AMERKS TRIO MAKING MOST OF OPPORTUNITY IN ROCHESTER
Jan 24, 2022By Suzie Cool
When you look at a roster in the American Hockey League, you see a team of about 20-plus players consisting of mostly forwards, a good chunk of defensemen and then two to three goaltenders depending on how deep the depth runs in the organization.
However, in the new landscape in the AHL, especially over the last two seasons, rosters can quickly become depleted when there’s a need for the taxi squad or a team’s National Hockey League affiliate. Thankfully, for the Rochester Americans this season, their ECHL affiliate, the Cincinnati Cyclones, are back in action and the quick trip to Buffalo makes for a minimal need for the taxi squad unless the Buffalo Sabres are on the road.
But that doesn’t mean there’s still the occasion when there’s still just not enough players to fill a roster. With every day roster fluctuation either due to injuries, call-ups, road trips and more, it simply just means that sometimes the Amerks have to get a little creative and pick up some players along the way to fill some rosters spots.
We saw this time and time again with Rochester’s squad last year.
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By the end of the shortened 2020-21 campaign, there were 14 players signed to professional tryouts. Guys were literally showing up the day of games and thrown into the lineup that same night, no matter how far they had traveled or how little they had conditioned.
Even Amerks captain Michael Mersch was signed to a professional tryout last year and look at where that got him. Mersch is now the captain of the team after signing a two-year AHL contract with the Amerks on Aug. 4, 2021, and quite frankly, this might not have been possible if he’d never had the shot with his professional tryout last year, thus proving more how critically important these opportunities are.
Now Mersch may be the perfect example to a serendipitous story of how well he fits into the Buffalo organization and under the helm of Amerks head coach Seth Appert, but he’s not the only player we’ve seen take advantage of this exact opportunity. Amerks forwards Ryan Scarfo and Brendan Warren are in the same boat, and again, the contracts they have now are in large part because of what they brought to the table last season.
So, it shouldn’t be a surprise that this year is no different when it comes to having to sign players to professional tryouts that just so happen to fit the mold here in Rochester. For forwards Patrick Polino, Ara Nazarian and goaltender Charles Williams, these professional tryouts are just the beginning of showing how capable they are to play in the second-best league in the world.
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“We want to prove that they’re capable of being a regular player in the American Hockey League,” began Appert when asked how players on professional tryouts need to take advantage of their time with the Amerks. “It’s critical for their career because they’re showing they belong at this level and it’s important for us because we’re obviously very shorthanded right now. And, you know, it’s a great sign that they’re capable of doing it.”
Polino most recently rejoined the Amerks roster on Jan. 11 when he was signed to a professional tryout. He began the 2021-22 season with the Cyclones, notching 22 points over 24 games. The Buffalo native did spend the entirety of the 2020-21 campaign with the Amerks, notching three goals and four assists in his 20 games played.
The second-year pro is no stranger to the Flower City but there’s a reason why Appert was adamant about bringing Polino back and one of those major factors is the value he brought to a shortened roster last season.
“I didn’t know if he’d be able to stay all year, but credit to him, he did. He made himself extremely valuable and very useful for us. So, there’s history there and that’s an easy one to bring back.”
Appert then continued on, “There’s a relationship, there’s history, there’s trust. I know I can be hard on him, and I know I can talk to him.”
Appert also added that he knew Polino prior to last season from his coaching days at Rensselear Polytechnic Institute, so he felt comfortable bringing him in because of how competitive he knew Polino was and wanted to give him a shot in this league. Polino’s return to the Amerks, albeit on a professional tryout, again affords him the opportunity to be on the ice in the most critical moments because of what he’s proved over the last year.
Along with the connection to Polino, Appert had a connection with Williams as well with both being former goaltenders at Ferris State University. Additionally, Appert heard nothing but great things from Willia’ms former head coach with the Jacksonville Icemen, Jason Christie, who is currently an assistant coach with the Sabres.
With all the connections, and the rumors about Williams’ compete level, it was hard for Appert to pass up on giving the goaltender another chance in the AHL as the Amerks signed him to a PTO on Jan. 14.
“The beauty of Charles Williams is you know he’s going to compete. He’s going to give you everything he’s got. If it’s an off game, it’s not going to be from lack of competitiveness or will, and so you feel good going into battle with a guy like that.”
Williams has had two other stints in the league. In 2017-18, Williams appeared in two games with the Hartford Wolf Pack while getting four games under his belt with the Ontario Reign during the 2018-19 season. In 2018-19, Williams held a record of 3-1 with a .930 save percentage while with the Reign.
Additionally, Williams attended Canisius College for a year while pursuing his Master’s in 2016-17, appeared in 34 games for the Griffs. As Williams held a 21-7-5 record for Canisius, he led the nation with his .943 save percentage, six shutouts and ranked second nationally with a 1.82 goals-against average.
Nazarian is the third and final player signed to a professional tryout on the current Amerks roster and one that came with an influx of other players that we’ve already seen go. In Nazarian’s first game with Rochester on Dec. 29 against the Providence Bruins, he dove right into the action and scored his first AHL goal in his AHL debut.
Unfortunately, Nazarian was sidelined due to COVID-19 protocols for a short period of time. However, Appert says that he’s continuing to get better and better as he’s starting to learn the pace of play in the AHL.
“He’s starting to get better and better at playing how we need him to play and playing at the pace of the American Hockey League. He’s been very physically committed and when he has the puck on his stick, he has the ability to make plays at this level. I think he’s an intelligent hockey player with a really good stick, starting to get better at the things away from the puck that he needs to be better at and, again, he’s given us real quality minutes.”
All in all, Polino, Williams and Nazarian have become critical pieces to the roster in Rochester. They’ve become players that the team values and needs and they’ve begun to see playing time in critical situations.
For Polino, he’s appeared in four games with Rochester since signing his professional tryout and he notched a goal in his second game back with the squad on Jan. 14 against the Belleville Senators.
Williams has got the nod in two games, beginning with the second half of a two-game set against the Belleville Senators on Jan. 15. Although Williams didn’t get the win, he made 29 saves and Appert thought he looked very good early on.
After signing his professional tryout with the Amerks on Dec. 28, 2021, Nazarian has went on to appear in eight games with the team, notching two goals and one assist after beginning the 2021-22 season with Icemen.
As we continue to watch these players, and I’m sure more throughout the course of the season, prove their case as to why they should be here, their stats aren’t exactly what Appert and staff are always looking for. It’s more important that the players they bring in have high character and fit into the culture that the organization is trying to build. Everything else comes second.
“It’s more important than ever, and we value it all the time, that they have high character, that they have high compete and they’re going to fit into the culture that we’re trying to build here.”