AHL Rochester Americans

Game Night: Amerks, Crunch Square off Tonight at Blue Cross Arena

Published on December 26, 2010 under American Hockey League (AHL)
Rochester Americans News Release


Tonight, the Rochester Americans skate in their final home game of 2010 as the Syracuse Crunch journey west down the I-90 Interstate for the annual post-Christmas clash at The Blue Cross Arena. The 5:05 p.m. contest will be the third of 10 scheduled meetings between the longtime rivals this season and will be broadcast live on SportsRadio 1280 WHTK and FM 107.3, Rochester's Sports Talk. The game will also be televised live on Time Warner Cable SportsNet Channel 26.

Promotions: Fans can take advantage of the Zweigle's Family Four Packand purchase four tickets to the game, four hot dogs and four sodas all for one low price of just $52.00.

Head-to-Head: The contest marks just the third of 10 get-togethers and the third straight in Western New York between the two clubs. The Amerks show a perfect 2-0-0-0 record against the Crunch this season, with both wins coming on home ice. Rochester earned a 6-5 win over Syracuse in the previous encounter back on December 3rd. The Amerks also maintain the upper hand with a 93-76-15 all-time record against the Crunch.

By The Numbers: Rochester is just 5-8-2-0 against North Division opponents this season, but shows a 9-7-0-1 mark against non-divisional rivals. December has proven to be a very productive month for the Amerks thus far. In 10 games this month, eight of which have been played at home, the Amerks boast a 5-3-1-1 record, despite showing a 5-11-1-1 record overall within the friendly confines of The Blue Cross Arena. Eleven of Rochester's last 13 games have been decided by one-goal margins. After going the first 26 games of the season without being forced to a shootout, the Amerks have been tested in it in three of their last six games, with wins coming in two of them. The Amerks are 7-3-0-1 this season against the AHL's four other New York State based teams, outscoring their fellow Empire State opponents 44-40.

Taylor On The Move Again: Veteran forward Chris Taylor needs all but three games to surpass Bronco Horvath for seventh on the franchise's all-time games played list. Already on his list of accomplishments this season includes moving ahead of Stan Smrke for fifth on the all-time points list, appearing in more games than Amerk Hall of Famers Dan Frawleyand Gerry Ehman and scoring more career goals than Jim Pappin and Barry Merrell. Coming into tonight, he sits just two goals away from eclipsing former fan-favorite Scott Metcalfe for 10th on the all-time goals list.

Amerks Notes: Rochester (14-15-2-1, 31 points) enters the contest after coming up short in a 3-2 loss to the Binghamton Senators a week ago tonight before heading into Christmas break. Despite the loss, however, the Amerks have won two of their last three and strung together back-to-back wins last weekend with a two-game sweep over the Toronto Marlies. The pair of victories gave Rochester its first set of wins in two months since recording a season-high three-game run in late October. The loss to the B-Sens last Sunday dropped the Amerks back into the basement of the American Hockey League's North Division, though they remain just five points out of second place. The Amerks have scored the second most goals among any other divisional opponent with 99 and are fifth in the North with 557 penalty minutes. Rochester currently has the eight best power-play in the league (20.1 percentage), but its penalty kill ranks 28th out of the 30-team AHL with a 77.8 success rate. As a team, the Amerks have also allowed a league-high nine shorthanded goals against, four coming at home and five on the road.

Team and League Leaders: Third-year forward Michal Repik continues to be Rochester's top point-getter with a team-high 27 assists and 31 points. Playing at more than a point-per-game pace, Repik is also currently third in the AHL in assists, while being tied for ninth overall among the league's top scorers. Repik also has a team-best 10 assists on the power-play, good enough for ninth in the league. The Vlasim, Czech Republic, native has not gone more than two straight games without a point all season. In just eight games back from injury, Michael Duco has taken over the team lead in goals with 11 after posting three straight games with single tallies from December 8th to December 11th, while adding a pair last weekend at Toronto. Six of Duco's goals have come on the man-advantage, ranking him first on the team and eighth in the league. Rookie left wing Eric Selleck has a team-high 82 penalty minutes, while he also ranks 16th in the league and second among AHL rookies in that category. Selleck is also tied for the lead league with 12 major penalties. Coming off his shootout goal last Saturday in Toronto, AJ Jenks has now gone a perfect 3-for-3 in shootout attempts with two of them proving to be game-winners. He is the second best shooter in the AHL when it comes to shootouts.

Defensemen Clay Wilson (6+15) and Mike Kostka (5+16) are presently tied for sixth in overall scoring among league blueliners with 21 points apiece, good enough for second overall on the team. The power-play extraordinaires also have a combined 19 assists on the man-advantage between the two of them this season. First-year goaltender Jacob Markstrom has seen the majority of time between the pipes thus far, boasting a 10-13-0 record with a 3.27 goals-against average and a .895 save percentage in 23 appearances. His 10 wins tie him for 14th among AHL netminders, while he has the third most saves with 642. Tyler Plante, who has started four of the last seven games for Rochester, shows a 4-4-1 record with a 3.49 goals-against average and a .902 save percentage in nine games of service.

Who's Hot: Duco has five goals in his last seven games since returning to the lineup from injury. Taylor has 10 points (1+9) in his last 10 games, while Wilson shows six points (1+5) in as many outings. Repik has nine assists in nine games since returning from the National Hockey League. Kostka has registered six points (2+4) in his last five appearances and is presently in the midst of a three-game assist streak. Scott Timmins (2+0) and Triston Grant (1+1) each have two points in their last two games since returning from injuries.

Syracuse Notes: Syracuse (11-15-1-3, 26 points) comes into the matchup on a bit of an uphill climb themselves after putting together two wins in its last three games, outscoring its opponent 8-1 during that stretch. Despite that, however, the Crunch have gone just 5-12 in their last 17 games, a stretch that includes a season-long seven-game losing streak, three consecutive losses to Binghamton where they have been outscored 16-0 and a 10-3 loss to Charlotte. The Crunch's most recent win came in the form of a 5-0 whitewash of the Connecticut Whale last Sunday on home ice. Matt Beleskey and Dan Sexton each scored a pair of goals and assisted on another as J.P. Levassuer backstopped Syracuse with a 32-save effort to collect his second shutout of the season. Syracuse, currently holding the sixth place spot in the East Division standings, is in its first season as the primary affiliate of the Anaheim Ducks.

Team and League Leaders: With rookie forward Kyle Palmieri currently away preparing for the 2010 World Junior Championships with Team USA, veteran forward Trevor Smith paces the Syracuse offense with a team-high 13 assists and 20 points. Rookie forward Nicolas Deschamps has scored a team-best eight goals this season, six on the power-play, and is presently second overall with 16 points (8+8). Crunch captain Joe Dipenta leads the team with a plus-seven on-ice rating. Tough-guy forward Jon Mirasty is back for his fifth season with the Crunch and has picked up right where he left a year ago. Coming off a personal-best 269 penalty minutes in 2009-10, Mirasty presently leads the team and ranks among the league leaders in the AHL with 74 penalty minutes, averaging 4.62 minutes per game.

Reigning Player of the Week: The American Hockey League announced Monday that Syracuse Crunch goaltender Jean-Philippe Levasseurhas been named the Reebok/AHL Player of the Week for the period ending Dec. 19, 2010. Levasseur stopped 96 of 100 shots in three appearances, going 2-0-0 with a 1.50 goals-against average and a .960 save percentage with one shutout for the Crunch. A 23-year-old native of Victoriaville, Quebec, Levasseur improved his record to 5-6-2 with a 2.81 GAA and a .918 save percentage with two shutouts in 17 games for Syracuse this season.

Next Game: The Amerks hit the road on Wednesday, December 29th as they take on the Lake Erie Monsters at Quicken Loans Arena in the heart of downtown Cleveland. The 7:00 p.m. bout will be the first of eight meetings between the North Division rivals this season and will be broadcast live on SportsRadio 1280 WHTK and FM 107.3, Rochester's Sports Talk.

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American Hockey League Stories from December 26, 2010


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