COMETS LOOK TO REMAIN UNDEFEATED AT HOME

Nov 6, 2021

Last Night: The Comets roared to a 6-3 victory against the Syracuse Crunch to keep their undefeated record going. They won their fifth straight game with the help of great goaltending from Nico Daws and a hattrick from forward Tyce Thompson on Friday night on the road. After leaving the first period tied 1-1, the wild second period began as Daws shined in the net for Utica, the Comets struck for the lead when Jesper Boqvist took a great pass from Graeme Clarke and potted home his first Comets’ goal at 9:57. It took less than a minute for Utica to extend their lead after an odd man rush. Thompson got a fortuitous bounce off his own shot and sent the puck right back on net and in for a 3-1 Utica lead. It was Thompson’s second of the night, but he wasn’t done yet. Thompson registered the team’s first hattrick of the year when he struck on a one-timer while the Comets were on the power-play. The goal was scored at 11:48 and assisted by Robbie Russo and DeLeo. The Crunch closed the gap during a power-play after Syracuse forward Charles Hudon blasted a shot that soared through traffic and past Daws at 12:46. The game stood at 4-2 but only for 23 seconds after Arne Talvitie skated down the ice on a short-handed breakaway. Talvitie slid a backhander past a sprawling Alnefelt at 13:09. Both teams added goals in the last period of regulation and the Comets skated away with a 6-3 victory.

Tyce Thompson Shines: After losing Alex Holtz to a call-up, the Comets wondered where the scoring might come from. Look no further than forward Tyce Thompson. The second-year pro scored his first three goals of the contest and helped the team to a victory. It was the first hattrick of his professional career and one the team hopes will inspire continued offense going into the final games of the weekend. Thompson, who played some games with the Devils last season, is now second in Utica scoring with three goals and three assists in five games during the 2021-22 campaign.

The Toronto Marlies: The opponent for Saturday night is the always highly skilled Toronto Marlies, the affiliate of the Toronto Maple Leafs. Winning their last three straight games including a 4-1 defeat of the Rochester Americans on Friday night, the Marlies enter Saturday’s game against Utica with a record of 5-3. The Marlies have managed to score 14 goals in their last three games while only giving up 5 goals against. Former New York Islanders first round draft pick Josh Ho-Sang scored the game winning goal last night against the Americans and is second in team scoring with six goals in seven games behind Kirill Semyonov who has one goal and seven assists for eight points in eight games.

Nico Daws Continues to Win: Coming off the heels of his first NHL victory, goaltender Nico Daws won back-to-back games for the Comets including a sensational 40 save victory against the Syracuse Crunch on Friday night in Syracuse. In three AHL games, Daws holds a 3-0 record with a .932% save percentage and 2.34 goals against average.