Sports stats



AHL Rochester Americans

Rochester Americans Game Preview - October 12 at Providence Bruins

October 12, 2019 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Rochester Americans News Release


TONIGHT'S GAME OVERVIEW

- The Rochester Americans (2-0-0-0) continue their three-game trek through New England tonight at 7:05 p.m. against the Providence Bruins (2-0-0-0) at Dunkin' Donuts Center. The 7:05 p.m. contest will be the first of just two meetings between the two teams this season and can be heard live on The Sports Leader 95.7 FM/950 AM ESPN Rochester as well as AHLTV. The Amerks and Bruins will close out their season series later this month as Providence makes its lone visit to Rochester on Wednesday, Oct. 30.

LAST TIME OUT

- On the heels of a dominating third-period performance where Rochester outshot the Springfield Thunderbirds by an 18-5 margin, the Amerks opened the first game of their three-in-three weekend with a 2-1 victory Friday night at the MassMutual Center.

- Amerks forward Kevin Porter scored his first goal of the season midway through the second period while Andrew Oglevie tallied his second in as many games, which served as the game-winning goal, helping Rochester to its second straight win of the young campaign.

- Goaltender Andrew Hammond stopped 20 of the 21 shots he faced to improve to 2-0-0.

- It's the second time in three years the Amerks have opened the season with back-to-back wins.

ROAD AHEAD FOR ROCHESTER

- The Amerks put the finishing touches on their first three-in-three of the season on Sunday, Oct. 13 at XL Center when they meet the Hartford Wolf Pack in the final stop of their weekend trek through the Atlantic Division. Sunday's 3:00 p.m. matinee against Harford can be heard live on The Sports Leader AM 950/95.7 FM ESPN Rochester as well as AHLTV.

HOMECOMING FOR BRYSON

- Tonight's contest in Providence may feel like a bit of a home game for Amerks rookie defenseman Jacob Bryson. Bryson, who recorded his first professional point with an assist in last night's 2-1 win over Springfield, spent the last three seasons at Providence University before signing a three-year, entry-level contract with the Buffalo Sabres back in April.

- As a junior during the 2018-19 season, Bryson earned Hockey East Second Team All-Star honors after recording 28 points (4+24) in 42 games and serving as a team captain for the Friars. Bryson set new career-highs in both assists and points last season and recorded an assist in all three NCAA Tournament games to help lead his team to a Frozen Four appearance.

- He also earned CCM/AHCA Second Team All-American honors at the conclusion of the 2018 season.

AMERKS BEGIN SEASON UNDER DINEEN

- Prior to the start of the season, Gord Dineen assumed Rochester's head coaching duties on an interim basis as Chris Taylor joined the Buffalo Sabres coaching staff in the absence of Sabres assistant coach Don Granato, who took a medical leave from the team.

- Dineen is currently in his 18th season as an AHL coach and third with the Amerks in 2019-20. He became the 33rd head coach in franchise history and the very first to start the season behind the bench on an interim basis. Never before in the 63-year history of the franchise have the Amerks began a new season under an interim head coach. That all changed on opening night as Dineen became the first in his position to open the season with a coaching win.

RETURNERS EMERGING AS EARLY SEASON LEADERS

- Coming off his two-goal performance last Friday and an assist last night, forward Tage Thompson has totaled 14 points (10+4) over his last 13 games with the Amerks dating back to last season, including the two goals he scored in the first round of the 2019 Calder Cup Playoffs against the Toronto Marlies. More impressively, Thompson has scored eight goals in just 10 career regular-season games with Rochester, matching the total he set over a 30-game stint with the San Antonio Rampage during his rookie season in 2017-18. The third-year pro enters the weekend tied for 12th among the AHL's top scorers.

- Defenseman Zach Redmond has a share of the league lead amongst all AHL defensemen in scoring after opening the season with three assists. The reigning Eddie Shore Award winner has collected four assists in his last six games dating back to last season.

- Also picking up where he left off last season is second-year forward Rasmus Asplund, who was named the team's Rookie of the Year and Most Improved Player last season. The Sweden native ranked second on the team with 31 assists while appearing in all but one game for Rochester during the 2018-19 campaign.

ON THE ROAD AGAIN

- As the Amerks continue their first three-in-three of the season this weekend, they do so coming off a year in which they posted an AHL-best 25-9-3-1 road record, finishing one point ahead of the eventual Calder Cup champion Charlotte Checkers with a .711 points percentage.

- Rochester's 25 road wins last season tied a franchise record originally set during the 1998-99 season and were the most in the AHL.

- The team also finished with the fewest regulation road losses with nine, having collected at least one point in 29 of their 38 road contests.

EARLY SEASON CONFERENCE LEADERS

- The Bruins and the Amerks enter tonight's matchup tied for first in their respective Divisions as they each have a pair of wins and five goals scored through the first two games of the campaign.

- Providence has advanced to the postseason in each of the last six years dating back to the 2012-13 campaign.

SERIES NOTABLES

- Tonight is just the ninth meeting between the Amerks and the Bruins over the last six seasons. Rochester has gone 1-5-2-0 during that span, which includes a pair of overtime losses in each of the first two meetings during the 2017-18 season. Prior to Rochester's 2-1 win on Dec. 8 of last year, the last time the Amerks defeated the Bruins was Jan. 18, 2009.

- Amerks forward Tyler Randell is set to face his former club after he began his AHL career with the Bruins. Randell, who was drafted by the Boston Bruins in the sixth-round (176th overall) of the 2009 NHL Draft, appeared in 231 games with Providence, tallying 43 points (18+25).

- Forward Dalton Smith also had a brief 17-game stint with Providence during the 2015-16 season.

- Amerks rookie defenseman Casey Fitzgerald is the younger brother of Bruins forward Ryan Fitzgerald.

Check out the Rochester Americans Statistics



American Hockey League Stories from October 12, 2019


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

Other Recent Rochester Americans Stories



Sports Statistics from the Stats Crew
OurSports Central