The Cleveland Monsters six-game road trip did not get off to a good start as they lost two of their three games over the weekend.
The prospect of playing six consecutive games on the road to close out the month of October was always going to be tough for the Cleveland Monsters. Coming away with just one win in three contests is disappointing, yet unsurprising. Playing on the road in the AHL is tough enough, there days in a row is even more difficult. Add in the fact that Cleveland is a team in transition and the results from the weekend are expected.
The disappointing aspect of the weekend is that Utica won their first game of the season against the Monsters. While it is early in the season and the Comets were going to win eventually, it is a bit more comforting to not be the team a formerly winless club gets their first win of the season against. The split against Lehigh Valley is nice and so is winning in non-shootout fashion. The next step for Cleveland is finding a way to win in regulation as the win over the Phantoms came in overtime.
Skater stats
Kirill Marchenko (4), Brendan Gaunce (1 PP, 2, 3), Justin Richards (1), Emil Bemstrom (3,4), Trey Fix-Wolansky (2,3), and Carson Meyer (2) all scored for the Monsters over the weekend.
Assisting on those goals were David Jiricek (1,2,3,4), Gavin Beyrether (1,2,3), Jake Christiansen (3) Bemstrom (2,3,4,5), Marchenko (2,3), Meyer (2,3,4), and Richards (3).
Between the pipes
Goaltending duties were split between Jet Greaves and Pavel Cajan. Greaves saved 51 of 59 shots on goal across two games with eight goals allowed. Cajan allowed three goals on 30 shots in his lone appearance. Cajan’s appearance in the second game of the weekend was the Monsters only win in their three games.
Looking at the Standings
Even with the disappointing weekend the Monsters spot in the standings was not subject to a fall. Cleveland and Rochester currently both has 6 points on the year, the most in the AHL North Division. While the Americans have two regulation wins to Cleveland’s zero, it is the Monsters who have outscored the Americans 21-15. Additionally Cleveland is one of just two teams in the division with a positive goal differential (21-20), the other being the Syracuse Crunch (18-17).
What’s ahead
The Monsters will close out the remainder of their six-game road trip beginning Wednesday. Cleveland will be taking on the Wilkes-Barre Scranton Penguins as they look to get back in the win column. After that it is a return trip to Utica and their first visit to Syracuse to finish things up.
