COMETS COMEBACK FALLS SHORT IN OVERTIME
Jan 19, 2018Hartford, CT – The Utica Comets fell to the Hartford Wolf Pack by a score of 3-2 in overtime Friday night at the XL Center.
Ryan Sproul put the Wolf Pack up 1-0 with 7:34 to go in the opening frame as he put a loose puck behind Richard Bachman. Adam Chapie and Filip Chytil were credited with the assists.
Sproul struck again with a power play goal at the 16:04 mark of the second period to put Hartford up 2-0. Cristoval Nieves and Joe Whitney had the assists.
Reid Boucher brought the Comets back to within one at 13:05 to go in the third period, firing a one-timer past Wolf Pack goaltender Marek Mazanec. Nikolay Goldobin and Cam Darcy tallied the assists. Dylan Blujus netted the equalizer with a long shot from the point three minutes later. Ashton Sautner and Goldobin picked up the assists. Neither team found the net in the final 10 minutes and the Comets would need overtime for the fourth straight game.
Chytil scored the game-winning goal 1:10 into overtime. Neil Pionk and Cole Schneider registered the assists.
Bachman finished with 28 saves and his record falls to 4-7-3. Mazanec made 27 saves before leaving with an injury. Alexandar Georgiev stopped both shots he faced to earn the win and improve his record to 5-11-5. The Comets power play went 0-3, while the penalty kill allowed one goal in two attempts.
The Comets are back in action tomorrow night as they battle the Syracuse Crunch in game six of the Galaxy Cup series on Save of the Day Night. Raffle tickets can still be purchased for a chance to win game-used equipment. Fans are encouraged to utilize the ticket exchange website, StubHub!. The game can be heard on 94.9 KROCK and viewed on AHL Live.
The 2018 AHL All-Star Classic will be hosted at the newly renovated Adirondack Bank Center at the Utica Memorial Auditorium. The two-day event includes the AHL All-Star Skills Competition on Sunday, January 28, followed by the AHL Hall of Fame Induction and Awards Ceremony on Monday, January 29 and the 2018 AHL All-Star Challenge later that evening. The Skills Competition and the All-Star Challenge will take place in downtown Utica; all other events during the All-Star Classic will take place at Turning Stone Resort Casino in Verona, New York. For tickets to the two-day event, visit empirestatetix.com.