AHL Rochester Americans

Game Night: Amerks Take On Heat At Blue Cross Arena

Published on February 12, 2010 under American Hockey League (AHL)
Rochester Americans News Release


The Rochester Americans' quest for 2,000 wins continues tonight as it closes out its season series with the Abbotsford Heat. The 7:05 p.m. contest will be the fourth and final get-together for the North Division rivals this season. Fans can tune into the live broadcast 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:

The game falls on the next installment of the Amerks Dollar Dogs 'N' Drafts promotion. Friday night, and now during every Friday night home game for the rest of the season, fans can take part in the "Dollar Dogs 'N' Drafts" promotion. Fans will be able to purchase Zweigle's Hot Dogs and Draft Beers for just $1 each!

Taffe Heads to South Florida : The Amerks will be without the services of forward Jeff Taffe tonight after the 28-year-old received his fifth promotion to the big club this season. He will join the Panthers tonight and will be eligible to skate in Florida's National Hockey League contest against the Boston Bruins Saturday night. Faceoff is slated for 7:00 p.m. at the BankAtlantic Center. The Hastings, Minnesota, native has recorded one assist in 17 games with the Panthers this season. In his 40 appearances with the Amerks, the 6-foot-3, 215-pound forward has registered 35 points (17+18), good enough for fourth overall on the team.

Amerks to Join Elite Company : Rochester is just a mere two wins away from capturing its 2,000th win in the 54-year history of the franchise. The Amerks will become just the second team in the AHL and only the eighth team in North American hockey history to collect 2,000 wins. In addition to all the founding original six members of the NHL, the only other AHL team to accomplish the feat is the defending Calder Cup champion Hershey Bears. The 10-time league champs claimed their 2,000th win at the tail-end of the 1993-94 season.

Head-to-Head : The contest will be the fourth and final meeting between the North Division rivals this season. The Amerks are 1-2-0-0 this season against the Heat after suffering a 2-1 loss in the previous matchup between the two teams back on December 11th at The Blue Cross Arena.

Amerks Notes : Rochester (30-20-2-0, 62 points) enters the contest second in the North Division and 10th overall in the American Hockey League standings. The Amerks are 17-7-2-0 on home ice. Conversely, 13 of Rochester's 20 losses in regulation thus far this season have been away from the friendly confines of The Blue Cross Arena. Veteran forward Chris Taylor sits just five goals and four assists away from moving ahead of Ron Garwasiuk and Gerry Ehman for 13th and third on the all-time lists, respectively. Further, the 18-year pro is just three games away from hitting 1,200 professional games.

Seventh-year pro Jamie Johnson, who has 16 points (5+11) in his last 13 outings and coming off a season-long 10-game point streak, continues to pace Rochester's offense in all offensive categories in goals (19), assists (32) and points (51). Averaging just under a point per game, Johnson is sixth in the AHL in overall point production after collecting 47 points (19+28) in his last 41 appearances. Further, his 19 goals and 32 assists rank him 13th and eighth in each category among the AHL's top scorers, respectively.

Veteran defenseman Clay Wilson, who shows nine points in his last 12 games, has a team-best 17 assists on the power-play this season, good enough for fourth in the AHL in that category. Wilson continues to be Rochester's top scoring defenseman with 36 points (8+28) and remains fourth in scoring among league blueliners.

Rookie goaltender Alexander Salak, who has started 11 of the last 13 games for Rochester, boasts a 23-9-0 record with 932 saves in 34 games. His 2.64 goals-against average and.919 save percentage currently rank him 20th and 12th among league netminders, respectively, while his 23 wins are second best.

Abbotsford Notes : Abbotsford (23-23-4-4, 54 points), kicking off a season-long nine-game road trip tonight, comes into the matchup the winners in two of its last three after earning a 4-3 shootout win over the Toronto Marlies Tuesday night on home ice.

Fifth-year pro Jason Jaffray leads the Heat in all offensive categories in goals (18), assists (21) and points (39) and owns the team's best on-ice rating with a plus-15. A 2010 AHL All-Star, Jaffray is currently tied for 20th in the AHL with 18 goals, five of which have come on the man-advantage, also a team best. Further, Jaffray is also tied for first in the league with four shorthanded tallies this season. Forwards J.D. Watt and Garth Murray are first and second on the team in penalty minutes with 162 and 130, respectively, while the pair holds the fifth and 17th league rankings in the same category.

Third-year netminder Matt Keetley has seen the majority of time this season between the pipes for the Heat. Keetely shows a 9-7-1 record with a 2.69 goals-against average and.909 save percentage in 21 games. His counterpart, former Amerks goaltender David Shantz, is 3-5-1 with a 3.51 goals-against average and a.875 save percentage in 11 games.

Next Game : The Amerks remain home on Saturday, February 13th as the Lake Erie Monsters journey east to The Blue Cross Arena for a North Division showdown. The 7:05 p.m. contest will be the second in as many weeks between the two teams and the seventh of eight encounters during the campaign. Fans can tune in for the live broadcast on SportsRadio 1280 WHTK and FM 107.3, Rochester's Sports Talk. The game will also be shown live on Time Warner Cable SportsNet Channel 26. The Amerks are 1-4-1-0 this season against the Monsters, with their lone win coming at home. Rochester is 7-9-1 lifetime against the Colorado Avalanche's affiliate.

Fans can take advantage of the Amerks' Family Fun Pack, which includes four tickets for 200-End seating, four T-shirts, four hot dogs and four sodas for the low price of $52. It's also the Moose's Birthday! Come out and celebrate with all his Mascot friends. The first 2,000 fans will take home a new Amerks folder, courtesy of Wendy's.

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American Hockey League Stories from February 12, 2010


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