AHL Rochester Americans

Game Night: Amerks Take On Rats At Blue Cross Arena

Published on January 29, 2010 under American Hockey League (AHL)
Rochester Americans News Release


Tonight, the Rochester Americans conclude their four-game homestand as the East Division Albany River Rats journey west down the New York State thruway to The Blue Cross Arena. The 7:05 p.m. contest will be the third of four scheduled meetings between the interstate rivals 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 Channel 98.

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!

Steiner Signs One-Year AHL Contract:

The Amerks signed forward Daniel Steiner to a one-year American Hockey League contract on Wednesday. Steiner, 29, first arrived in Rochester on December 19th and made his Amerks debut that night after signing a professional tryout agreement with the team. Since then, the Bern, Switzerland, native has scored four goals and eight assists for 12 points in 12 games for the Amerks, including five multipoint outings. On pace averaging exactly a point per game, the 11-year pro made his AHL debut earlier this season in a brief one-game stint with the Adirondack Phantoms after recording 30 points (11+19) in 21 games with the ECHL's Reading Royals to start the 2009-10 campaign.

Duffy Back with the Amerks:

Rejoining the team tonight will be defenseman Matt Duffy after his reassignment from the Florida Everblades (ECHL).

Duffy, 24, returns to Rochester where he has scored one goal and two assists for three points in five American Hockey League games. With the Everblades, the 6-foot-2, 201-pound blueliner has recorded eight points (3+5) and 37 penalty minutes in 29 appearances. In 45 combined professional games with Florida (ECHL) and Rochester, the Windham, Maine, native has registered 17 points (6+11) and 41 penalty minutes.

Taylor Continues Climb Up All-Time Lists:

More than five weeks removed from capturing his 1,000th career professional point against Hershey, veteran forward Chris Taylor continues his ascent up the Amerks' all-time lists. The 18-year pro sits just five goals and seven assists away from moving ahead of Ron Garwasiuk and Gerry Ehman for 13th and third on the all-time lists, respectively. Most recently, he captured his 400th career point as an Amerk with a goal and is just 11 games away from hitting 1,200 professional games.

Home Is Where the Wins Are... Not So Much the Road:

With half of the season already in the books, home ice advantage has been beneficial for the Amerks. After earning their first regulation loss of the season at home, the Amerks are now 16-5-2-0 on home ice. Conversely, 11 of Rochester's 16 losses in regulation thus far this season have been away from the friendly confines of The Blue Cross Arena.

Head-to-Head:

The matchup will be the first since October 23rd when the Amerks left Albany with a 2-1 win after the Rats handed Rochester its first regulation loss of the season on October 10th. Rochester is 1-1-0-0 this season and 47-42-9 all-time against Carolina Hurricanes' affiliate.

Amerks Notes:

Rochester (27-16-2-0, 56 points) enters the contest after earning a 3-1 win over the Adirondack Phantoms last Sunday night at The Blue Cross Arena. With the win, the Amerks have won two straight and five of their last six. Rochester is second in the North Division and ninth overall in the American Hockey League. The Amerks have won 16 of the last 22 on home ice, and have the league's sixth best winning percentage (6.22).

The Amerks have allowed the third fewest number of goals in their division with 139. Additionally, their 147 goals for are also the second most in the division. Rochester is eighth in the AHL with a 19.0 power-play percentage and is 14th with an 83.2 penalty-killing percentage.

Seventh-year pro Jamie Johnson, who has four goals and seven assists in his last six outings, currently paces Rochester's offense in all offensive categories in goals (18), assists (28) and points (46). Averaging just over a point per game, Johnson is seventh in the AHL in overall point production after collecting 42 points (18+24) in his last 34 appearances. Further, his 18 goals and 28 assists rank him tied for ninth and eighth in each category among the AHL's top scorers, respectively.

Defenseman Clay Wilson, who shows four points in his last five games, has a team-best 15 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 30 points (6+24) and remains tied for third in scoring among league blueliners. Amerks tough-guy Jimmy Bonneau is first on the team and eighth in the league with a team-high 138 penalty minutes. Second-year defenseman Jason Garrison owns the team's best on-ice rating with a plus-13.

Rookie goaltender Alexander Salak, who has started the last six games for Rochester, boasts a 21-6-0 record with 2.60 goals-against average and.918 save percentage along with 763 saves in 29 games. His save percentage is 11th best among league netminders, while his 21 wins are second best.

Albany Notes:

Albany (25-16-3-2, 56 points), in the middle of a four-game road trip, comes into the matchup after a 2-1 shootout win over the Bridgeport Sound Tigers on Tuesday. Drayson Bowman and Bryan Rodney netted their shootout goals to give the River Rats a victory in their first of four road games.

Albany is led by third-year right wing Jerome Samson, whose sits atop all offensive categories in goals (16), points (20) and points (36). Samson also shows a league-best 206 shots on goal, averaging just fewer than five shots per game. Rookie forward Zach Boychuck follows Samson with 12 goals and 13 assists.

Former Amerk Jacob Micflikier has been a key component to the River Rats this season. The left winger currently has 10 goals and nine assists through 25 games. The fourth-year pro currently boasts a.256 shooting percentage, good enough for third in the AHL, after converting on 10 of 39 attempts. Albany's Zack Fitzgerald is first on the team and third in the league with 158 penalty minutes.

River Rats goaltender Justin Peters, a 2010 AHL All-Star selection for the Canadian All-Star team, has seen the majority of time between the pipes this season, in addition to seeing NHL action with the parent Carolina Hurricanes. Peters shows a 17-11-2 record in 31 games for Albany. His 2.32 goals-against average and.923 save percentage are presently ninth and eighth best among league netminders, respectively.

Next Game:

The Amerks head north of the border on Saturday, January 30th as they travel to Ricoh Coliseum to battle the Toronto Marlies in a North Division showdown. The 4:00 p.m. matinee will be carried live on SportsRadio 1280 WHTK and FM 107.3, Rochester's Sports Talk. The contest will be the fourth of eight meetings between the two teams this season and the first since November 7th. Rochester boasts a perfect 3-0-0-0 record this season, outscoring Toronto 13-6 through the previous three encounters. The Amerks are 15-21-1 lifetime against the Marlies.

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American Hockey League Stories from January 29, 2010


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