Lake Erie Monsters come back with a comeback win in season opener

Right winger Matt Ford wins it for the Monsters with a quick shot from the slot at in the third period.

CLEVELAND, Ohio — The young Monsters put on a show for the opening-night crowd of 12,524 at The Q on Friday. They played hard and fast in crafting a stirring comeback victory over the Syracuse Crunch, 3-2.

"I told the guys that if we were fast and physical, everything else would take care of itself," Monsters coach David Quinn said. "And I liked our mental toughness and attitude. We didn't get too high or too low."

Right winger Matt Ford won it with a quick shot from the slot at 17:02 of the third period. Ford gathered the puck, turned and zipped it past Crunch goalie Timo Pielmeier.

"I wasn't trying for a corner; I just wanted to get it on net," Ford said.

Just when the Monsters get their fans excited, they are forced to hit the road. They begin a seven-game trip in Syracuse, N.Y., tonight.

"It's an opportunity for guys to bond a little bit and create some team unity," Quinn said.

The Monsters outshot Syracuse, 38-15. They held the Crunch to seven shots over the final two periods.

"It was a total team effort on defense," captain and defenseman David Liffiton said. "We were hungry on the puck."

The Monsters dominated the second period, overwhelming the Crunch with their work rate. They gave up an early goal to fall behind, 2-0, but rallied to tie.

"Midway through the second, the puck popped loose from a scrum in front of the Syracuse net. Ford dropped it off to left winger Justin Mercier, who went upstairs from the right circle.

Monsters center Julian Talbot made it 2-2 less than 90 seconds later. Talbot turned and fired from the edge of the left circle, the primary assist going to Ryan Stoa.

With two minutes remaining in the second, Talbot gained possession on the right side and swooped in alone against Pielmeier. Pielmeier blocked the shot.

Talbot was acquired from St. Louis over the summer for T.J. Hensick. Talbot had 17 goals and 15 assists in 76 games last season for the AHL's Peoria Rivermen.

Syracuse led, 1-0, after an action-packed first period. Punches were exchanged between players on three occasions.

At 9:59, Syracuse center Trevor Smith received a pass from Maxime Macenauer and beat goalie Jason Bacashihua from the slot. Macenauer had slipped free along the left boards.

Quinn opted to start Bacashihua over John Grahame. Bacashihua was with the Monsters for parts of their first two seasons, then played for Hershey last season.

Monsters enforcer Patrick Bordeleau crushed the Crunch's Nick Bonino near center ice with five minutes left in the period. Seconds later, Bordeleau fought Mat Clark. The crowd went wild.

The AHL began its 75th season. Players from Cleveland and Syracuse, two of the league's senior-most cities, wore snazzy throwback jerseys: The Monsters were the Barons and the Crunch was the Stars.

As part of the season-opening festivities in Cleveland, the Calder Cup that was retired in 2001 was in the building.