AMERKS CAN'T COMPLETE COMEBACK IN 3-2 LOSS TO LAVAL
Jones registers two points in return, Rosén scores team-leading 15th goal of the season
Jan 9, 2026The Rochester Americans (17-12-3-1) nearly fought their way back from a 3-0 second-period deficit but were unable to complete the comeback in a 3-2 loss to the first-place Laval Rocket (22-11-0-1) Friday at The Blue Cross Arena.
GAME SUMMARY PHOTO GALLERY POST-GAME REPORT
Rochester, which has points in 10 of its last 15 games dating back to Nov. 22, have split the first four meetings with Laval this season. The Amerks remain in fourth place in the North Division, one point back of Syracuse and three behind Toronto.
Defenseman Zac Jones (1+1), who returned to the Amerks earlier today from the Buffalo Sabres, notched his fifth multi-point game with a goal and an assist, giving him 14 points (3+11) since Thanksgiving. Isak Rosén, who has only been held without a goal in back-to-back games just once, netted his team-leading 15th goal of the campaign.
Riley Fiddler-Schultz, Isaac Belliveau, and Konsta Helenius all added an assist to close out the scoring, with Fiddler-Schultz pushed his point streak to a season-long three games.
Goaltender Devon Levi (12-7-4) stopped 20 of the 23 shots he faced in his 23rd appearance of the campaign. Levi’s 23 games played are tied for most in the AHL this season while his 12 wins are tied for fifth.
Sean Farrell (1+1) and Jared Davidson (0+2) both recorded a pair of points for Laval, which shows a 5-1-0-0 mark since returning from the Christmas break. Goaltender Kaapo Kähkönen (12-2-1) made a season-best 47 saves in his 16th appearance of the season and third against the Amerks.
FIRST PERIOD
Over the first half of opening period which began with Rochester generating three grade-A scoring chances, the teams each took a penalty but were unsuccessful on the man-advantage.
The Amerks finished the first frame by outshooting the Rocket 15-8 following their first power-play opportunity.
SECOND PERIOD
Following a scoreless first period, Laval used a quick-scoring attack by plotting three goals in a span of 1:54 on tis first four shots of the frame.
Trudeau ignited the scoring frenzy with his fifth of the season 87 seconds into the stanza before Mešár and Farrell scored 49 seconds apart for a 3-0 advantage.
Rochester stopped the bleeding exactly one minute after the Rocket added their third of the night as Belliveau absorbed a hit to keep the puck inside the left point. The blueliner dished a cross-ice feed for Fiddler-Schultz, who gathered his own rebound before giving it back to the defenseman. As Belliveau received the pass, he quickly snapped it for Jones to blast for his third of the campaign.
While each team again successfully cleared off a penalty, Rochester went into the intermission break trailing by a pair of tallies despite holding a 34-18 shot-advantage.
THIRD PERIOD
Facing a two-goal deficit, the Amerks continued to pepper the Rocket with shots, matching their season-high midway through the third period before drawing a penalty near the five minute-mark.
After the face-off win by Fiddler-Schultz, the team generated several looks before Jones scooped up Jagger Joshua’s rebound to the left of the net. The Virginia native advanced a pass to the top of the zone for Helenius, who offered up a one-time feed for Rosén to hammer inside the right post with 4:39 left in regulation.
While Rochester exhausted its timeout and pulled Levi inside the two-minute mark, the club was unable to pot the equalizer and send the game beyond regulation as they fell 3-2.
UP NEXT
The Amerks venture back north of the border on Sunday, Jan. 11 for a North Division showdown against the Belleville Senators at CAA Arena. The for a 3:00 p.m. matinee will be carried live on The Sports Leader 95.7 FM/950 AM The Fan Rochester as well as AHLTV on FloHockey.
Goal Scorers
LAV: T. Trudeau (5), F. Mešár (4), S. Farrell (8 – GWG)
ROC: Z. Jones (3), I. Rosén (15)
Goaltenders
LAV: K. Kähkönen – 47/49 (W)
ROC: D. Levi – 20/23 (L)
Shots
LAV: 23
ROC: 49
Special Teams
LAV: PP (1/3) | PK (3/4)
ROC: PP (1/4) | PK (2/3)
Three Stars:
1. LAV - K. Kähkönen
2. LAV - S. Farrell
3. ROC - Z. Jones