AHL Rochester Americans

Game Night: Amerks Take On Rats At Blue Cross Arena

March 12, 2010 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Rochester Americans News Release


Tonight, the Rochester Americans kickoff their March home slate as the Albany River Rats journey west to The Blue Cross Arena. The 7:05 p.m. contest will be the fourth and final meeting between the two teams 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:

It's Irish Night! As part of the festivities, bagpipers will be on hand and Irish Music will be played throughout the game. The game also falls on the next installment of the Amerks Dollar Dogs 'N' Drafts promotion. Tonight, 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 and purchase Zweigle's Hot Dogs and Draft Beers for just $1 each! Fans can also purchase carnations from Tracey Fitzpatrick, wife of Amerks captain Rory Fitzpatrick, to help raise funds for the Irish Children's Program.

Head-to-Head:

Rochester is 1-2-0-0 this season against the Rats after falling short in 4-3 decision in the previous meeting between the two teams back on January 29th. The Amerks, however, are 47-43-9 all-time against the Carolina Hurricanes' affiliate.

Mink's Add One to their Den: Amerks forward Graham Mink, and his wife, Cristina, celebrated the birth of their first child early this morning. The newest "Mink" to join the den will be their son, Gunnar, born seven pounds, six ounces at 5:51 a.m. this morning at Strong Hospital. Mink is expected to miss tonight's game and will rejoin the team Saturday night in Syracuse.

Amerks Notes: Rochester (37-26-2-0, 76 points) enters the contest in second place in the North Division after a 3-2 win over the Portland Pirates last Sunday evening gave the club its fourth straight win, a streak the club has yet to match since winning four straight from November 14th to November 27th. The win was also Rochester's sixth in its last seven games as the Amerks remain just two points ahead of the Abbotsford Heat.

Seventh-year pro Jamie Johnson, who shows 11 points (4+7) in his last 13 games, has a team-high 39 assists and 62 points, while his 23 goals are equal to that of forward Jeff Taffe for the team lead. Averaging just under a point per game, Johnson is seventh in the AHL in overall point production and is tied for ninth with 39 assists. Further, the duo is tied for 12th among the AHL's top goal scorers. Taffe shows 12 points (6+6) in his last 11 games and notched his 300th AHL point with his game-winning goal last Sunday against Portland.

Veteran defenseman Clay Wilson, who enters the week with six points (1+5) in as many games, has a team-best 20 assists on the power-play this season, good enough for fifth in the AHL in that category. Wilson continues to be Rochester's top scoring defenseman with 47 points (11+36) and is second in scoring among league blueliners.Additionally, Wilson is tied for 13th in the AHL with 36 assists.

Rookie goaltender Alexander Salak, who has started four of the last six games for Rochester and carries a four-game winning streak into the weekend, boasts a 27-12-0 record with a 2.73 goals-against average and a.913 save percentage in 41 games. His 27 wins presently rank second among league netminders. His counterpart, third-year goaltender Tyler Plante, is coming off back-to-back wins for the first time this season, including a 40-save shutout against Toronto last Saturday. Plante, who will make his third consecutive start for the Amerks tonight, is 7-8-0 with a 2.83 goals-against average and a.906 save percentage in 17 games of service.

Since returning to the lineup on February 19th, veteran forward Mike York has collected 13 points (5+8) in nine games and is presently in the midst of a four-game point streak (3+5). He sits six points away from 100 AHL points. Amerks captain Rory Fitzpatrick is three points from 200 as a pro, while 2010 AHL All-Star forward Graham Mink is just two goals shy from 200 pro goals.

Albany Notes:

Albany (34-24-3-5, 76 points), finishing up a four-game road trip tonight, comes into the matchup after suffering a 4-3 shootout loss to the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins last night at the Mohegan Sun Arena at Casey Plaza. The setback was the River Rats' second shootout loss in their last three games as they fell to 1-0-0-2 on their current road swing.

Albany is led by third-year right wing Jerome Samson, whose remains atop all offensive categories in goals (32), points (29) and points (61). Samson also shows a league-best 288 shots on goal, averaging just fewer than five shots per game. Samson, who sits just one point behind Rochester's Jamie Johnson in the scoring race, is ninth in the AHL in points and third in goals. Rookie forward Chris Terry follows Samson with 38 points (15+23) for second on the team in scoring and is 11th overall among first-year players.

Former Amerk Jacob Micflikier has been a key component to the River Rats this season. The left winger currently has 14 goals and 17 assists for 31 points through 45 games. The fourth-year pro currently boasts a.215 shooting percentage, good enough for fourth in the AHL, after converting on 14 of 65 attempts. Albany's Zack Fitzgerald is first on the team and third in the league with 245 penalty minutes. He also has a league-high 64 minor penalties to his credit, the most among any player in the AHL.

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, who is currently on recall with the Hurricanes, shows a 22-16-2 record in 41 games for Albany. His 2.60 goals-against average and.915 save percentage are presently 17th and 13th among league netminders, respectively. Playing in Peters' absence has been newly acquired goaltender Justin Pogge, who was dealt to Carolina from the Anaheim Ducks prior to the NHL trade deadline. Pogge, who began the campaign with the San Antonio Rampage, is 13-7-5 in 26 combined appearances this season between the Rampage and Rats. His 2.53 goals-against average and.922 save percentage are 15th and sixth in the AHL, despite playing in just three games for Albany.

Next Game:

On Saturday, March 13th, Rochester heads down the I-90 to renew its longtime rivalry with the Syracuse Crunch in a 7:30 p.m. tilt at the War Memorial at Oncenter. The matchup will be the ninth of 10 scheduled meetings between the regional foes and will be carried live on SportsRadio 1280 WHTK and FM 107.3, Rochester's Sports Talk. The Amerks show an unblemished 8-0-0-0 record against the Crunch this season, including a 3-0-0-0 mark on the road, and have outscored their opponent 35-18 through the previous seven encounters. The Amerks are 90-75-15 lifetime against the Crunch.

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