Belleville hangs on to beat Utica in Home Opener presented by CAA

The Belleville Senators earned a 5-4 win over the Utica Comets in their first home game of 2024-25 on Saturday, but what started as a promising evening became a nervy affair. The B-Sens dominated the first 30 minutes over the Comets, driving a confident atmosphere throughout CAA Arena.

The Senators opened the scoring at the 4:03 mark in the first period, when  Zack Ostapchuk, put one past Utica goalie, Isaac Poulter.

The second goal of the night for the Sens was by Jeremy Davies, who undressed the entire Utica defence with a rebound shot. This was only possible with the help of assists by Cole Reinhardt and Ostapchuk.

Belleville interrupted their scoring roll at 8:54 with a riveting fight between the Sens Hayden Hodgson and Utica’s Samuel Laberge. This led to both parties getting five-minute penalties and a four-on-four spell on the ice.

The third goal of the night and the final one of the first period was an unexpected slapshot from the blue line. At 10:03 Reinhardt notched his second goal of the season, assisted by Garrett Pilon and Nikolas Matinpalo.

The fourth goal of the night came from Belleville defender Donovan Sebrango. A marker that one might call a perfect transition; a wrist shot from inside the blue line, assisted by Jamieson Rees.

The Sens then went on a scoring break, letting Utica catch up by two goals. Hodgson helped keep the crowd hyped up with some more action and hard hits. Belleville’s big number 42 would end up taking a game misconduct, after a second fight of the game at 16:04 of the second period.

Crookshank came back and scored Belleville’s fifth and final goal of the game, potting it 30 seconds into the third period and giving the B-Sens a three-goal lead.

But, the Comets would go on to score two more goals, leaving the last seven minutes at a 5-4 score for the Sens and the crowd biting their nails.

In the last minute, you could see the fans on the edge of their seats as the puck spent most of the time on the Sens side. However, Leevi Merilainen comforted the crowd with his heroic saves.

You can click here to see Saturday’s full box score.

Fast Facts:

• The B-Sens have earned a point in all three games this season
• #4 Jeremy Davies scored his first goal as a Senator and had three shots on goal
• #6 Donovan Sebrango had a goal and an assist
• #9 Angus Crookshank scored his first goal of the season
• #10 Zack Ostapchuk scored and had an assist
• #19 Jamieson Rees had an assist
• #22 Garrett Pilon picked up an assist and has points in back-to-back games.
• #23 Cole Reinhardt had a game-high three points (one goal, two assists)
• #35 Leevi Merilainen stopped 19 of 23 shots to earn his second win of the season
• #52 Nikolas Matinpalo had an assist

Sound Bytes:

Belleville Sens head coach Dave Bell on the win:

“I liked the start, but I think we learned a valuable lesson. If you play a certain way, you’re going to have success, but if you get away from that it’s going to be a coin flip. I don’t like the coin tosses, so let’s just play the right way.”

Belleville Sens forward Angus Crookshank on his team’s performance:

“I thought in the fisrt period we really took it to them. We got a little loose as the game progressed, but as Bellsy said it best, it’s kind of a learning lesson on what we have to do to be successful. But a win’s a win.”

Highlights:

Media Availabilities:

Up Next:

• Sunday October 20, 2024 – Belleville vs Syracuse (3:00 p.m. ET – CAA Arena) (Home Opener Weekend presented by CAA)
• Friday October 25, 2024 – Belleville @ Toronto (7:00 p.m. ET – Coca-Cola Coliseum)
• Saturday October 26, 2024 – Belleville vs Toronto (7:00 p.m. ET – CAA Arena)
• Wednesday October 30 2024 – Belleville vs Providence (7:00 p.m. ET – CAA Arena) (Halloween Game)

Ticket Info:

Tickets for all games through the first half of the 2024-25 Belleville Sens season are now on sale via Ticketmaster, by emailing tickets@bellevillesens.com, or at the Belleville Sens Box Office at CAA Arena during select hours.

Fans looking to get a head start on locking up tickets for any game on the schedule can do so now by becoming a season seat member, purchasing a flex pack membership, or putting down a deposit for a group experience. More information on those ticket options, plus details on premium seating and Business Elite packages is available by visiting the Belleville Sens website or emailing tickets@bellevillesens.com.

—

Visit the Belleville Sens website: www.bellevillesens.com
Engage with the Belleville Sens on Twitter: @BellevilleSens
Like the Belleville Sens on Facebook: www.facebook.com/BellevilleSens
Follow the Belleville Sens on Instagram: @BellevilleSens
Listen to the Belleville Sens on Mixlr: www.bellevillesens.mixlr.com