ALBANY, NY – The Albany Devils shutout the Syracuse Crunch, 3-0, Wednesday at Times Union Center to pick up two crucial points to push them closer to the playoffs. Mackenzie Blackwood earned his second shutout of the season as he blocked all 33 shots he faced. Nick Lappin lead the team with two goals and an assist to power a strong Devils’ special teams. Albany improves to 36-30-2-3 while Syracuse falls to 34-24-6-7.
Lappin tapped in John Quenneville’s deflected shot on a power-play at 17:40 of the first period to open the game’s scoring. Jacob MacDonald picked up his 20th point as a Devil with the secondary assist on Lappin’s 10th goal of the season. Quenneville’s 30th assist gives him five points in five games against Syracuse.
Lappin’s second goal of the game came with the Devils down a man at 2:12 of the second period. The forward forces the puck into the neutral zone to spring himself on a breakaway as he beat goaltender Mike McKenna, who made 29 saves on the night.
Brian Gibbons followed at 9:14 of the second with Albany’s second short-handed goal of the game. Gibbons received a pass from Lappin at mid-ice and beat the only defender in his path to score his 14th goal of the season and give the Devils a 3-0 lead. With the two short-handed tallies, the Devils now have eight on the season.
The Devils play at Times Union Center on Friday against the St. John’s IceCaps. Puck drop is at 7 pm.
