Sokolov scores again as Sens comeback falls short in Utica

In the words of Head Coach Dave Bell, the Belleville Sens “were the better team” for most of the game on Wednesday night in Utica, but saw a comeback effort fall short against the Comets.

Despite being heavily outshot, Utica took a four-goal lead through a first-period marker from Joe Gambardella and consecutive second-period tallies from Timur Ibragimov, Kyle Criscuolo, and Graeme Clarke. But, Kyle Betts would get a piece of a point shot from Tyler Kleven, before the end of the second, opening the window for Belleville to try and charge back in the third.

The Senators did just that, with Captain Dillon Heatherington scoring on a point shot early in the period and Egor Sokolov tipping home a power-play marker inside the final five minutes. However, the Senators weren’t able to find a game-tying goal and that stretch of three minutes or so in the second made the difference.

Fast Facts:

#3 Dillon Heatherington scored his third goal of the season
#4 Jacob Larsson had an assist and has points in back-to-back games
#10 Zach Ostapchuk recorded an assist
#11 Kyle Betts scored his second goal of the season and second in as many games
#13 Egor Sokolov finished with a goal and an assist, scoring for the sixth time in his last seven games played
#15 Matthew Highmore notched an assist
#18 Josh Currie had an assist and has points in back-to-back games
#25 Tyler Kleven registered an assist and has points in back-to-back games
#31 Kevin Mandolese made 10 saves on 14 shots against
#35 Leevi Merilainen made 7 saves on 7 shots
The Senators were 1/3 on the power play and 1/1 on the ViewTech Window and Door Penalty Kill

Highlights:

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Belleville Sens Head Coach Dave Bell’s thoughts on the game:

“I thought we were the better team for 54 minutes. I thought there was a six-minute lapse where we just weren’t good enough, where we let them tee-off in the high slot and those are tough ones to stop. I thought we had a great start, the momentum was there and then after we gave up the four goals, the guys never quit.”

Belleville Sens Head Coach Dave Bell on his club’s effort:

“There’s high character in there and they don’t quit. They trust each other that if they stick to the process they’re going to either stay in the game, or come back in the game, which they did tonight. I thought our power play looked the best it has in a long time, and that’s against the number one penalty kill in the league, so that’s another good sign.”

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Up Next:

• Friday January 19, 2024 @ Laval Rocket (Montreal Canadiens) – 7:00 p.m. ET
• Saturday January 20, 2024 vs Laval Rocket (Montreal Canadiens) – 7:00 p.m. ET (Bell Let’s Talk Night)
• Wednesday January 24, 2024 @ Milwaukee Admirals (Nashville Predators) – 8:00 p.m. ET
• Friday January 26, 2024 @ Grand Rapids Griffins (Detroit Red Wings) – 7:00 p.m. ET
• Saturday January 27, 2024 @ Grand Rapid Griffins (Detroit Red Wings) – 7:00 p.m. ET

Ticket Info:

Tickets for all Belleville Sens home games for the remainder of the 2023-24 season are now on sale online, via Ticketmaster or the Belleville Sens Ticket Hub, by visiting the Belleville Sens Box Office at the Quinte Sports & Wellness Centre, or by emailing tickets@bellevillesens.com. Box Office hours are available by clicking here.

Fans can also click the following links for more information on season seat memberships, flex packs, group experiences or Business Elite memberships, or send an email to tickets@bellevillesens.com.

The full 2023-2024 Belleville Senators regular season schedule can be found by clicking here.

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