Binghamton Devils Shutout Once Again 4-0 to Cleveland Monsters

Might as well pull Friday night’s script out and apply it to Saturday as for the second game in a row Binghamton’s offense was no where to be found in the Devils’ 4-0 loss to the Cleveland Monsters. Goaltender Cory Schneider made his first start of the season on a rehab assignment and gave up three goals on 31 shots, with the fourth being an empty netter.

Photo provided by Alicia Strauch

Schneider wasn’t to blame on all three and looked good, but didn’t get much help from his defense. After scoring 12 goals in the first two outings, Binghamton (3-4-0-0) has now scored just six in the last five outings as the club suffered their third loss in a row.

Cleveland (5-2-0-0) drew first blood as they scored three goals in a span of 1:47 late in the second period that caught the Devils off guard.

Zac Dalpe’s shot from along the wall caught the stick of Brett Seney and the puck changed directions going top shelf past Schneider for his sixth. 20 seconds later, it was 2-0 when Gabriel Carlsson pounced on a rebound shot by Kevin Stenlund, as he got tangled up with Schneider in the crease. Then, Vitaly Abramov found Paul Bittner by the corner of the net for an easy tap-in as Schneider wasn’t able to react in time with the perfect tic-tac-toe passing by the Monsters.

The Devils were looking to capitalize on a four minute powerplay during the waning seconds of the middle frame that carried over into the third as Sam Vigneault cut John Quenneville with a high stick that drew blood. However, the Monsters killed it off with some nice glove stops by netminder Matiss Kivlenieks, as he finished with 31 saves for his second professional shutout.

Just like on Friday, the Devils found themselves in a three goal hole late in the final period and a timeout with a goalie pulled, and just like on Friday, an empty net tally sealed the deal from veteran Nathan Gerbe giving the Devils their third straight loss.

Line-Ups

Forwards: Tangradi - Seney - Lappin, Quenneville - McLeod - Anderson, Gignac - Speers - Bastian, Baddock - Schmelzer - Gabriel

Defensemen: Strait - Ramage, Yakovlev - Kapla, Sissons - Gryba

In Goal: Cory Schneider, Mackenzie Blackwood

Scratches: Cam Johnson, Colton White, Josh Jacobs, Blake Pietila, Yegor Sharangovich and Marian Studenic

Post Game Notes

• Tangradi and Kapla with the A’s.
• Devils actually came out flying in the first 10 minutes as they caught the Monsters flat-footed, but once Cleveland found their legs, the ice tilted in their favor that led to the second period outburst.
• JQ was saddled in taking Marion Studenic’s slot on the second line but had little impact missing the net and several turnovers, as the whole team did likewise on both fronts.
• Gryba played fairly well as he made some accurate passes and decent defensive work as this was his first game back in Binghamton since Game 5 of the 2011 Calder Cup Finals. He also wore #2 just like his playing days for the BSens.
• Colby Sissons made his second start of the season and was paired up with Gryba. I like this kid, alot, from what little I’ve seen so far.
• Shots ended up 32-31 Cleveland as the game went quick with little stoppages.
• The current scoreless streak is at 127:00 dating back to Wednesday night in Belleville late in the third period.
• I thought the second goal was goalie interference as Stenlund prevented movement by Schneider, but so it goes.
• This was the very first time a team from Cleveland has visited Binghamton, and it was great to see someone new. The league should do this more often in the future with consideration to travel expenses.

Three Stars

#1. Matiss Kivlenieks (31 saves), #2. Paul Bittner (1g, 2a), #3. Zac Dalpe (1g, 1a)

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Upcoming Games

Binghamton is back up to Belleville for a second Wednesday in a row as the Senators look to make it two in a row over the Devils.