The Marlies beat the Monsters on Friday night 5-2 in a game where they dominated. Artur Akhtyamov was in net and was on course for a shutout right up until the final minutes when two slipped past him, though that was in part because the Marlies had taken their foot off the gas a bit to coast through to the end of the game and get the well earned win, also to try and get an ENG, which they did.

Ryan Tverberg got it all started in the first period. He also later finished it with that empty net goal.

Tverberg also got in a rare for him fight at the end of the game, and maybe he didn't get many licks in, but showed the Monsters of what every member of the Marlies was capable of.

And then what happens when you put A Nylander on a power play? This happens.

Henry Thrun made it 3-0, and that's a nice reward for him as he's taken so much physical punishment in these playoffs–the Rocket went after him every game–as he has spent the playoffs just throwing himself in front of the attacking plays to break them up and he's willing to take big hits on the boards for the chance to get puck possession back in the defensive zone.

Then Q used his omnipotent power to get the fourth goal.

Quillan said after the game that in the previous game "we really didn't get to the net, didn't get shots, they outshot us by a ton." After this game he said part of the success was "just keeping it simple, win my battles, be in the right spots."

Naturally, during the garbage time in the last minute of the game with the Marlies having locked up the win, things got a little tense.

Post-game, Gruden noted they only now need to make sure they are ready to go on Sunday, saying "when their back's against the wall it brings out the best in them, and I guess that's a good trait to have."

The win comes after a difficult night on Wednesday where the Marlies were shutout and looked dead on the ice. Logan Shaw summed it up by saying "They haven’t seen our best game yet, and that’s on us as a whole group." The visible difference of play on Friday was astounding. John Gruden summed it up noting

One key item Gruden has pointed out is that, unlike the Rocket, the Monsters have four lines all capable of highly skilled fast players and he knew it would be an adjustment to face them. After the game Friday he said they had accomplished that goal.

The matchups will also be something to watch, which Gruden pointed out as difficult on Wednesday when the Lettieri line that was very successful against the Rocket was shutdown by the Monsters, but that changed on Friday where he said "We went to a hard matchup today. We had to simplify and get little wins. Win your matchup. If you win your matchup and everyone wins their matchup, we will win the game. That is the mindset we went into it with."

On the road things change, and Gruden added it will be harder in Cleveland to get the matchups you want but Friday's win was still a strategic success. "We don’t get the last change, and I am usually more worried about what we do, but we figured that would be a good way for us to start and for us to get little wins within the game. I think the confidence built as it went on."

Sunday's game in Cleveland will be at 3:00 p.m. and the Monsters play in the same large arena as the NBA Cavaliers. Given the time of day and the fact that Monday is a US holiday, it will be pretty noisy in there. Tverberg noted "it gets pretty hot in there," so we'll see how it goes on Sunday.

It sounds as though Akhtyamov will start again on Sunday, nothing certain of course, but Gruden said "he's taken the ball and is running with it," and he has high confidence in him.

Finally, I snapped this photo at the game.

Elsewhere in the AHL, the Western Conference final has been set after the Colorado Eagles knocked out the Coachella Valley Firebirds, and the Chicago Wolves knocked out the Grand Rapids Griffins who had the best record in the league for the regular season. The winner of the other spot in the Eastern Conference will be decided tonight, either the Scantron Penguins or the Springfield Thunderbirds.

On the NHL side we have game #2 of the Hurricanes and Canadiens Saturday at 7:00 p.m., then game #3 of the Golden Knights and Avalanche on Sunday at 8:00 p.m..

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Enjoy your weekend.

From The BranchesToronto Marlies