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AHL Rochester Americans

Amerks Collide with B-Sens Tonight at Blue Cross Arena

April 8, 2011 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Rochester Americans News Release


Rochester Americans vs. Binghamton Senators

Friday, April 8, 2011 @ The Blue Cross Arena, AHL Game

Game Notes: Tonight, the Rochester Americans return home as they close out their season series with the Binghamton Senators at The Blue Cross Arena. Fans can tune in for all the live action starting at 7:35 p.m. on SportsRadio 1280 WHTK and FM 107.3, Rochester's Sports Talk. The game will also be televised live on Time Warner Cable SportsNet.

Promotions: Tonight's game is the final installment of the "Dollar Dogs 'N' Drinks" promotion, presented by Molson Coors. It's your last chance to purchase Zweigle's Hot Dogs and select draft products for just $1.00. Fans can also have the opportunity to enjoy any fountain Pepsi products for $1.00. Further, the game features the Mark's Family Value Night special, offering fans four tickets, four T-shirts, one large one-topping pizza, two orders of jumbo wings and one two-liter bottle of soda for just $69.00 from any area participating Mark's Pizzeria location. Fans can purchase the package online at ticketmaster.com or in person at The Blue Cross Arena Box Office. For more information, please call the Amerks office at (585) 454-5335 and speak with a ticket sales representative today.

Pair Summoned to South Florida: The Amerks will be without the services tonight of forwards Bill Thomas and Patrick Rissmiller following their departure to join the big club in South Florida. The pair is expected to be in the lineup tonight as Florida takes on the Tampa Bay Lightning in their final road contest of the season. Rissmiller, 32, earns his third call-up of the season. The Belmont, Massachusetts native, who also just returned to Rochester last weekend after a stint with Florida, has contributed at least a point in seven of eight games (2+6) since he arrived from Lake Erie at the NHL trade deadline. The 6-foot-4, 220-pound forward has also skated in eight games with Florida this season. Thomas, 27, has played in 22 games with Florida this season, scoring three goals with three assists and picking up four penalty minutes. For his career in the National Hockey League, he has played in 78 games with Phoenix (2005-08), Pittsburgh (2008-09) and Florida (2010-11), registering 26 points (14+12).

Reinforcements Arrive For Final Weekend: In an effort to supplement a depleted lineup, Rochester announced yesterday the addition of forwards Mike Hedden (Professional Tryout) and Anthony Luciani (Amateur Tryout). The pair is expected to make their Amerks debut tonight and be in the Amerks lineup through the weekend as Rochester brings the 2010-11 American Hockey League season to a close. Hedden, 26, comes to Rochester after posting a breakout season with the ECHL's Toledo Walleye in 2010-11. A native of Dunnville, Ontario, Hedden led the Walleye with a career-high 32 goals and finished third on the team in scoring with 52 points in 57 games. He also made his American Hockey League debut this season, assisting on one goal in a combined four games between the Grand Rapids Griffins and Rockford IceHogs. Luciani, 20, makes his first jump to the professional ranks after recently completing his third season with the Erie Otters of the Ontario Hockey League. The Maple, Ontario, native finished fourth on the team in scoring, capturing career-highs in both points (78) and assists (49). He was also among Erie's top performers in the 2011 OHL Playoffs, scoring a team-high seven goals and 10 points in seven postseason appearances. He also signed an Entry Level NHL contract with the Panthers Thursday afternoon.

Head-to-Head: The contest will be the eighth and final get-together between the intrastate rivals this season. The Amerks are 3-3-0-1 this season against the B-Sens, with six of the seven matchups being decided by just one goal and three requiring a shootout to determine the winner. Most recently, Rochester skated away with a 3-2 shootout victory on February 26th in which Tyler Plante finished with 31 saves and also denied all five Binghamton shooters in the skills competition. Rochester is also winless against the Sens this season. The Amerks also trail in the all-time series with the Baby Sens with a 31-34-6 showing.

By The Numbers: Rochester is just 15-21-4-2 against North Division opponents this season, but shows a 16-16-1-2 mark against non-divisional rivals. Home ice has not been very welcoming for the Amerks, who are just 14-19-2-3 within the friendly confines of The Blue Cross Arena. Conversely, Rochester fares somewhat better on the road with a 17-18-3-1 mark. The Amerks are 12-11-0-2 this season against the AHL's four other New York State based teams, but have been outscored by their fellow Empire State opponents 81-74.

Taylor Provides Bright Spot: Although there are just three games remaining in the Amerks' season, veteran forward Chris Taylor is on the brink of reaching yet another personal milestone. Having skated in 515 career games as an Amerk, the veteran forward is slated to take the ice for his 518th appearance in the red, white and blue in Sunday's season finale against Lake Erie, passing Darryl Sly's mark of 517 games and moving into fourth on the franchise's al-time games played list.

Make It or Break It: Amerks forward Michael Duco is three games away from either making team history or breaking a 55-year long streak as the team enters the final stretch of the regular season. Since the team's inception in 1956, at least one player from each season has scored 20 or more goals, a streak piloted by Bronco Horvath's 37-goal output in the franchise's inaugural season in 1956-57. With 19 goals on the campaign coming into this evening, Duco sits just one tally shy of joining the elite group or becoming the first Amerk in franchise history not to reach the single-season 20-goal plateau.

Amerks Notes: Rochester (31-37-5-4, 71 points) enters the contest in the midst of a stretch that includes just two wins in its last 15 games heading into the final weekend of the regular season. Despite their recent struggles, however, the Amerks have claimed points in three of their last four. The team is coming off a lopsided 6-0 loss to the Adirondack Phantoms on Monday at the Glens Falls Civic Center. With just one win in their last 10 games (a record of 1-6-2-1 in that span), the Amerks remain in the basement of the American Hockey League's North Division and will miss the postseason for the third time in four years.

Special Teams Breakdown: Rochester currently has the ninth best power-play in the league (19.1 percentage), but its penalty kill ranks 28th out of the 30-team AHL with a 78.3 success rate. Rochester's power-play unit has proven to be more effective on the road as its 23.7 efficiency rate is presently second best in the AHL. As a team, the Amerks have also allowed a league-worst 15 shorthanded goals against, nine coming at home and six on the road.

Team and League Leaders: Defenseman Mike Kostka leads the Amerks with 37 assists and 52 points and is currently fifth among AHL defensemen in overall scoring. His 15 goals are tied for the most among league rearguards. Ten of his 15 goals this season have been scored on the man-advantage, also the most among any other player at his position in the AHL. The third-year blueliner also ranks 15th in the league with 20 power-play assists and is the only Amerk this season to play in all 77 games thus far.

Having already captured new AHL career-highs in both goals (19) and points (30), Duco continues to maintain the team lead with a team-high 19 goals, including 11 on the power play, good enough for 15th in the AHL in that category.

First-year forward Eric Selleck, who recently returned from a four-game suspension, ranks third among league rookies and 12th in the league with 203 penalty minutes. Upon surpassing the 200-PIM plateau, he became just the sixth forward in team history to reach the mark in just one season with the Amerks. The others include Bob Kelly (206), Mike Hartman (283), Dave Schultz (248), Jeff Brubaker (253) and most recently, Eric Boulton (276).

Back from his recent NHL stint with the Panthers, goaltender Tyler Plante is expected to resume the starting duties for the Amerks tonight. Plante, who had a career-long streak of starting 15 consecutive games earlier this season, shows a 13-16-2 record with one shutout in 34 appearances. The 23 year-old also boasts a 3.06 goals-against average and a .911 save percentage. His 13 victories are already good for a new AHL career-high.

Binghamton Notes: Binghamton (41-29-3-5, 90 points), playing its final road contest of the season tonight, comes into the matchup with an impressive 7-2-0-1 mark in its last 10 games, most recently defeating the Norfolk Admirals 2-1 in overtime on Wednesday. With the victory, the Senators clinched a spot in the 2011 Calder Cup Playoffs in the Eastern Conference for the first time in five years by virtue of the crossover rule. Despite currently owning a fifth-place standing in the East Division (seventh in the Eastern Conference), the B-Sens have more wins and points than the third and fourth place teams in the Atlantic Division. Binghamton presently has the league's best power-play unit in the league (22.1 percentage), while its road penalty killing unit is also tops in the league with an AHL-best 87.7 success rate.

Team and League Leaders: The B-Sens come to town fueled by the AHL's current leading scorer in sixth-year veteran Corey Locke. Locke, who's with his fourth AHL team in six years, currently paces the league with 86 points (21+65), while also sitting atop the AHL in assists (65) and power-play assists (31). It's the second straight season Locke has put up 85 points or more. Playing at a 1.25 points-per-game pace, the 2011 AHL All-Star has collected at least one point in 20 of his last 27 games, a stretch that includes seven games with multiple point performances and a season-high nine-game point streak. Locke comes into this evening with just one assist in his last three games, despite sitting out Binghamton's last game with an injury. Before that, the Toronto, Ontario, native had posted back-to-back five-game point strings over 11 games.

First-year forward Colin Greening, presently on NHL recall with the Ottawa Senators, has quietly posted impressive numbers for the B-Sens (15+25) through just 59 games, good enough for 15th in rookie point production. Veteran forward Ryan Keller currently leads the squad with 31 goals, which places him in a tie for sixth overall in the AHL. Despite also being on NHL recall, blueliners Andre Benoit (11+44) and Derek Smith (10+44) are second and third amongst league defensemen in scoring with 55 and 54 points, respectively.

Between the pipes, Barry Brust has appeared in 51 games for Binghamton and sits near the top of the league in a plethora of goaltending categories. His 1,519 saves currently lead all AHL netminders, while he is also tied for the league-lead with seven shutouts. The Swan River, Manitoba, native also ranks second in wins (29) and seventh with a .925 save percentage, while boasting a 2.54 goals-against average.

Bit of a Homecoming: Goaltender Mike Brodeur makes his return to The Blue Cross Arena since calling Rochester his home in 2008-09. The 25-year-old netminder finished his service in the Flower City among the league's elite goaltenders, compiling an 18-13-4 record in 38 games. His 2.45 goals-against average and .921 save percentage were 11th and seventh best, respectively, at the conclusion of the regular season. This season with Binghamton, the former AHL All-Star shows a 3-5-0 record with a 2.96 goals-against average and a .903 save percentage in nine appearances. He also made his National Hockey League debut last season with the Ottawa Senators, recording a 22-save win against the Minnesota Wild on December 19th.

Next Game: Rochester heads north of the border on Saturday, April 9th to take on the North Division rival Toronto Marlies in an afternoon engagement at Ricoh Coliseum. The 3:00 p.m. matinee will be carried live SportsRadio 1280 WHTK and FM 107.3, Rochester's Sports Talk. The Amerks sport a 4-3-0-0 mark against the Marlies this season, including an unblemished 3-0-0-0 advantage within the Canadian borders. Toronto has claimed the last two meetings with the Amerks, including its 6-5 win in Rochester back on March 11th.

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