Belleville Sens split games with Monsters in Cleveland

The Belleville Senators concluded their two-game weekend set against the Cleveland Monsters with a 5-2 loss at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse on Sunday afternoon.

In spite of that result, the Senators still remain in the fifth and final playoff position in the North Division, a point ahead of the Laval Rocket. Cleveland now sits two points back of Belleville with three games in hand.

Cleveland opened the scoring at the 5:43 mark of the first period when Cole Fonstad tallied on the power play. Shortly after, the Senators equalized after Roby Jarventie capitalized on a 5-on-3 man advantage to even the contest.

Later in the frame, the scoring resumed when Carson Meyer restored the Monsters' advantage. Belleville responded again, this time through Cole Reinhardt before Jake Christiansen gave the Monsters a 3-2 lead heading into the intermission.

In the second, Cleveland continued their strong play in the offensive zone as both Robbie Payne and Joona Luoto found the back of the net in the stanza.

A late Belleville push in the third saw them strike once more as Jacob Larsson scored from a sharp angle with an extra attacker on the ice with 1:42 left to play in regulation time.

On special teams, the Sens went 1-for-5 on the power play and 2-for-4 on the penalty kill. Antoine Bibeau made 31 saves in the loss. Jarventie extended his point streak to six straight games. He has scored in five of his last six appearances. After collecting a goal and an assist, Reinhardt now has points in three consecutive games.

“At the end of the day, that's the end of 18 games and 33 nights with some crazy travel and fluctuating rosters. You're not going to win them all. I got no complaints. The guys played right to the buzzer,” said interim head coach David Bell.

On Saturday night in Cleveland, Dylan Ferguson turned in a stellar 34-save performance as the Senators earned a 4-1 win over the Monsters.

Belleville opened the scoring with just 21 seconds left in the first period when Roby Jarventie capitalized on a 5-on-3 man advantage.

In the second, the Senators extended their advantage through another power-play marker as Maxence Guenette gave the visitors a 2-0 lead after 40 minutes of play.

Early into the final frame, Belleville resumed their scoring touch as both Mitchell Heard and Matthew Wedman found the back of the net before the mid-way point of the stanza. Late in the contest, the Monsters broke through as Owen Sillinger ended a shutout bid from Ferguson with 52.7 to play in regulation time.

On special teams, the Senators went 2-for-6 on the power play and 5-for-6 on the penalty kill. Cole Cassels has seven assists over his last three games. Matthew Wedman skated in his 100th AHL contest. Heard scored his first goal of the season. Belleville is 7-2-2-0 in their last 11 games.

“We stick together. Five tight anywhere on the ice and in those scrums. That's the way you have to play, with team toughness and team togetherness,” said Bell.

The Senators return to action Friday night when they host the Bridgeport Islanders, with puck drop scheduled for 7:05 p.m. at CAA Arena.