That was the honest assessment of head coach Sheldon Keefe after the Toronto Marlies were dismantled by the Belleville Senators by a 6-2 scoreline on Friday night. A tired Marlies team manufactured little fight back in this game after falling behind 2-1, and they’ll need to dig deeper to take anything from Saturday’s rematch, with points against division rivals at a premium heading into the All-Star break.
First Period
The Marlies couldn’t take advantage of an early power play before Belleville took a 1-0 lead inside five minutes. After exiting the box, Drake Batherson’s first touch of the puck sent Max McCormick in alone on goal, where the Senators forward scored his sixth of the season on Belleville’s first shot attempt of the game.