AHL Rochester Americans

Amerks Host Marlies At Blue Cross Arena

March 28, 2010 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Rochester Americans News Release


Tonight, the Rochester Americans return home as they host the Toronto Marlies in the second leg of a home-and-home series between the two teams. The 3:00 p.m. matinee will be the seventh of eight scheduled meetings this season between the North Division rivals and will broadcast live on SportsRadio 1280 WHTK and FM 107.3, Rochester's Sports Talk. The afternoon contest will also be televised live on Time Warner Cable SportsNet Channel 26.

Promotions: The first 5,000 fans through the doors will receive a 2009-10 Amerks team photo, courtesy of the Democrat and Chronicle. The game also features the third installment of the Seneca Gaming Amerks Legends Series. Former Amerk goaltender Jim Pettie and Hall of Famers Craig Charron and Jim Hofford will be on hand to sign autographs before the game. Further, fans can meet their favorite players in the postgame full-team autograph session to be held immediately after the game in the upper atrium of The Blue Cross Arena.

Playoff Bound?: Rochester will clinch a berth in the 2010 Calder Cup Playoffs with a win today over Toronto and with the help of a Lake Erie regulation loss to San Antonio. The Amerks are bidding for a spot in the playoffs for the first time since the 2006-07 season after a two-year absence from postseason play.

Taylor Joins Elite AHL Club: Veteran forward Chris Taylor became the newest member of an exclusive AHL club during Rochester's game against the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins last weekend. Taylor's third-period goal was his second point of the game and the 500th point of his AHL career, making him just the 80th player in the 74-year history of the American Hockey League to reach that plateau. Further, the 18-year pro sits just a mere two goals away from moving ahead of Ron Garwasiuk for 13th on the all-time goals list.

Johnson Nears 70-Point Benchmark:

Amerks forward Jamie Johnson is four points away from becoming the first player since the 2004-05 campaign to reach the 70-point benchmark. He has just

seven games left to accomplish the feat, which was last achieved by Taylor in 2004-05.

March Road Warriors: After taking a 3-0-0-0 sweep on the road to kickoff the month of March, the Amerks have posted a 6-2-0-0 record since then in their eight road contests this month away from the friendly confines of The Blue Cross Arena. During that stretch, Rochester captured a season-high four straight on the road from March 5th to March 13th, the longest streak since winning three from January 15th to January 30th ( at Hamilton, Syracuse and Toronto).

Head-to-Head:

The matchup will be the seventh of eight get-togethers between the Amerks and Marlies this season. Rochester shows a perfect 6-0-0-0 record against Toronto this season, coming off its 7-3 rout over Toronto yesterday afternoon at Ricoh Coliseum. The Amerks are also flawless at home, posting a mark of 3-0-0-0. The Amerks have outscored the Marlies 23-9 through the six previous encounters. Rochester, however, is 18-21-1 all-time against the Toronto Maple Leafs' affiliate.

Amerks Notes: Rochester (40-31-2-0, 82 points) enters the contest after earning a 7-3 win over the Toronto Marlies last night at Ricoh Coliseum. Four players tallied three-point nights for the Amerks, who have now won two of their last three. With a win over the Marlies yesterday, Rochester now has a three-point cushion over the Abbotsford Heat and retains sole possession of second place in the American Hockey League's North Division.

Johnson, who shows 15 points (5+10) in his last 20 games, continues to be Rochester's top point-getter with a team-high 66 points (24+42). Playing at under a point-per-game pace, Johnson is tied for 12th in the AHL in overall point production, while his 42 assists are also 13th best in the league.

Jeff Taffe, coming off a three-assist effort yesterday against Toronto, stands one goal ahead of Johnson as the team's leader with 25 goals to match his season totals from a year ago. He presently ranks tied for 17th in the league in goals scored and is second among Rochester's active roster with six power-play goals.

Veteran defenseman Clay Wilson, fresh off a season-long seven-game point streak, is first on the team and ninth in the league with 45 assists, in addition to leading his club with 182 shots on goal. He enters the contest with 18 points (4+14) in his last 14 games. He also has a team-best 24 assists on the power-play this season, good enough for second in the AHL in that category. Wilson continues to be Rochester's top scoring defenseman with 59 points (14+45) and leads all league blueliners in scoring following a three-point outing against the Marlies on Saturday. Fellow defenseman Jordan Henry owns the team's best on-ice rating and is 13th in the league with a plus-27. Henry enters the contest in the midst of a four-game point streak, including three straight games with a goal.

Rookie goaltender Alexander Salak, who has started nine of the last 14 games between the pipes for Rochester, boasts a 28-14-0 record with a 2.86 goals-against average and a.910 save percentage in 46 games. His 28 wins presently rank him third among league netminders. His counterpart, third-year goaltender Tyler Plante, earned his ninth win of the season Saturday against the Marlies. Plante currently shows a 9-11-0 record with a 2.76 goals-against average and a.907 save percentage in just 22 games of service.

Veteran forward Mike York, who leads the team with eight power-play markers, has collected 19 points (8+11) in 16 games since returning to the lineup on February 19th. He also captured his 100th AHL point with his second goal of the game last night. Amerks captain Rory Fitzpatrick is three points from 200 as a pro, while 2010 AHL All-Star forward Graham Mink is just one goal shy from 200 pro goals.

Toronto Notes:

Toronto (30-32-6-5, 71 points), kicking off a two-game North Division road trip tonight, comes into the matchup currently on the heels of a two-game skid after dropping a 7-3 decision to the Amerks yesterday afternoon on home ice. Before that, however, the Marlies were enjoying a season-long five-game winning streak from March 12th to March 24th.

Fifth-year pro Andre Deveaux paces the Marlies in all offensive categories in goals (14), assists (23), points (37) and games played (65). His 190 penalty minutes are equal to that of Brennan Evans for the team lead. The duo also holds the 10th and 11th league rankings in the same category, respectively.

Veteran goaltender Joey MacDonald, a 2003 Harry "Hap" Holmes Award winner, has seen the majority of time between the pipes this season. He boasts a 14-19-3 record with a 3.18 goals-against average and a.893 save percentage in 36 games. MacDonald, however, leads Toronto's goaltending depth chart with 14 wins and 2,112 minutes played.

Joining the goaltending tandem for the Marlies this afternoon will be Andrew Engelage. In his just first season with Toronto, Engelage is 2-5-0 with a 4.17 goals-against average and a.863 save percentage.

Next Game:

The Amerks close out their March slate on Wednesday, March, 31st as they travel to Van Andel Arena to do battle with the Grand Rapids Griffins. The 7:00 p.m. North Division bout will be carried live on SportsRadio 1280 WHTK and FM 107.3, Rochester's Sports Talk.

Check out the Rochester Americans Statistics



American Hockey League Stories from March 28, 2010


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

OurSports Central