Unhappy returns

Not how Chris Madden wanted to come home. The kid across the way played a pretty good game, made some big stops, none bigger than a couple of breakaways on Sean Bergenheim and Masi Marjamaki, and then a two-on-one stop on Allan Rourke.

Let’s go in order. Nice breakout off the draw to produce the short-handed goal for Bridgeport, which is funny because the Sound Tigers had spent four minutes at even strength trying to break out with speed and/or possession even once. Sean Bergenheim shoots (and the man can’t buy a goal), Andrew Penner stops it (it didn’t register as a shot for some reason; I thought it was on goal, anyway), and Rourke buries the rebound into the empty net.

That’s it for beating Penner.


The Crunch came back in the first period with a second-rebound goal, Ben Simon’s, after Madden stopped the shot from the point and the rebound from the corner.

The second goal was funny; the dump-in stayed right in the no-fly zone to Madden’s left. He couldn’t touch it, but he had come a stride or two out of the net to play it when it caromed the way one would have expected it to: out beyond the goal line. As it was, he had to get back in the cage, and he did, to make the first save, but Greg Mauldin beat Ryan Caldwell to the rebound and popped it in. There’s the lead.

And then the stop on Bergenheim, who must’ve said “I don’t know” six times in three minutes after the game. The finish isn’t there, and it’s driving him nuts.

And then Masi Marjamaki gets a step on the defense, gets hooked from behind, and gets a weak shot off into Penner’s chest. Who’d have thought that would be a better shot than he’d get on the penalty shot Harry Dumas awarded him? Marjamaki went backhand and put it wide. (Bridgeport shooters are now 4-for-7 all-time.)

And then Rourke and Colley come down two-on-one, they give and go, Rourke gets it back, goes to his forehand from the right side, and Penner gets across. Back comes Syracuse, Joe Motzko puts it high glove, and it’s four in a row for Bridgeport.

Worth noting: Lyon Porter signed a pro tryout deal Friday with Syracuse. Porter played for Fairfield University in 2001-02 and 2002-03, the program’s final two seasons. Brett Nowak, the New Haven native who played 13 games for Bridgeport last year, is also with the Crunch; Madden stopped him on a breakaway with 3:28 remaining.

Long drive, so apologies if I’m more incoherent than usual… If I didn’t have to be awake in about five hours, I’d go all roadgeek and talk about what I did tonight: drive the entire length of misnumbered I-476, the longest 3-digit interstate in the land. That’s another 3di on my list, too; at least 10 now.

LINEUPS

BRIDGEPORT
F: Collins-Smith (A)-Hamilton
Bergenheim-Colley (C)-Brigley
Tunik-Koalska-Regier
Marjamaki/Masse
D: Jarrett-Gervais
Caldwell-Jarmuth
Rourke (A)-Macri

SYRACUSE
F: Hartigan (A)-Platt-Motzko
Mauldin-Simon (A)-Murray
Nowak-Verot-Lindstrom
Gornick/Porter
D: Methot-Pushor (C)
Canzanello-Delmore
MacMillan-Flood

Michael Fornabaio