Game Day Build-Up: Another Battle of Ontario marks Sens final home game of 2022

Presented by Carpenters Union Local 397

Dec.28/22 vs Toronto Marlies (NHL Affiliate: Toronto Maple Leafs)

The Set-Up:

After a rude welcome back from the break on Boxing Day, the Belleville Sens will look to answer back against their holiday hosts as the Toronto Marlies make a return trip to CAA Arena tonight. Despite 33 saves from Mads Sogaard, along with goals from Egor Sokolov and Joe Carroll (the first of his AHL career), the Sens weren’t able to keep pace with a Toronto offence that sits just shy of 100 goals scored for the season.  Toronto now has points in six straight, while Belleville is trying to find some more consistency in their last home game of 2022.

Previous History:

Monday’s loss at Scotiabank Arena was Belleville’s first defeat on Boxing Day in franchise history, with the Senators now holding a 3-1 record on the day after Christmas. The special teams battle factored in as well, with Belleville going 0/4 on the power play and Toronto getting a crucial mid-game goal on the man advantage, to go 1/5. Keith Petruzzelli stopped 18 of just 20 shots against, earning his second win against the Senators in three attempts. Egor Sokolov’s goal was his fifth point against Toronto (three goals, two assists) in five games this season. The Senators loss drops the lifetime record against Toronto to 30-25-2-2 and 18-10-2-1 on the road. Belleville also falls behind in the 12-game season series as well, at 2-3-0-0.

Roster Notes:

Head Coach Troy Mann will only make one change to his lineup from Monday’s loss. Forward Jarid Lukosevicius will return from a two-game suspension following a headbutting incident last weekend in Manitoba and will draw in for Matthew Boucher. The line of Angus Crookshank, Ridly Greig and Egor Sokolov will likely stay together again, and Mads Sogaard is expected to make his fourth straight start and seventh straight appearance.

Injury Report:

Who to Watch:

After assisting on Egor Sokolov’s goal on Monday, Sens forward Ridly Greig has points in back-to-back games (one goal, one assist). The 20-year-old rookie from Lethbridge, Alberta, also mixed things up physically, delivering a bone-jarring hit on Toronto’s Marc Johnstone in the first period. He’ll likely continue to be a thorn in the Marlies’ side tonight as well. Forward Joe Carroll, who is up on a professional tryout offer (PTO), has points in back-to-back games.

Meanwhile, former NHL Senators’ forward Adam Gaudette continues to find success against the organization he used to represent. Gaudette has six points (three goals, three assists) in five games against Belleville this season. Toronto also has a few players who extended their point streaks against Belleville on Monday, including Noel Hofenmayer (five games), Marshall Rifai (three games), Joseph Blandisi (six games) and Semyon Der-Arguchintsev (six games).

Follow the action:

Tonight’s game can be seen on AHL TV or heard live on the Belleville Sens Entertainment Network. Pregame coverage starts at 6:45 p.m. (ET) with David Foot and Brock Ormond.

Ticket info:

Tickets for all Belleville Sens home games are available via Ticketmaster or at the CAA Arena Box Office, with more information on group experiences, promotional packs and more available on the Belleville Sens website.

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