COMETS CONCLUDE SEASON SERIES AGAINST SENATORS
Apr 14, 2018UTICA COMETS (37-25-12) vs. BELLEVILLE SENATORS (28-41-5)
Yardmen Arena, 7 p.m.
Watch Live: AHL Live | Listen Live: 94.9 K-ROCK
Follow and Interact Live: Twitter | Hashtag: #UTIvsBEL
Tonight’s Game: The Utica Comets take on the Belleville Senators for the final time this season. Puck drops at 7 p.m.
Last Game: The Utica Comets fell to the Syracuse Crunch by a score of 2-1 in overtime Friday night at the Adirondack Bank Center. Thatcher Demko and Crunch netminder Eddie Pasquale kept the game scoreless through the first 20 minutes, stopping six and nine shots, respectively. Daniel Walcott struck three and a half minutes into the second period. Jonne Tammela and Carter Verhaeghe had the assists. Michael Carcone converted on a breakaway to tie the game at one with 25 seconds to go in the middle frame. Neither team found the net in the third period and the game would go to overtime. Verhaeghe scored the game-winning goal with 38 seconds left in overtime to pick up the win. Alexander Volkov collected the assist. Demko finished with 20 saves and his record fell to 24-13-7.
Head-to-Head: This is the sixth and final meeting between the Comets and Senators this season. Utica leads the season series 3-2-0, but Belleville won the most recent contest 4-3 back on March 17. The Comets are outscoring the Senators 19-13 through five games this season.
Scouting the Senators: Belleville comes in with a record of 28-41-5 and sits in sixth place in the North Division. They most recently fell 6-4 to the Rochester Americans last night. Filip Chlapik leads the way offensively with 32 points, followed by Ville Pokka with 31 points. Danny Taylor leads the goaltending tandem with a record of 11-15-3, a 3.15 goals-against average, and a .900 save percentage.
Chap-ing In: Michael Chaput looks to continue his dominance on the road. Chaput carries a four-game road point streak into tonight, pickup six points (2-4-6) in the process. The veteran forward leads the active roster with 41 points (16-25-41) in 54 games.
Power Over The Senators: The Comets power play has been very effective against Belleville this season. Utica is 6-21 (28.6%) against the Senators and has scored at least one goal on the man advantage against them in two of the last three games. The Comets power play ranks 13th in the AHL at 18.2%.
Big Leap: Michael Carcone’s big year continues. With his tally last night, Carcone has tripled his goal total from last season. In addition, he has achieved career highs in goals and points and is one assist shy of his career best of 13. The second year forward has 27 points (15-12-27) in 67 games this season.
Last Road Trip: Tonight’s game marks the final regular season road game for the Comets. Utica has earned at last one point in four of the last five road games. In addition, they boast the fourth best road penalty kill in the league. The Comets are 21-11-5 away from home this year.
Next Game: The Comets are back at it tomorrow afternoon for the regular season finale against the Binghamton Devils. Puck drop at the Adirondack Bank Center is at 3 p.m. Fans are encouraged to utilize the ticket exchange website, StubHub!. The game can be heard on 94.9 KROCK and viewed on AHL Live.