Bongiovanni bags a pair as Senators beat Marlies in OT to move back into playoff position

The Belleville Senators are back in a playoff spot in the American Hockey League’s North Division thanks to a 3-2 come-from-behind, overtime road win, against the Toronto Marlies on Wednesday night.

The Marlies got the scoring started just over 5:00 minutes in, creating a chance off the rush that Leevi Merilainen initially stopped. Merilainen would save another rebound or two before Topi Niemela banged in the rebound. Belleville wasn’t able to score on their only power play of the period and were outshot by the Marlies 11-8 in the frame.

Toronto extended the lead early in the second period when Nick Abruzzese got in on a partial break and was able to slide the puck past Merilainen to make it 2-0. However, the Senators would cut the lead in half before the end of the period. Belleville dumped the puck into the offensive zone and Toronto goaltender Dennis Hildeby came out to play the puck. He passed it right to a forechecking Stephen Halliday, who found Josh Currie wide open out front, and Currie popped the puck into the empty net to shrink the Toronto lead to 2-1.

Belleville would force overtime by way of a Wyatt Bongiovanni one-timer, his first goal of the game, at 9:07 of the period and Bongiovanni would play the here a couple of minutes into overtime as well. Cole Reinhardt was able to work the puck down the wall to Tyler Kleven, who fed Bongiovanni in the slot, with the former Quinnipac University Captain then ripping a one-timer past Hildeby to win the game.

The B-Sens are now up by two points on Laval for the fifth and final playoff spot in the division, and still hold one game in hand on their Canadian rivals, who they’ll play again in the final two games of the season on April 19 (in Belleville) and April 20 (in Laval). Belleville’s three-game road trip takes them to Rochester, where they’ll face the Americans on Friday and Saturday.

Fast Facts:

• #4 Jacob Larsson picked up his 23rd assist of the season and has points in back-to-back games.
• #5 Wyatt Bongiovanni scored his 11th and 12th goals of the season to tie the game and win in overtime. He also had six shots on net and was named the game’s first star.
• #13 Egor Sokolov collected his 24th assist of the season.
• #17 Stephen Halliday collected his third assist and is on a three-game point streak.
• #18 Josh Currie scored his 11th goal of the season and had four shots on goal.
• #23 Cole Reinhardt picked up his 15th assist of the season, stretching his point streak to four games (two goals, three assists).
• #25 Tyler Kleven registered his 15th assist of the season and had four shots on goal.
• #35 Leevi Merilainen stopped 27 of 29 shots he faced to earn his ninth win of the campaign. He was named the game’s second star.
• The Senators were 1/3 on the power play and 3/3 on the ViewTech Window and Door Penalty Kill.
• Belleville outshot Toronto 31-27

Highlights:

Sound Bytes:

Belleville Sens forward Wyatt Bongiovanni on the victory:

“They’re always a good team and are tough to play against. They’ve got a lot of skill and like to move the puck, but I thought we weathered the storm. Coming back from 2-0 and to finish like that is obviously a great start to the road trip.”

Belleville Sens forward Wyatt Bongiovanni on the message following Toronto’s 2-0 goal:

“I think we were trying to spread some positivity and just reinforce the fact that we were applying pressure and getting our chances. We’ve got a confident group, so I think spreading that positivity and making sure guys know that we’re still in it goes a long way.”

Belleville Sens forward Wyatt Bongiovanni on the importance of “battle games” late in the season:

“They’re important throughout the whole year, but it obviously ramps up now. These games set the tone and we have a chance of seeing these guys in the playoffs. You keep mental notes, teams keep tabs, so as the intensity heightens it honestly makes for more fun hockey for us.”

Belleville Sens forward Wyatt Bongiovanni on getting back above the playoff cutline:

“It’s huge. Every game is a dog fight and I think we’re taking pride in it and taking it one game at a time.”

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Up Next:

• Friday April 12, 2024 @ Rochester Americans (Buffalo Sabres) – 7:05 p.m.
• Saturday April 13, 2024 @ Rochester Americans (Buffalo Sabres) – 5:05 p.m.
• Wednesday April 17, 2024 vs Syracuse Crunch (Tampa Bay Lightning) – 7:00 p.m. (Winning Wednesday)
• Friday April 19, 2024 vs Laval Rocket (Montreal Canadiens) – 7:00 p.m. (Fan Appreciation Game presented by BOQRMB)

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