AHL CALDER CUP NORTH DIVISION SEMIFINALS GAME 3: CLEVELAND MONSTERS @ SYRACUSE CRUNCH
Series tied 1-1, heading to Syracuse for first of three games at Upstate Medical University Arena at War Memorial
Round 1 of the AHL Calder Cup Playoffs continues tonight as the Syracuse Crunch host the Cleveland Monsters for game 3 of their series. Syracuse looks to take a convincing 2-1 series lead at home, whereas Cleveland plans to play home spoiler and take their own 1 game lead.
The Crunch ended their regular season ranked 2nd in the North Division, with a record of 41-24-3-4. Syracuse is led by first year captain Steven Santini, who is looking for his first point since February 6th, 2026 when he recorded an assist against the Belleville Senators.
The Monsters finished off their regular season right behind the Crunch, ranking 3rd in the North Division. Their record of 27-26-6-3 is partly caused by the excellence of captain Brendan Gaunce, who recorded 16 goals and 20 assists during the season.
Team Notes
Outshot Warriors
Syracuse has paid no attention to any difference in shots, as they have won 19 of 29 total games where they were outshot. Most recently, the Crunch won their 2nd game of the series where they were outshot 33-16.
Netminder Masters
A huge contributor to both teams are their goaltenders, most notably Brandon Halverson and Zach Sawchenko. Sawchenko stole the show in game 1 with 29 saves on 31 shots, while Halverson won it for the Crunch in game 2 with 32 saves on 33 shots.
Notable Hardware
The Crunch’s star forward Jakob Pelletier recently won the John B. Sollenberger trophy for leading the league in points, logging 28 goals and 49 assists in 63 games played. In 7 total games this season, including playoffs, Pelletier has recorded 5 goals and 3 assists against the Monsters.
To watch game 3 of the Calder Cup playoffs between the Crunch and Monsters, tune into AHLTV on FloHockey at 7:00 PM for puckdrop! To follow along on your phone, check out Oswego Now’s Live Blog!