BIRO PICKING UP RIGHT WHERE HE LEFT OFF
Nov 7, 2022By Suzie Cool
Although we’re just 10 games into the Rochester Americans 2022-23 campaign it’s clear that forward Brandon Biro is continuing to level up from last season.
With two assists on Friday’s game against the Utica Comets, Biro took over the team's scoring lead with 11 points on three goals and eight assists while also extending his point streak to four straight games. Dating back to last season, the third-year pro has totaled 13 points on five goals and eight assists over his last 13 games and hasn't gone more than one game without a point over that span.
Biro attributes a lot of this offensive output to the new role he’s taken on this season – a driver and leader.
“I think I’m just trying to help the younger guys as much as I can and then maybe I’m getting a little bit more opportunity to start just given that I've been here,” commented Biro when asked how he takes on his new role.
The third-year pro’s prominent offensive presence this early in the season hasn’t gone unnoticed by Amerks head coach Seth Appert and staff.
“I think the skill has always been there. I think it's the other stuff that's risen,” said Appert when asked how Biro has leveled up in terms of his skillset this year. “His skill is growing with the way we practice and the positions we put our guys in, in practice. Their skills are going to get better if they're present in practice, and he is. He's also the first or second guy in the shooting room every day, so he's putting time into his craft.”
In 2021-22, Biro finished his second professional season notching 12 goals and 29 assists for 41 points in 48 games with Rochester. More impressively, he produced 36 points on 12 goals and 24 assists in his last 37 games, including 10 multi-point games over that span and becoming the third different Amerks rookie to reach the 40-point mark.
Like Appert said, the skill has always been there for Biro as he was the named the team’s Most Improved Player and Unsung Hero last season. This year, though, Biro hasn’t just continued to play hard, instead he’s become extremely hard to play against.
“In just a short amount of time, he's went from being a player that played hard to being a player that’s hard to play against, and there’s a big difference in that,” said Appert when discussing what it means to be hard to play against. “It sounds subtle, but there's a big difference. His level of physical commitment to getting the puck right now is extremely high, and that's allowing his skill to flourish.”
Appert then continued to discuss the difference in playing hard and being hard to play against with, “Biro does it differently than Mersch (Amerks captain Michael Mersch). He’s going to use his size, but Biro is going to do it with how many puck battles he wins and how strong he is on the puck, and how he cuts people's hands off physically with the angles he takes. So, he's been very demanding to play against and he has the puck all the time because of it right now,” finished Appert when discussing Biro’s game.
Additionally, Biro is trying to take a little more responsibility for his game this season while taking advantage of playing with a new group of younger forwards that help compliment his overall game.
“It’s my third year now and I'm trying to take a little bit more responsibility for my game,” said Biro when talking about his hot start to the year. “I'm just doing what I can to help the younger guys and, obviously, a lot of them have a lot of skill and it's complimenting my game pretty well.”