AHL Rochester Americans

Amerks March into Last Quarter of the Season

February 23, 2009 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Rochester Americans News Release


(Rochester, NY)... After taking five out of a possible eight points over their four-game in five-night stretch this past week, the Rochester Americans enter the final quarter of the regular season this weekend with three games in as many nights.

Rochester's three-game weekend kicks off on Friday, February 27th as it travels north of the border to take on the Hamilton Bulldogs in a North Division showdown at Copps Coliseum. The 7:30 p.m. contest will be the seventh of eight meetings between the two teams this season and will be broadcast live on SportsRadio 1280 WHTK, whtk.com and AHL Live. The Amerks earned a 6-5 victory over the 'Dogs in the teams' last meeting back on January 11th at The Blue Cross Arena. Despite being outscored 24-19 and trailing with a 2-3-0-1 record in the season series, the Amerks still own a 62-49-9 all-time record against the Montreal Canadiens' affiliate.

The Amerks remain on the road the following night as they head to Broome County Veteran's Memorial Arena for the first of two back-to-back tilts with the Binghamton Senators. The 7:05 p.m. contest will be the fifth of eight meetings between the intra-state rivals and can be heard live on SportsRadio 1280 WHTK, whtk.com and AHL Live. Rookie defenseman Jason Garrison lifted the Amerks to a 3-2 overtime win in their last meeting with the B-Sens on February 7th. The win was Rochester's first against Binghamton this season. The Amerks are 20-26-4 lifetime against the Senators.

Rochester opens its March slate as it returns home on Sunday, March 1st to complete the home-and-home series with Binghamton. Faceoff is scheduled for 6:05 p.m. at The Blue Cross Arena and will be carried live on SportsRadio 1280 WHTK, whtk.com and AHL Live. The game features the next installment of the Amerks' Red Hot Sundays. All fans who wear red to the game can receive tickets for as low as $5 for 200-end seating and best available seating for $10. As part of the festivities, the Amerks will be wearing their red jerseys.

Fans can take advantage of the Zweigle's Family Four Pack, which consists of four tickets, four hot dogs and four sodas for $55. The package can be purchased through Ticketmaser.com or at The Blue Cross Arena Box Office. Call the Amerks at (585) 454-5335 for more details.

Fans can also enjoy the Buy One, Get One Half-off special. 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 only, through Ticketmaster.com.

It's also the next Tickets for Troops night. Active military and veterans can present a Military ID, VA Card or an American Legion or VFW membership card and receive premium seating for just $10 or 200 End seats for $5, at least a savings of $12.25 per ticket. All tickets can be purchased directly at the Box Office window at the Blue Cross Arena. Lastly, the game falls on RARES Night. The RARES discount is valid for all RARES members by logging onto www.rares.org to review their discounts.

Rochester (22-32-0-5, 49 points), the winners in three of its last five, enters the week after posting a 2-1-0-1 record during last week's four-game in five-night stretch. The Amerks began the week picking up a point in a 2-1 shootout loss to the Grand Rapids Griffins Wednesday night at The Blue Cross Arena. The Amerks would collect two more Friday night with a 3-2 win over the Hershey Bears before splitting a home-and-home series with the Toronto Marlies Saturday and Sunday night to bring the weekend to a close.

Veteran forward Janis Sprukts, who has points in three straight games and four of his last five, currently reigns as the Amerks' top point-getter with a team-high 15 goals and 36 points. Rookie forward Michal Repik, who shows 16 points (7+9) in his last 14 games, is 14th among American Hockey League rookies in scoring with 35 points (14+21), good enough for second on the team. First-year blueliner Jason Garrison, currently enjoying a three-game assist streak, has a team best 24 assists and remains Rochester's top scoring defenseman with 28 points overall. Further, his 28 points presently rank him 19th among league defenseman.

Michael Duco, coming off a three-game point streak, is first on the team with 119 penalty minutes (PIM), with Tanner Glass a close second at 100 PIM. Goaltender Mike Brodeur boasts a 15-6-3 record in 27 games for the Amerks. His 2.27 goals-against average and .928 save percentage currently rank him third among AHL netminders in both goaltending categories, respectively. Further, his two shutouts tie him for fifth in the league. Tyler Plante is 4-4-0 since his return to the Amerks and is 4-9-0 on the season with 3.06 goals-against average and a .906 save percentage.

AMERKS WEEKLY SCHEDULE

DAY TIME LOCATION

Monday, February 23rd Day Off ----

6:30 p.m. radio show Winton Rd. Distillery

Tuesday, February 24th Day Off ----

6:30 p.m. Kids Night TC Hooligans in Webster

Wednesday, February 25th 11:00 a.m. practice ESL Sports Centre

Thursday, February 26th 11:00 a.m. practice ESL Sports Centre

Friday, February 27th Travel Day ----

7:30 p.m. game @ Hamilton Copps Coliseum

Saturday, February 28th 7:05 p.m. game @ Binghamton Broome County Veterans Arena

Sunday, March 1st 6:05 p.m. game vs. Binghamton Blue Cross Arena

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