The Toronto Marlies were able to break through against the defensively adept Albany Devils, as TJ Brennan and Zach Hyman each scored a pair of goals and Antoine Bibeau made 40 saves in a 5-3 victory in front of 8,068 fans at Ricoh Coliseum on Friday.
Brennan, who led the Marlies with 68 points during the regular season, scored a power play goal midway through the second period and beat Devils goalie Scott Wedgewood again at 6:43 of the third for the game-winning goal.
Here is TJ Brennan's second of the night. #MarliesLive https://t.co/PemaYU9JGB
β Z-Toronto Marlies (@TorontoMarlies) May 7, 2016
Hyman gave Toronto the lead early in the third and provided the insurance marker on a wraparound with 1:45 left in regulation.
Ben Smith also scored for Toronto, who even the series at 1-1.
Toronto was bolstered by the return of forwards William Nylander and Nikita Soshnikov to the lineup after both missed Game 1. Albany's lineup was weakened by the absence of 2015 top pick Pavel Zacha and Jim O'Brien, but the Devils were the stronger of the two clubs in the opening 20 minutes, firing 15 shots on Bibeau, who replaced Garret Sparks in goal.
The Marlies scored the opening goal midway through the first just as a Devils penalty expired. Smith converted the rebound of a Connor Carrick point shot past Wedgewood, who was the first star of Game 1.
Albany took just 78 seconds to respond, as defenseman Dan Kelly (who had just four goals in 55 AHL games this season) beat Bibeau with a long distance one timer to tie the game and fired another point shot later in the period that Nick Lappin pounced on to put the Devils in front.
#Marlies win 5-3 over Albany and the teams beat each other up. pic.twitter.com/Ml2avE6iMs
β Michael Augello (@MikeInBuffalo) May 7, 2016
The turning point of the game occurred seven minutes into the second period, as Toronto killed off a lengthy 5-on-3 power play with Brennan and Hyman in the penalty box for high sticking.
"It brought our team to life and brought the building to life." head coach Sheldon Keefe said after the game. "It was a big moment, if they score there it's a much different hockey game."
Moments after the 5-on-3, Toronto's special teams gave them a boost once again, as Brennan tied the game on the power play.
The seesaw battle continued in the third, as Hyman deflected Viktor Loov's shot to put Toronto back in the lead. Matt Lorito responded less than two minutes later to tie it 3-3, before Brennan scored his second of the game to put the Marlies ahead for good.
Zach Hyman! π¨ #MarliesLive https://t.co/YERJODe3hR
β Z-Toronto Marlies (@TorontoMarlies) May 7, 2016
The series now shifts to Albany for the next three games, with Game 3 scheduled for Sunday afternoon.
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