Jakob Pelletier recorded his second consecutive hat trick on Tuesday night as the Syracuse Crunch shut out the Hamilton Hammers 7‑0 at the Upstate Medical University Arena, according to CNY Central. Pelletier added an assist for a four‑point night, while Dyllan Gill posted a goal and two assists for a three‑point performance. Nick Abruzzese contributed three assists, and nine Crunch players recorded at least one point.
Goaltender Mads Sogaard earned the shutout by stopping all 21 shots he faced. Vítek Vanek turned aside 13 of 19 shots before being relieved by Josh Kotai, who stopped 13 of 14 in the third period. The Crunch’s power play converted on two of six opportunities, and the penalty kill was perfect at five‑for‑five.
The scoring opened early, with Max Groshev firing a wrist shot just 2:12 into the game after blocking a shot at the blue line. Four minutes later, Gill supplied a cross‑crease feed to Abruzzese, who redirected the puck to Pelletier for his first goal. Gill’s point shot hit the crossbar, rebounded to Noah Steen for a fourth goal before the end of the first period.
Pelletier added a shorthanded breakaway goal five minutes into the second period, beating Vanek five‑hole. At 8:17, Gill’s slap shot from the right circle found the net for the fifth goal. The Crunch extended the lead to 5‑0 before a power‑play goal at 14:54, when Harkins scored from the high slot.
Pelletier completed his hat trick midway through the third period when Abruzzese centered the puck and Pelletier redirected it on the back door during a man‑advantage. The Crunch added two more goals to finish the blow‑out.
Pelletier’s back‑to‑back hat tricks are the first for Syracuse since Alexandre Picard achieved the feat on March 20 and March 21, 2009, according to the report. Additionally, Abruzzese posted back‑to‑back three‑assist games, and Gill recorded his first career three‑point game.
What’s next: The Crunch return to action next Friday when they travel to Utica to face the Comets.
Sources: cnycentral.com
