AHL Rochester Americans

Amerks Kickoff Two-Game Set In Grand Rapids Tonight

Published on January 30, 2009 under American Hockey League (AHL)
Rochester Americans News Release


(Rochester, NY)... The Rochester Americans return to action tonight after the 2009 AHL All-Star break with the first of a two-game road set with Grand Rapids Griffins at Van Andel Arena. The 7:00 p.m. North Division contest will be the third of six scheduled meetings between the two teams and will be broadcast live on SportsRadio 1280 WHTK, whtk.com and AHL Live.

The Amerks complete the set with the Griffins on Saturday, January 31st. The Amerks dropped both previous contests between the two teams earlier this season, with the most recent coming in a 6-0 loss back on December 21st at The Blue Cross Arena. Rochester is 0-2-0-0 on the season and is 16-18-2 all-time against the Detroit Red Wings' affiliate.

Rochester (15-26-0-4, 34 points) enters the contest currently riding a three-game skid after falling short in a 3-0 whitewash to the Albany River Rats last Saturday evening. The loss was Rochester's second shutout in three nights as it fell to 10-6-0-2 in their last 18 games.

Rookie defenseman Jason Garrison currently leads Rochester with 19 assists and 22 points after the Florida Panthers loaned veteran forward Janis Sprukts to his native Latvian national team to participate in the 2010 Olympic qualifying tournament. Sprukts leaves the Amerks as the top-point getter with 28 points. Further, Garrison's 22 points presently rank him 19th among American Hockey League blueliners.

First-year forward Michael Duco is first on the team with 107 penalty minutes (PIM), with Tanner Glass a close second at 96 PIM. Goaltender Mike Brodeur, who has started 19 of the last 22 games for Rochester, boasts a 12-5-2 record in 19 games for the Amerks. His 2.16 goals-against average and .930 save percentage currently rank him second among AHL netminders in both goaltending categories, respectively. Further, his two shutouts tie him for fourth in the league.

Grand Rapids (28-9-6-3, 65 points), playing Game 3 of its current five-game homestand, comes into the matchup the winners of three straight after completing a two-game sweep over the Quad City Flames last weekend.

Fourth-year pro Darren Haydar leads the Griffins with a team-high 38 points and 16 goals. Rookie forward Justin Abdelkader leads the team with 59 PIM. Grand Rapids owns one of the best goaltending duos in the league in Jimmy Howard and Daniel Larsson. Howard shows a 13-10-2 record in 26 games between the pipes. His 2.40 goals-against average and .913 save percentage rank 7th and 17th in the AHL, respectively. Larsson, 15-5-1 in 24 games, is fifth with a 2.35 goals-against average and sixth with a .924 save percentage. Further, his 15 wins are good enough for 11th in the league among goaltenders.

Rochester returns home as it hosts the Rockford IceHogs on Wednesday, February 4th at The Blue Cross Arena. The 7:05 p.m. contest will be broadcast live on SportsRadio 1280 WHTK, whtk.com and AHL Live.

The game falls on a clevermethod Business Persons' Special, where fans can turn in their business cards at The Blue Cross Arena Box Office and receive any 100-premium seat for just $10. Offer is valid for all Amerks home games Monday through Thursday. Contact the Amerks Office at (585) 454-5335 for more information.

It's also Buy One, Get One Half-off night, where fans can purchase a ticket and get another for half the price in any seating section for any Sunday through Thursday game. Tickets can be purchased online through Ticketmaster.com. Further, it's a RARES Discount Night. The RARES discount is valid for all RARES members by logging onto www.rares.org to review their discounts.

Lastly, it also marks the next Military Discount Night, in which active military and veterans can present a Military ID or an American Legion or VFW membership card and receive premium seating for just $10 or 200 End seats for $5, a savings of $12.25 per ticket. All tickets can be purchased directly at the Box Office window at The Blue Cross Arena.

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American Hockey League Stories from January 30, 2009


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