AHL Rochester Americans

Game Night: Amerks Host Marlies In Home Finale

Published on April 9, 2010 under American Hockey League (AHL)
Rochester Americans News Release


Tonight, the Rochester Americans close out their regular season home slate as the Toronto Marlies make their way across the border to The Blue Cross Arena. The 7:05 p.m. matchup will be the eighth and final get-together for the divisional foes this season and will be broadcast live on SportsRadio 1280 WHTK and FM 107.3, Rochester's Sports Talk. Fans can also tune in to watch live on Time Warner Cable SportsNet Channel 26. With a win over Toronto, the Amerks will clinch second place in the American Hockey League's North Division and home-ice advantage in the first round of the 2010 Calder Cup Playoffs.

Promotions : The Amerks will show their support for breast cancer awareness and will don the traditional pink jerseys and socks as part of the annual celebration for the cause. The Amerks will auction off the game-worn items and fans can place their bids up until midway through the third period of the game. The funds raised will go to the Knighthawks/Amerks Charitable Foundation, Inc., which will distribute the money to local cancer-related charities. The Amerks will also showcase their pink dashers, which will be the first of their kind in AHL history. The Amerks will also have their annual awards night prior to the game, honoring the best performances of the season. The game falls on the final installment of the Amerks Dollar Dogs 'N' Drafts promotion. Tonight will be the last chance for fans to take part in the "Dollar Dogs 'N' Drafts" promotion and purchase Zweigle's Hot Dogs and Draft Beers for just $1 each!

Taylor Passes Garwasiuk, Nears Merrell and Pappin :Three weeks removed from becoming just the 80th player in the 74-year history of the AHL to hit the 500-point plateau, veteran forward Chris Taylor recently surpassed Ron Garwasiuk for 13th on the all-time goals list to move within three goals of tying Barry Merrell and Jim Pappin for 11th all-time. Further, the 18-year pro is just three assists away from his 300th as an Amerk.

Johnson One Away From 70-Point Benchmark: Amerks forward Jamie Johnson need just one point to become the first player since the 2004-05 campaign to reach the 70-point benchmark. He has just two games left to accomplish the feat, which was last achieved by Taylor in 2004-05.

Road Warriors : After taking a 3-0-0-0 sweep on the road to kickoff the month of March, the Amerks have posted an 8-3-0-0 record since then in their 11 road contests away from the friendly confines of The Blue Cross Arena. Rochester enters the contest 4-1-0-0 in its last five road matchups, a stretch that matched its season-long four-game road winning streak that was previously set from March 5th to March 13th.

Head-to-Head: The matchup will be the final meeting between the Amerks and Marlies this season. The Amerks show a 6-0-0-1 record this season against the Marlies after falling short in a 4-3 shootout loss in the previous encounter back on March 28th, Rochester's only loss against Toronto this season. Rochester has outscored Toronto 26-13 this season and is 18-21-2 all-time against the Baby Maple Leafs.

Amerks Notes: Rochester (43-32-2-1, 89 points) enters the contest after dropping a 6-3 decision to the Grand Rapids Griffins Wednesday night at Van Andel Arena. With the loss, Rochester saw its three-game winning streak come to a halt and was denied its chances for clinching home-ice advantage in the first round of the 2010 Calder Cup Playoffs. The Amerks now lead the Abbotsford Heat by three points and remain in sole possession of second place in the American Hockey League's North Division.

Johnson, who shows 17 points (6+11) in his last 21 games, continues to be Rochester's top point-getter with a team-high 69 points (26+43). Playing at under a point-per-game pace, Johnson is tied for 14th in the AHL in overall point production, while his 43 assists are equal to that of Taylor for 14th best in the league. Johnson is also just one point away from his 400th professional point.

Jeff Taffe leads Rochester's offense with a team-high 27 and is currently in the midst of a three-game point streak (2+3) coming into tonight's game. He presently ranks tied for 15th in the league in goals scored and is second among Rochester's active roster with seven power-play goals.

Veteran defenseman Clay Wilson is back with the Amerks tonight after making his Panthers debut last Saturday. Wilson, a 2009-10 AHL Second Team All-Star, remains first on the team and 10th in the league with 46 assists, in addition to leading his club with 188 shots on goal. He enters the contest with 19 points (4+15) in his last 17 games. He also has a team-best 24 assists on the power-play this season, good enough for third in the AHL in that category. Wilson continues to be Rochester's top scoring defenseman with 60 points (14+46) and currently ranks second in scoring among league blueliners.

Rookie goaltender Alexander Salak boasts a 28-14-0 record with a 2.89 goals-against average and a .910 save percentage in 47 games. His 28 wins presently rank him fourth among league netminders. Tyler Plante, who has started six straight games between the pipes for Rochester, currently shows a 12-12-1 record with a 2.66 goals-against average and a .914 save percentage in just 27 games of service. He also ranks 11th with three shutouts. The reigning Goaltender of the Month for March was also named the Reebok/AHL Player of the Week for his performance this past weekend, finishing with 99 saves on 103 shots faced. Further, Plante played in his 100th professional game Wednesday night against Grand Rapids.

Veteran forward Mike York, who leads the team with eight power-play markers, has collected 22 points (9+13) in 20 games since returning to the lineup on February 19th. Amerks captain Rory Fitzpatrick is three points from 200 as a pro, while 2010 AHL All-Star forward Graham Mink is two assists away from 200 of his nine-year pro career.

Toronto Notes: Toronto (32-34-6-5, 75 points), whose already been eliminated from playoff contention, comes into the matchup after dropping two of its last three, with its only win during the stretch coming in the form of 2-1 shootout win over Manitoba last Saturday.

Fifth-year pro Andre Deveaux paces the Marlies in all offensive categories in goals (15), assists (24), points (39), games played (69) and penalty minutes (211). Brennan Evans remains at a close second with 190 penalty minutes. 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. First-year netminder James Reimer shows a 13-8-1 record with a 2.24 goals-against average and a .926 save percentage. Due to only 1,390 minutes played, however, Reimer fails to qualify among the league's top goaltending categories.

Next Game: The Amerks close out the season on Saturday, April 10th as they look to remain perfect against the Syracuse Crunch at the War Memorial at Oncenter. The 7:30 p.m. contest is the 10th of the season between the longtime regional rivals and can be heard live on SportsRadio 1280 WHTK and FM 107.3, Rochester's Sports Talk. Rochester has an unblemished 9-0-0-0 record this season against the Crunch and has outscored its opponent 40-21 through the previous nine gatherings. The Amerks are 4-0-0-0 on the road against the Crunch, the best against any team on the road, and also own a 91-75-15 lifetime record against Syracuse.

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American Hockey League Stories from April 9, 2010


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