Marlies Kick off Best-Of-Five Series Tonight in Rochester
April 19, 2019 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Toronto Marlies News Release
The Toronto Marlies are set to face the Rochester Americans in the first round of the 2019 Calder Cup Playoffs, beginning on the road in the best-of-five series before returning home to Coca-Cola Coliseum for Games 3 and 4 on April 24 and 26 at 7:00 p.m. EST.
This season marks the eighth straight season and 11th trip to the postseason in the franchise's 14-year history. The Toronto Marlies clinched a playoff berth on April 5 and finished the regular season seventh overall with 91 points and a record of 39-24-9-4.
The opening round series marks the third postseason meeting between these two teams. They met in the first round of the 2012 and 2013 Calder Cups Playoffs, with the Marlies sweeping both of those best-of-five series. This season however, the Americans have proven to be a challenging opponent. These North Division rivals met six times during the 2018-19 season, with the Americans taking the season series 5-1. It won't be an easy road, but the playoffs offer a reset for everyone and sticking to the systems that brought success throughout the regular season will be important heading into this series.
"We recognize we have a great challenge in front of us here against a very good team, so we're going to have to make sure our game is as sharp and as good as it can be and we need to play our best hockey," said head coach, Sheldon Keefe.
While the Americans finished the regular season third overall with a record of 46-23-5-2 and have the advantage of home ice, the Marlies' record on the road this season should not be overlooked. The Marlies were 23-9-3-3 when playing away from the Coliseum and had the best road power play (26.0%) in the league. It's safe to say that starting the series on the road, and capitalizing in special teams situations could certainly be advantageous for Toronto.
All Toronto Marlies playoff games will be broadcast on Leafs Nation Network and AHL TV. Fans across Canada can also stream games through the Toronto Maple Leafs app. Single game tickets are available for sale at Ticketmaster.ca. For more information on the Toronto Marlies 2019 Playoffs Presented by Scotiabank, visit www.marlies.ca/playoffs2019
Head to Head (2018-19 Regular Season)
39-24-9-4 Overall Record 46-23-5-2
1-3-1-1 Head To Head 5-1-0-0
248 Goals For 254
243 Goals Against 218
21.8% Power Play Percentage 20.4%
81.2% Penalty Kill Percentage 81.7%
C. Mueller (33) Leading Goal Scorer V. Olofsson (30)
J. Bracco (79) Leading Points Scorer V.Olofsson (63)
M. Hutchinson (16) Wins Leader S. Wedgwood (28)
American Hockey League Stories from April 19, 2019
- Eagles Fall to Bakersfield in Game One, 3-2 - Colorado Eagles
- Amerks Fall to Marlies in Playoff Opener - Rochester Americans
- Wolves Drop Game 1 - Chicago Wolves
- Bears Drop Game 1 in Double Overtime to Sound Tigers - Hershey Bears
- Crunch Fall to Monsters, 5-3 - Syracuse Crunch
- Monsters Top Crunch 5-3, Grab 1-0 Lead in North Division Semi-Final - Cleveland Monsters
- Blackhawks Agree to Extension with Hogs Team MVP Nilsson - Rockford IceHogs
- Iowa Wild Signs Three to Amateur Try-Out Agreements - Iowa Wild
- 2019 Playoff Preview: P-Bruins vs Checkers - Providence Bruins
- Wolves' Carr Voted AHL's Most Valuable Player - Chicago Wolves
- Chicago's Daniel Carr Wins Les Cunningham Award as 2018-19 American Hockey League MVP - AHL
- Griffins' Playoff Promotions in Full Effect against Wolves - Grand Rapids Griffins
- Marlies Kick off Best-Of-Five Series Tonight in Rochester - Toronto Marlies
- Capitals Recall Smith-Pelly, Re-Assign Vanecek to Hershey - Hershey Bears
- Canes Recall Saarela from Charlotte - Charlotte Checkers
- Game Preview: Bears at Sound Tigers, 7 p.m. (Atlantic Division Semifinals - Game 1) - Hershey Bears
- Sound Tigers Begin Playoff Journey Tonight - Bridgeport Islanders
- Barracuda Hunker Down Defensively, Even Series at 1-1 - San Jose Barracuda
- Gulls Drop Game Two, 5-3; Series Even - San Diego Gulls
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