AHL Morning Skate: 6.5.17

Photo: Mark Newman

Take a game-day spin around the AHL ice with latest news and notes from the 2017 Calder Cup Playoffs in today’s AHL Morning Skate.

Playoff Brackets | Today’s Scoreboard | League Stats


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Game 3 – Wednesday, 7:00 ET – AHL Live free-view, SiriusXM 91
(GR leads series, 2-0)
 

Ben Street scored 7:02 into the second overtime period to lift Grand Rapids to a 6-5 win in a roller-coaster Game 2 of the Calder Cup Finals on Saturday night… The Griffins take a 2-0 series lead to Syracuse for Game 3 on Wednesday… The Crunch erased four separate one-goal deficits in Game 2, including two in the third period after falling behind 4-3 and 5-4… Neither team has held a two-goal lead in the series… The clubs combined for 106 shots on goal in Game 2, the most in a Finals contest since 2003 when Hamilton and Houston took 165 shots in a quadruple-overtime game.

2017 Calder Cup Finals – Series “O” (best-of-7)
Grand Rapids Griffins vs. Syracuse Crunch | Finals Infographic
Game 1 – Fri., June 2 – GRAND RAPIDS 3, Syracuse 2 | Recap/Highlights
Game 2 – Sat., June 3 – GRAND RAPIDS 6, Syracuse 5 (2OT) | Recap/Highlights
Game 3 – Wed., June 7 – Grand Rapids at Syracuse, 7:00
Game 4 – Fri., June 9 – Grand Rapids at Syracuse, 7:00
*Game 5 – Sat., June 10 – Grand Rapids at Syracuse, 7:00
*Game 6 – Tue., June 13 – Syracuse at Grand Rapids, 7:00
*Game 7 – Wed., June 14 – Syracuse at Grand Rapids, 7:00
*if necessary… All times Eastern


Worth the Wait
With the winning goal scored after 27:02 of overtime, Saturday’s Game 2 was the 11th-longest game in Calder Cup Finals history:

74:56 – 2003 Game 2, Hamilton vs. Houston (Michael Ryder)
61:46 – 1953 Game 6, Pittsburgh vs. Cleveland (Danny Lewicki)
44:48 – 1939 Game 2, Philadelphia vs. Cleveland (Joe Krol)
40:55 – 1999 Game 3, Providence at Rochester (Steven King)
40:50 – 1986 Game 4, Adirondack vs. Hershey (Eddie Johnstone)
30:01 – 1980 Game 2, Hershey at New Brunswick (Steve Clippingdale)
29:23 – 1938 Game 2, Providence vs. Syracuse
28:40 – 1952 Game 4, Pittsburgh at Providence (Rudy Migay)
27:44 – 1980 Game 4, Hershey vs. New Brunswick (Doug Gibson)
27:43 – 1984 Game 4, Maine vs. Rochester (Bud Stefanski)
27:02 – 2017 Game 2, Grand Rapids vs. Syracuse (Ben Street)


Down But Not Out
Since the Calder Cup Finals went to a best-of-seven format in 1944, Grand Rapids is the 43rd team to take a 2-0 lead… Only three teams have come back from 0-2 down to win the Cup:

2010 – Hershey Bears def. Texas, 4-2
1991 – Springfield Indians def. Rochester, 4-2
1972 – Nova Scotia Voyageurs def. Baltimore, 4-2

Reading List
Griffins coach on Calder Cup Finals (WOOD-TV)
From Calder Cup to Stanley Cup Final, Gaudreau’s had a wild ride (NBCSports.com)


About the Calder Cup
The Calder Cup is named for Frank Calder, the first president of the NHL (1917-43) and one of the driving forces behind the formation of the American Hockey League.

While the AHL’s history dates back to the fall of 1936, the Calder Cup trophy was first awarded in 1938 to the Providence Reds for winning the second International-American Hockey League championship. (In 1996, George Parsons of the Syracuse Stars was presented the Calder Cup in a ceremony at the Onondaga County War Memorial; it is believed the Stars never received a trophy for their 1937 championship.)

In 2001, the trophy’s base was changed to include two tiers of plaques, which feature the rosters of each of the last 20 Calder Cup champions; the plaques from the first 60 champions are on display in the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto. The entire trophy now stands 24 inches tall and weighs 28 pounds. The bowl, made of sterling silver, is 12 inches high and eight inches in diameter; the base is made of Brazilian mahogany.


Alumni Watch
In Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Final on Saturday night, Roman Josi had a goal and two assists, Mattias Ekholm notched a goal and an assist and Nashville defeated Pittsburgh, 5-1… Milwaukee Admirals alumni accounted for four goals and eight assists in the game… Pekka Rinne, a two-time AHL All-Star who backstopped Milwaukee to the 2006 Calder Cup Finals, made 27 saves in the win… 2016-17 AHL All-Rookie forward Jake Guentzel scored for the Penguins, his NHL-leading 13th goal of the playoffs.


On This Date
June 5, 2013 Tomas Jurco scores the winning goal with 6:12 remaining as Grand Rapids defeats Oklahoma City, 5-4, to advance to the Calder Cup Finals.

June 5, 2010 Travis Morin‘s goal with 45.3 seconds left in regulation gives Texas a 4-3 win at Hershey and a 2-0 lead in the Calder Cup Finals… The Stars beat the Bears twice to open the series after Hershey had won 37 of its previous 38 home games.

June 5, 1998Jim Montgomery’s hat trick leads Philadelphia to a 6-4 win over Saint John and a 3-1 series lead in the Calder Cup Finals.


Calder Cup Finals on AHL Live
The American Hockey League and NeuLion, Inc., are making video streaming of all seven games of the 2017 Calder Cup Finals available for viewing at no charge from AHL Live via desktop, laptop, mobile device or tablet… To watch free on AHL Live, simply visit ahllive.com from any desktop computer, log in with your AHL Live account (or create a new one), select the Finals All-Access Pass and enter the promo code FINALS17 to access all of the action of the AHL’s championship series featuring the calls of the Griffins’ Bob Kaser and the Crunch’s Dan D’Uva… You can watch on your desktop or laptop through ahllive.com, or download the official AHL Live app from iTunes or Google Play to watch on your mobile device or tablet.