In another must-win game, the Belleville Senators showed their flair for the dramatic once again, beginning their two-game trip with a crucial 2-1 win over the Rochester Americans on Friday night at Blue Cross Arena.
The Senators moved 011 percentage points ahead of the Amerks for the fifth and final playoff position in the North Division with the victory.
Head coach Troy Mann was impressed with the effort.
“That’s the type of game we need to play to be successful, and the guys were engaged and ready for what was really a very intense playoff-style hockey game,” Mann said.
Belleville opened the scoring at 2:43 of the first period as Viktor Lodin collected his first career AHL tally. He found the back of the net after he was rewarded with a penalty shot.
After a scoreless second frame, Egor Sokolov notched the eventual game-winner, blasting a shot home with the man advantage 1:08 into the final stanza.
Rochester would make things interesting, ending Filip Gustavsson’s shutout bid with 6:04 left in regulation time, as the Amerks got one back with a power play marker of their own.
Despite the late goal, Belleville continued to shut down the vaunted Rochester attack throughout the night.
“We did a lot of good things tonight. I loved our start,” Mann said after the game. “I think it could’ve easily been 2-0 or 3-0 in that first period based on the number of chances we had. They made their push in the second, and the penalties started coming again. You have to give hats off to the penalty killing again. I thought we played well in the third, and they finally got their power play goal.”
Gustavsson made 28 saves in the win and the Senators held the Eastern Conference’s top power play unit to one of seven on the night. The Senators own the second-best point percentage on the road in the Eastern Conference this season.
The Belleville Senators are back in action tonight when they visit the Utica Comets. You can hear the game on the Senators’ Official Broadcast Partner 800 AM CJBQ. Coverage begins at 6:50 p.m. with David Foot.
