GAME PREVIEW: AMERKS HOST BEARS TONIGHT IN BATTLE OF AHLT'S TWO OLDEST TEAMS
Nov 26, 2021TONIGHT'S GAME OVERVIEW
The oldest rivalry in the American Hockey League will be renewed tonight in Rochester as the Amerks (9-6-0-0) host the Hershey Bears (8-5-2-1) for the only time this season at The Blue Cross Arena. The 7:05 p.m. contest will be the 461st all-time meeting between the AHL’s two senior-most franchises and will be carried live on The Sports Leader 95.7 FM/950 AM ESPN Rochester as well as AHLTV. Tonight’s battle between the AHL’s two oldest teams is the featured Free Game of the Week on AHLTV.
The teams are idle until the Amerks make their lone trip of the season to Giant Center on Sunday, Dec. 19 in the final game of a four-game road trip.
HEAD-TO-HEAD SERIES SNAPSHOT
The Amerks have won nine of their last 14 games, which includes four on home ice. Hershey, meanwhile, has won its previous two contests while showing a 5-4-1-0 record in their last 10 overall.
Dating back to the start of the 2016-17 campaign, Rochester has collected at least one point in five of the last 10 games against Hershey, going 4-5-1-0 over that span.
In each of the of the 10 previous matchups, the winning club has posted three or more goals. Rochester holds an 191-216-53 lifetime record against Hershey, which includes a 3-2-1-0 mark in the last five years.
WATCH: TONIGHT'S FACE-OFF FIRST LOOK
VIEW FROM ROCHESTER
It took four attempts, but the Amerks finally took down the Utica Comets on Wednesday, handing the AHL’s first-place team their first loss of the season after opening the campaign with 13 straight wins. Utica’s 13-game win streak set a new AHL record for the most wins to open a season, surpassing the 37-year-old standard originaly establised by the 1984-85 Amerks, who won their first 11 games that year.
With two players currently performing at or just over more than a point-per-game pace, the Amerks have the AHL’s third-best offense and are one of only three teams averaging more than 3.85 goals per game. Collectively, Rochester’s 58 goals this season are most in the North Division and are third-most in the league only behind only the Springfield Thunderbirds (60) Ontario Reign (59).
Third-year goaltender Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen was selected as the AHL Player of the Week for the period ending Nov. 14, 2021. In three starts from Nov. 10 to Nov. 13, Luukkonen went 2-1-0 while totaling 112 saves and posting a 1.68 goals-against average and a .957 save percentage and registering the first shutout of his AHL career. Luukkonen, who made five straight starts to open the month of November, has allowed two or fewer goals in four of his last seven appearances. His 271 saves also rank among league leaders.
With his first-period assist in Wednesday’s 4-2 win at Utica, veteran forward Michael Mersch has totaled 14 points (7+7) and four multi-point outings over his last 13 games. The Amerks captain began that stretch with a five-game goal-scoring streak, the longest of his career and the longest in the AHL this season, while his five-game point marked his longest since posting a career-best seven-game point streak from Mar. 27 to April 10, 2015.
Rookie forward JJ Peterka enters tonight with 10 points (3+7) over his last 10 games dating back to Oct. 30. With 15 points (4+11) on the season, he ranks second among all Amerks in overall scoring.
WATCH: SETH APPERT FOLLOWING MORNING SKATE
QUINN-TISSENTIAL QUALITIES
Jack Quinn was named the AHL’s Rookie of the Month for October after leading all first-year players with 10 points (5+5) through the first month of the regular season. In just six games to begin the season, Quinn already surpassed his offensive output from his truncated 2020-21 campaign, and became the first AHL player to reach the 10-point mark this season.
Quinn continued his torrid start to the season by scoring his team-leading ninth goal of the year in Rochester’s 4-0 win over Cleveland back on Nov. 13. With three assists in the last three games, Quinn has totaled 22 points (9+13) in his last 18 games dating back to last season.
Quinn has been held scoreless just three times through his first 15 games and comes into tonight having recorded six multi-point performances this year. Entering the weekend, he remains one of only four AHL rookies currently leading his respective team in scoring.
On Nov. 12, Quinn became the first AHL rookie since Frank Vatrano in 2015-16 to score eight goals through his first 10 games of the season.
FANTASTIC FOUR
The Amerks currently own four of the AHL’s top scoring rookies in Jack Quinn, JJ Peterka, Peyton Krebs and Linus Weissbach who have combined for 50 points (18+32) through the team’s 15 games this season.
Buffalo’s eighth overall pick in 2020, Quinn comes into the weekend leading all AHL rookies in goals (9) and ranking second in points (19). He’s also tied for second in goals and is third in scoring overall among the AHL’s top point-getters.
Peterka, meanwhile, is tied for third amongst all first-year players with a team-high 11 assists while his 15 points are fourth-most. He and Quinn, taken just 26 picks apart from one another by the Buffalo Sabres in the 2020 NHL Draft, currently make up one of only two rookie duos across the entire AHL to rank first and second on their team in scoring.
After recording his first goal as an Amerk in last Saturday’s 5-3 loss in Utica, Krebs has produced seven assists in 10 games this season, tying for 11th among all AHL rookie skaters.
With four goals and four assists, Weissbach comes into the weekend with three points (1+2) over his last four games. Weissbach, who was Buffalo’s seventh-round selection (192nd overall) in the 2017 NHL Draft, has totaled eight points through his first 14 games.
SCOUTING THE BEARS
Hershey comes into the matchup having won two straight and five of its last 10 while also recording points in nine of its last 13 games.
Seven of its first 16 games this season for Hershey have been decided beyond regulation, which included five straight from Oct. 23 to Nov. 5. The Bears show a record of 3-2 in overtime and a 1-1 mark in the shootout.
Fourth-year forward Joe Snively leads all Bears with eight assists and 15 points through 16 games. Three of his seven goals have came on the power-play while he has also record three helpers on the man-advantage. Since the start of November, Snively has posted seven goals and five assists for 12 points. He has earned three three-point games over that span.
SERIES NOTABLES
n addition to Jack Quinn (8th overal, 2020) Rochester’s Mark Jankowski (21st overall, 2012) and Peyton Krebs (17th, 2019) and Hersehy’s Dylan McIlrath (10th overall, 2010), Alex Alexeyev (31st overall, 2018) and Lucas Johansen (28th overall, 2016) all were taken in the first round of the NHL Draft.
Both Rochester (7-2-0-0) and Hershey (4-3-2-0) enter tonight with winning records this season when scoring the game’s first goal. The Amerks have also scored 21 goals in the third period of play, which are tied for most in the AHL this season.
On Wednesday night, Amerks forward Brett Murray scored the game-winning goal with just over seven minutes left in regulation. With six goals over a six-game span, it marks the best six-game stretch of his pro career. Three of his six goals this season have come on the power-play, tying for most on the team and 10th in the AHL.
In addition to Murray, Sean Malone and goaltender Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen are the only three players on Rochester’s roster to play in the previous matchup with Hershey.
Hershey Bears vs Rochester Americans: Head To Head Stats
Summary
|
Description |
Result |
|
| Head to Head Record 2021-22 Regular Season | Hershey 0-0-0-0 | Rochester 0-0-0-0 |
| Head to Head Record 2020-21 Regular Season | Hershey 0-0-0-0 | Rochester 0-0-0-0 |
| Last 5 Years record between teams | Hershey 3-2-0-1 | Rochester 3-2-1-0 |
| Hershey vs. Rochester Last 5 Years record at Hershey | Hershey 2-1-0-0 | Rochester 1-1-1-0 |
| Hershey vs. Rochester Last 5 Years record at Rochester | Hershey 1-1-0-1 | Rochester 2-1-0-0 |
How the 2 teams match up
|
Rochester |
Hershey |
|
| Team Record | 9-6-0-0 -- 18 points | 8-5-2-1 -- 19 points |
| Division Ranking | 4th North | 3rd Atlantic |
| Conference Ranking | 6th Eastern | 7th Eastern |
| League Ranking | 10th | 12th |
| Past 10 Games | 6-4-0-0 | 5-4-1-0 |
| Streak | 1-0-0-0 | 2-0-0-0 |
| Last Game | 4-2 W @ Utica (Nov 24 2021) Final | 4-3 W vs Providence (Nov 24 2021) Final OT |
| Home Record | 4-3-0-0 | 6-3-1-1 |
| Away Record | 5-3-0-0 | 2-2-1-0 |
| GF | 58 | 45 |
| GA | 53 | 51 |
| PP (Overall) | (11/53) 20.8% | (12/63) 19.0% |
| PP (Home) | (4/24) 16.7% | (9/44) 20.5% |
| PP (Away) | (7/29) 24.1% | (3/19) 15.8% |
| PK (Overall) | (12/55) 78.2% | (17/80) 78.8% |
| PK (Home) | (7/32) 78.1% | (14/59) 76.3% |
| PK (Away) | (5/23) 78.3% | (3/21) 85.7% |
| PP vs. Opp. | (0/0) 0% | (0/0) 0% |
| PK vs. Opp. | (0/0) 0% | (0/0) 0% |
| Leading Rookie | Quinn (9-10-19) | Protas (1-4-5) |
| Most PIM | MacInnis - 23 | McIlrath - 27 |
| Team PIM/GM | 13.7/Game | 14.1/Game |
| Leading Scorers | Quinn (9-10-19) | Snively (7-8-15) |
| Peterka (4-11-15) | Sgarbossa (8-6-14) | |
| Mersch (7-7-14) | Pilon (6-6-12) | |
| Malone (4-8-12) | Franson (2-6-8) | |
| Laaksonen (1-9-10) | Moulson (2-6-8) | |
| Last 5 Games | 4-2 W @ Utica (Nov 24 2021) Final | 4-3 W vs Providence (Nov 24 2021) Final OT |
| 5-3 L @ Utica (Nov 20 2021) Final | 4-2 W vs Charlotte (Nov 21 2021) Final | |
| 5-4 W vs Lehigh Valley (Nov 19 2021) Final SO | 7-3 L @ Hartford (Nov 20 2021) Final | |
| 3-2 L vs Utica (Nov 17 2021) Final | 5-2 L vs Charlotte (Nov 14 2021) Final | |
| 4-0 W vs Cleveland (Nov 13 2021) Final | 5-4 W @ Syracuse (Nov 13 2021) Final SO | |
| Leading After 1st | 7-1-0-0 | 3-1-1-0 |
| Leading After 2nd | 6-0-0-0 | 3-1-1-0 |
| Tied After 1st | 1-0-0-0 | 2-1-1-0 |
| Tied After 2nd | 1-1-0-0 | 3-1-0-1 |
| Trailing After 1st | 1-5-0-0 | 3-3-0-1 |
| Trailing After 2nd | 2-5-0-0 | 2-3-1-0 |
| Out Shooting Opponents | 0-5-0-0 | 3-4-1-1 |
| Out Shot by Opponents | 9-1-0-0 | 5-1-1-0 |
| 1-Goal Games | 4-2-0-0 | 5-0-2-1 |
| 2-Goal Games | 2-1-0-0 | 2-1-0-0 |
| 3-Goal Games | 0-1-0-0 | 1-3-0-0 |