for Rylan Schwartz and Eric Baier. Both acquitted themselves well, with Baier netting himself an assist. This was also Jeremy Morin’s home début, having being traded during the road-trip.

– Three of the six games between Syracuse and Toronto this season have ended in overtime, with the Marlies victorious on each occasion.

Game Highlights

Marlies Player Stats — Toronto 5 vs. Crunch 4 (OT)