Toronto Marlies Fall To Hartford Wolf Pack In Midweek Matchup

The Toronto Marlies fall 2-1 in overtime to the Hartford Wolf Pack on Wednesday night. Toronto falls to 21-9-4-0 when playing on the road.  

In the first two periods, both teams exchanged chances but neither were able to convert.  

Late in the third, Anton Blidh scored at 18:48 in the frame to give Hartford the late 1-0 lead. Before the period was over, Topi Niemelä scored his first AHL goal at 19:47 to tie the game at one a piece and send it to overtime.  

In the extra frame, Jake Leschyshyn scored the overtime winner at 1:42 to secure the win for Hartford.  

The Marlies return to action on April 7th when they visit the Utica Comets. Puck drop is at 7:00pm on AHLTV.

SCORING SUMMARY

Toronto: T. Niemelä (1) (A. Steeves, S. Der-Arguchintsev)
Goaltender: K. Petruzzelli (35/37) OT/L

Hartford: A. Blidh (12) (J. Leschyshyn, T. Emberson), J. Leschyshyn (5) (L. Hajek, W. Lockwood)
Goaltender: L. Domingue (30/31) W

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ON THE SCORESHEET

• Topi Niemelä scored at 19:47 of the third period. This was his first career AHL goal. He has points (1-1-2) through his first two games with the Marlies.
• Alex Steeves recorded the primary assist on Niemelä’s third period goal. He has points (1-1-2) in consecutive games. He has 49 points (18 goals, 31 assists) in 61 games this season.
• Semyon Der-Arguchintsev had the secondary assist on Niemelä’s third period goal. He has points (1-3-4) in consecutive games.
• Keith Petruzzelli stopped 35 of 37 shots he faced.

TEAM NOTES

• The Marlies went 5-for-5 on the penalty kill and 0-for-2 on the power play. Toronto is 12-13-1-0 when not scoring on the power play and 20-7-2-2 when not allowing a goal on the penalty kill.
• Hartford had a 37-31 edge in shots in all situations. Alex Steeves led the Marlies with five shots on goal. Toronto is 19-12-3-1 when outshot by their opponent.
• The Marlies are 5-5-2-0 against Atlantic Division opponents and finish the regular season 1-0-1-0 against the Wolf Pack.

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POSTGAME QUOTES

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HEAD COACH GREG MOORE

On tonight’s game:
It was a tight game. I thought both teams, kind of feeling each other out early. Both teams had plenty of scoring chances. Both goalies played really well. We had to play a patient game, disciplined. I thought the penalty kill did a great job today, killing off as many penalties as we had. It was a tight one and then for a 1:12 or 13 left in the game to be scored against, a lot of teams would feel deflated, give up but I liked the pushback to come out and find one there. Great shot there by Topi and net screen by Johnstone.

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UPCOMING GAMES:
*All times Eastern Standard Time

April 7 at Utica – 7:00 p.m.
April 12 at Laval – 7:00 p.m.
April 15 vs. Belleville – 4:00 p.m.
April 16 vs. Belleville – 4:00 p.m.