Amerks’ faceoff losses lead to playoff loss as Crunch even series

By KEVIN OKLOBZIJA

As analytics continue to have a greater influence on hockey, there’s a school of thought that suggests faceoffs don’t matter, that winning and losing a draw isn’t the end-all, be-all.

Unless you lose that faceoff to the Syracuse Crunch.

The Crunch scored three tip-in goals immediately after they cleanly won three faceoffs, including the game-winner by Gabriel Fortier 10:56 into overtime, as Syracuse defeated the Rochester Americans 4-3 on Sunday evening to even the best-of-five Calder Cup North Division semifinals 1-1.

“Our centers have to do a better job, our D have to do a better job boxing out,” Amerks coach Seth Appert said. “You can’t give up three faceoff goals, that’s most of their offense there.”

And as a result, the teams will be all-square when the series resumes at 7 p.m. Thursday in downtown Syracuse.

“It’s kind of like a new series going into Syracuse,” said Amerks goalie Devon Levi, who made 30 saves. “Zero-zero, best of three.”

Just as in Friday’s series opener, the Amerks grabbed a 2-0 lead. Michael Mersch scored on a power play 10:40 into the first period and Linus Weissbach connected at 13:00 of the second and the crowd of 7,728 at Blue Cross Arena at the War Memorial was rocking.

But just as they did on Friday night, the Crunch retaliated. Jordy Bellerive redirected a Philippe Myers shot from the right point past Levi with 46.2 seconds remaining in the second period. The goal came immediately after Dylan Duke won a faceoff from Mason Jobst and drew it straight back to Myers at the blue line.

“That one was a tough one for myself, especially since I took the draw,” Jobst said. “I take a lot of pride in faceoffs, especially at important times.”

Indeed, the goal rejuvenated the Crunch heading into the intermission, and they needed fewer than five minutes of the third period to tie the score.

Felix Robert beat Justin Richards on a faceoff in the right circle and – this is a recording – drew it back to Myers at the point. His wrister was deflected in by Gage Goncalves at 4:59.

“We’re going to obviously address that,” Jobst said. “Basically three identical plays cost us.”

Unlike Friday, the Crunch also scored the next goal and took their first lead of the series. Defenseman Sean Day shoveled in a Maxim Groshev pass from the deep right of the slot at 9:03.

The goal came after Amerks defenseman Ryan Johnson made a blind reverse to his partner, Ethan Prow, apparently unaware that Prow had broken his stick. With Prow unable to do anything with the pass, chaos ensued and the Crunch capitalized.

“It was just an immature play by a young player, not realizing his D-partner didn’t have a stick,” Appert said. “We talk about those things. When somebody doesn’t have a stick, it’s a perfect time to ice a puck because it just settles things down.”

The Amerks did mount a rally, however, and tied the score with just 3:54 remaining as Jobst fired home a shot from the left hash marks off the fastbreak rush.

Prow made the perfect 100-foot cross-ice, off-the-boards pass to hit Jobst in stride on the other side of center, and with Mersch barging down the slot and tying up defensemen Devante Stephens and Day, Jobst was able to fight off the backcheck of Daniel Walcott and zip a shot top shelf past the glove of goalie Brandon Halverson.

“Honestly I couldn’t even see, I had so many guys in front of me,” Jobst said.

In overtime a disputed icing call led to the faceoff in the Amerks zone, and the winning goal. Tyson Kozak contended he tipped the long outlet pass along the boards just outside the Crunch blue line. But the linesmen – Ryan Jackson and Spencer Knox – said there was no touch and called icing. Referees Jim Curtin and Jack Young didn’t intervene.

“It was a terrible call – clear as day … and you could hear it from the bench,” Appert said.

Said Jobst: “We asked him (Kozak) and he said he got a piece of it. He’s a pretty straight shooter. But what are you going to do?”

The Amerks did get a reprieve in terms of rest. The icing came at 10:51, the first whistle after the 10-minute mark. That meant a mandatory timeout to clean the ice.

It didn’t matter. This time Brandon Biro lost the draw – to Fortier – and in five seconds later the puck was in the net.

“I saw two out of the three,” Levi said. “You have to move (to play the point shot) and it’s tough when it gets tipped as you move.”

While faceoffs losses ended up costing the Amerks, they know they must be better in one-on-one battles in order to establish a forecheck.

“They have some big D-men and they do a really good job of swarming and end plays in their zone,” Mersch said.

So now for the Amerks it’s time to refocus, do some work to counter the Crunch faceoff work and get ready for a best-of-three series.

“That’s the best part of playoff hockey, the swings are so dramatic,” Jobst said.

Notes: Broadcaster Don Stevens did not call Sunday’s game, the first time he has missed a playoff game since he became the voice of the Amerks to start the 1986-87 season. He had called 262 consecutive playoff games. He took Sunday off in order to attend the induction ceremony of his daughter, Shawna Williams Crouse, who joined the Roberts Wesleyan University athletic Hall of Fame on Sunday evening. She was a basketball standout, finishing her career at Roberts in 2000. Andrew Mossbrooks handled play-by-play duties on Sunday.

Kozak returned to the lineup after missing the final seven games of the regular season and Game 1 of the series due to an upper body injury. He was hit along the boards by a leaping Clayton Cole of the Cleveland Monsters in a game on April 3.

The Crunch suffered a significant loss just 7:41 into the game when forward Jack Finley was hurt on a very innocent play along the boards in the Amerks zone. The 6-foot-6, 218-pound Finley appeared to suffer a wrist injury when he battled for the puck with Amerks center Jiri Kulich. Finely toppled to the ice, holding his lower arm, necessitating a stoppage in play, and he then went directly down the tunnel to the Crunch dressing room.