Marlies Clinch Eastern Crown Behind Nylander's OT Winner

The Toronto Marlies edged the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins 2-1 in overtime to win the Eastern Conference championship and advance to their third Calder Cup Finals in franchise history.

Alex Nylander, who spent time with the Penguins earlier in his career, scored the game-winner at 13:44 of the extra session. His shot from between the circles beat Sergei Murashov for the series-clinching goal. Nylander’s performance capped off a 4-2 series win for the Marlies.

Aidan McDonough gave the Penguins an early lead, scoring just 6:26 into the game on a power play. His fourth playoff goal of the postseason came with only six seconds of the man advantage. The goal was McDonough’s second of the series.

The Marlies responded in the second period when Easton Cowan tallied his third of the series and fourth in his last five games. Cowan capitalized on a rebound of a close-in shot by Ryan Tverberg to tie the game at 1-1.

Goalie Artur Akhtyamov was stellar in net, making 39 saves and shutting out the Penguins over the final 67-plus minutes of the game. Murashov, meanwhile, stopped 37 of 39 shots in the loss.

The Marlies, the top affiliate of the Toronto Maple Leafs, finished the regular season with a 36-26-5-5 record (82 points) and a .569 points percentage. That mark is the lowest by an eventual Calder Cup finalist since the 2004 Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (.538).

Under third-year head coach John Gruden, Toronto defeated Rochester (2-1), Laval (3-2), Cleveland (3-2), and the Penguins (4-2) to win the conference title. The Marlies will face the winner of the Western Conference Finals between the Colorado Eagles and the Chicago Wolves.

The team will now turn its focus to the Calder Cup Finals, where they look to capture their first title since 2018. The Western Conference champion will be known by the end of the week, with the Finals set to begin shortly thereafter.