Worcester Sharks Falls To Manchester 7-2
By Ryan Bayer
Worcester Sharks defenseman #5 Matt Tennyson. Mandatory Credit: Worcester Sharks media department.
Worcester, MA– The Worcester Sharks (23-21-1-5, 52pts) kicked off a 3-in-3 home weekend with a 7-2 loss to the Manchester Monarchs (23-24-2-3, 51pts) on Friday evening in front of 3,978 fans at the DCU Center. The Sharks continue the home stand on Saturday with a 7pm start vs. the Portland Pirates.
Harri Sateri allowed seven goals on 31 shots and Bracken Kearns added two assists as the Sharks tied a franchise record with their 7th straight home loss (0-5-0-2). Matt Tennyson and Jon Matsumoto scored for Worcester and Taylor Doherty returned to the lineup after missing the last 29 games due to injury. Seven different Monarchs recorded multi point games led by two goals by Brandon Kozun.
There was no scoring in the first period as both Harri Sateri Sateri made seven saves and Martin Jones six stops. The best scoring chance either team had was when Manchester’s Tyler Toffoli looked to have a easy rebound tap-in, but was denied by a highlight save by Sateri midway through the first period. Manchester went 0 for 2 on the power play while Worcester went 0 for 1 in the opening frame.
Manchester dominated the second period as they scored five goals in a 9:53 span to take charge and took a 5-1 lead. The scoring started when a botched deke move by Jordan Weal (7th) faked out Sateri, leaving the net wide open as Weal tapped the puck in giving the Monarchs a 1-0 lead at 8:37. Worcester tied the game less than a minute later as Matt Tennyson (4th) took a low wrist shot from the point that slipped past Jones on the power play at 9:30. Manchester would go on to score the next three goals in a span of two and half minutes to give them a 4-1 lead. Bryan Rodney’s (3rd) on the power play at 11:09 started the span, as goals by Brandon Kozun (17th) and Tanner Pearson (13th) would follow to stretch the Monarch’s lead to three goals. The Monarchs capped off the second period scoring by a Tyler Toffoli (25th) goal at 17:50 of the period, making it 5-1 in favor of Manchester. The Monarchs outshot the Sharks 17 to 9 in the second period and held a 23 to 15 advantage for the game.
After Daniil Tarasov was denied by Martin Jones on a penalty shot at 4:17 of the third period, Worcester would use the momentum they gained to cut the lead to 5-2. Jon Matsumoto (12th) took a nice pass from Bracken Kearns and roofed one over the glove of Martin Jones at 4:46 of the third period. Brandon Kozun (18th) would strike again for the Monarchs at 12:47 of the period making it 6-2 Manchester. The Monarchs would score the game’s final goal at 14:37 as Linden Very (14th) blasted a wrist shot past Sateri to make it 7-2. Worcester outshot Manchester 17 to 8 in the third period giving them a 32 to 31 lead in shots for the game.
The Sharks overall record falls to 23-21-1-5 (52pts in 50gp) and 8-10-1-3 (19pts in 21gp) on home ice this season.
Notables Report:
Three Stars:
1. MCH – 14 Tanner Pearson
2. MCH – 15 Brandon Kozun
3. MCH – 26 Tyler Toffoli
Final shots were 32-31 in favor of Worcester… Martin Jones made 30 saves on 32 shots for Manchester… Harri Sateri made 24 saves on 31 shots for Worcester. Worcester went 1-for-3 on the power play, while Manchester went 1-for-6
***Post Game Report courtesy of the Worcester Sharks.***
Official Link: http://www.sharksahl.com/story.asp?story_id=3430
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