Marlies fall to Monsters in Game 2, series tied heading back to Toronto

"The Monsters outshot the Marlies 24-18, outplaying the Marlies through the first two periods to send the series back to Toronto even. The Marlies got going in the third period, outshooting the Monsters 7-2 in the final frame, but were unable to beat goaltender Zach Sawchenko, who turned aside 17 shots in the win."

"Monsters forward Roman Ahcan opened the game's scoring on a 2-on-1, finishing off a cross-ice pass from Zach Aston-Reese for his first goal of the 2025-26 postseason. Ahcan fired a wrist shot over the sprawled-out Artur Akhtyamov to get the Monsters faithful out of their seats."

"The Monsters extended their lead to 2-0 with 1:07 remaining in the first period when Monsters forward Mikael Pyyhtiä deflected home Luca Del Bel Bulluz's point shot. Pyyhtiä picked up his second goal of the playoffs, building on what was a strong regular season. The Columbus Blue Jackets' fourth-round draft pick from 2020 recorded 21 goals and 28 assists during the regular season, finishing with 49 points, the second-most on the Monsters."

"Bo Groulx was able to get the Marlies on the board, recording his first career shorthanded postseason goal. Marlies defenceman Marshall Rifai fired the puck down the ice, allowing Groulx to use his speed to beat all the Monsters to the puck after it took a funny bounce off the endboards. Groulx was able to beat an outstretched Sawchenko to record his third goal of the playoffs, and second in as many games."

Cleveland won Game 2 of the North Division Finals 3-1 against Toronto at Rocket Arena. The Monsters outshot the Marlies 24-18 and controlled play through the first two periods, taking a 2-0 lead. Roman Ahcan scored first on a 2-on-1, finishing a cross-ice pass from Zach Aston-Reese. Mikael Pyyhtiä extended the lead with a deflection of Luca Del Bel Bulluz’s point shot. Bo Groulx scored for Toronto with a shorthanded goal after a puck bounce off the endboards. Toronto improved in the third period, outshooting Cleveland 7-2, but Zach Sawchenko made 17 saves to secure the win.

Read at TheLeafsNation