COMETS AND SENATORS FACE OFF FOR FINAL TIME AT HOME THIS SEASON
Mar 2, 2018UTICA COMETS (29-17-10) vs. BELLEVILLE SENATORS (21-33-4)
Adirondack Bank Center, 7 p.m.
Watch Live: AHL Live | Listen Live: 94.9 K-ROCK, Desktop or Mobile
Follow and Interact Live: Twitter | Hashtag: #BELvsUTI
Tonight’s Game: The Utica Comets take on the Belleville Senators. Puck drops at 7 p.m.
Last Game: The Utica Comets fell to the Springfield Thunderbirds by a score of 3-2 Saturday night at the Adirondack Bank Center. Adam Comrie put the Comets up 1-0 just over two minutes into the game. Griffen Molino and Patrick Wiercioch picked up the assists. Greg Chase tied the game at one four minutes into the second period, putting a rebound past Richard Bachman. Reid Boucher scored shorthanded with 7:10 remaining in the middle frame. Thomas Schemitsch tied the game at two with under a minute to go in the second. Anthony Greco gave the Thunderbirds a 3-2 lead at the 11:15 mark of the third period with an unassisted goal. Springfield held off the Comets' late flurry to secure the win. Bachman finished with 25 saves and his record falls to 10-8-4.
Head-to-Head: This is the fourth meeting between the North Division rivals this season. The Comets lead the season series 3-0-0 and won the most recent matchup 5-4 on February 19. The Comets are outscoring Belleville 16-8 through three games this year.
Scouting the Senators: Belleville comes in with a record of 21-33-4 and sits in last place in the North Division. They most recently fell to the Binghamton Devils 4-1 on Tuesday. Ville Pokka leads all active players with 24 points, followed by Filip Chlapik with 23 points. Danny Taylor leads the goaltending tandem with a record of 8-14-2, and 3.26 goals-against average, and a .893% save percentage.
Red Hot: Patrick Wiercioch continues to make an impact on Utica’s back end. Wiercioch is on a three-game point streak where he has picked up four points (1-3-4). In addition, he is also riding a six-game home point streak, registering seven points (2-5-7) in the process. The veteran defenseman has tallied 26 points (8-18-26) in 40 games this year.
Turn The Tide: The Comets power play has struggled of late, but tonight may offer a reprieve. Utica has not scored a power play goal in five straight games, but is 5-11 (45.5%) on the man advantage against Belleville this season. The Comets power play ranks fourth in the league at 19.9%.
Record Breaker: With a goal Saturday against Springfield, Reid Boucher netted his 24th goal of the season. That goal broke the Comets team record for most goals in a single season. The previous record of 23 was set last season by Darren Archibald.
Building the Cassels: Cole Cassels’ big year continues. Cassels has points in six of the last seven games and has recorded career-highs in points (22) and assists (16). In addition, the third-year forward has tied his career high with six goals in 50 games this year.
Next Game: The Comets return to action tomorrow night as they hit the road to take on the Hershey Bears. Puck drop at the Giant Center is at 7 p.m. The game can be heard on 94.9 KROCK and viewed on AHL Live.