The Belleville Senators played their final game of the season in Syracuse against the Crunch, falling 4–0.
The first period got off to a quick start for the Crunch, as they capitalized just three minutes in. On the power play, Dylan Duke worked the puck down low to Ethan Gauthier, who made a quick pass in front to Spencer Kersten for a 1–0 contest. Making his Senators debut and first AHL start, Kaidan Mbereko stopped 15 of 16 shots in the opening period.
In the second, Syracuse extended their lead on the man advantage. A point shot from Ethan Samson got through to Cooper Flinton, who tipped in his fifth of the season to make it a 2–0 game. Belleville went 2-for-3 on the penalty kill in the middle frame but was unable to score on their own three power-play opportunities.
Heading into the final twenty minutes, the Crunch got another opportunity on the power play and capitalized. Working the puck around the perimeter, Gauthier and Ian Mitchell combined to set up Kersten for his second of the night, scoring a screened shot from the slot to widen the gap to 3–0. Syracuse added one more at the 6:14 mark, when a takeaway high in the offensive zone by Simon Lundmark led to a shot that Max Grondin redirected in for his first goal of the year, and a 4–0 final.
The season series between the Senators and the Crunch ends at 3-5-0-0, bringing the all-time record to 25-26-2-3. The Belleville Senators finish the season with 65 points, posting a 28-35-8-1 record, placing them seventh in the North Division.
See the game highlights here.
See a post-game interview with Interim Head Coach Andrew Campbell here.
