Toronto Marlies: Leafs Prospects Win Three On The Road

Despite an erratic goaltending situation with both James Reimer and Garret Sparks injured, the Toronto Marlies picked up three straight wins on a road trip that saw them travel through New York and Pennsylvania.

Toronto Marlies @ Binghamton Senators: 3-2 Marlies

The Marlies continued their dominance over the lowly Senators with a 3-2 victory on Wednesday night. The Marlies have won three straight against their last-placed North Division rivals.

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The Marlies came out hot with three goals on 21 shots through the first two periods. The B-Sens ruined Antoine Bibeau’s shutout bid when Max McCormick scored with just over a minute left and Cole Schneider added another with 12 seconds left to make the score line look respectable.

Josh Leivo, Mark Arcobello and Zach Hyman had the goals for the Marlies.

Toronto Marlies @ Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins: 4-3 Marlies (Shootout)

Next up for the Marlies was a date with the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins. The matchup between the two top teams in the American Hockey League lived up to its billing, with the Marlies battling back from a 3-0 third-period deficit to eventually emerge victorious in the shootout.

The Marlies’ defense didn’t do much to help Bibeau as they allowed 31 shots from the Penguins through the first two periods. However, the Marlies would stage the unlikely comeback in the final frame with three (!) short-handed goals from Arcobello, Nikita Soshnikov and Rich Clune.

Soshnikov showed off his considerable skill with a beautiful goal in the shootout to complete the comeback.

Toronto Marlies @ Hershey Bears: 6-2 Marlies

The Marlies faced off with the third-best team in the Eastern Conference in the Hershey Bears and made another statement with a 6-2 shellacking.

The floodgates opened for the Marlies’ offense with three goals in the second period to break open the 1-1 deadlock. T.J. Brennan added two goals in the third period to put the game well out of reach of the Bears. Arcobello, Hyman, Brandon Leipsic and Stuart Percy had the other goals.

Newly signed Ray Emery earned the win in his Marlies debut, making 23 saves.

Three Stars of the Week

3. T.J. Brennan (3 games played, 2 goals, 2 assists, 5 shots on goal)

Brennan continues to lead all AHL defensemen in scoring with 26 points in 29 games.

2. Zach Hyman (3 GP, 2 G, 2 A, 7 SOG)

The 23-year-old University of Michigan product has had a quietly solid first pro season which started with an impressive showing at Toronto Maple Leafs training camp.

1. Mark Arcobello (3 GP, 3 G, 2 A, 13 SOG)

Since being placed on waivers by the Toronto Maple Leafs and demoted to the Marlies on October 29, Arcobello hasn’t stopped scoring. With 25 goals in only 20 games, the only top AHL scorer with a better point-per-game average (1.25) is some guy named William Nylander (1.26).

For Your Reading Pleasure

• In a desperate move to address their shrinking goaltending depth, the Marlies signed 33-year-old journeyman goaltender Ray Emery to a professional tryout contract. Emery has played in 156 NHL games with four different teams, but is best known for his work with the glove and blocker off:

• Rich Clune was called up to the Toronto Maple Leafs from the Marlies yesterday with Nick Spaling on injured reserve. He likely won’t get in the lineup tonight in Colorado.

• The World Junior Hockey Championship gets underway on Saturday. Jonas Siegel of TSN offered a preview of the five Toronto Maple Leafs prospects who could be representing their respective countries at the prestigious tournament

Next: Has Jamaal Charles Lost a Step?

Looking Ahead

The Marlies are off until the annual Boxing Day Classic against the St. John’s IceCaps at the Air Canada Centre on Saturday. The two teams stage a rematch on Sunday. Both games are 3 pm starts.