GAME PREVIEW: AMERKS HOST MONSTERS ON MILITARY APPRECIATION NIGHT
Five things to know ahead of tonight’s game against Cleveland
Jan 24, 2026By Andrew Mossbrooks | @ Mossbrooks48
The Rochester Americans (20-13-4-2) continue their weekend looking for a second straight win as they host the Cleveland Monsters (18-14-5-1) tonight at Blue Cross Arena.
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Here are five things ahead of game two of six on this season-long homestand.
FANTASTIC FRIDAY
The Amerks began their season-long six-game homestand in shutout fashion as Devon Levi stopped all 23 shots he faced in a 3-0 win over the Utica Comets Friday night at Blue Cross Arena.
The shutout win was Levi’s third this season, with each coming on home, ice including two consecutive home tilts. The 24-year-old leads the AHL in saves and minutes played, while entering Saturday tied in games played with 27.
Rochester’s offense in large part came from its blueline, with Nikita Novikov and Ryan Johnson scoring two of the team’s three goals, while leading scorer Isak Rosén mashed his team-leading 19th of the season.
Cleveland sat idle Friday, but played Wednesday and Thursday against Chicago in a pair of wild games ending in 6-5 and 7-6 overtime outcomes, with the Monsters winning the latter of the two.
BLUE LINE BELIEVIN’
Adversity was faced yet again for the red, white, and blue on Friday, with five of their defensemen from the team’s opening night roster being out of action due to either injuries or call-ups. Stepping in were the likes of Mason Geertsen, whose natural position is forward, along with ECHL recalls Aidan Fulp and Peter Tischke.
Fulp recorded an assist in his third game as an Amerk, while Tischke skated in his first game with the Amerks since April of 2023.
Across the lineup, the Amerks have been decimated by injuries and call-ups, entering the weekend with 166-man games lost.
BACK-TO-BACK FOR BEAST
For the first time this season, Levi is expected to play on back-to-back nights. The Dollard-des-Ormeaux, Quebec, native will make his 28th start of the season and third against Cleveland, showing an 0-1-1 record thus far.
Levi has allowed three or fewer goals in five of his last six starts and is 14-7-6 this season while helping Rochester earn points in seven of his last nine times in the crease.
The 2025 AHL All-Star went 4-1-0 against the Monsters a season ago, including a 26-save shutout on Feb. 19 on home ice.
LUCA LEADING THE WAY
Third-year Monsters forward Luca Del Bel Belluz skates into the Flower City on a tear, posting 15 points over his last 13 games (5+10). The Blue Jackets’ prospect leads Cleveland with 27 points (10+17) over 26 games and has 46 goals and 111 assists over 145 games in a Monsters’ jersey since debuting in the league during the 2023-24 season.
The 22-year-old has spent part of the season with the team’s parent club, posting an assist in 13 games with Columbus.
Del Bel Belluz has had more success against Rochester than any other team he has faced, with nine goals and 19 points in as many games against the Amerks.
MONSTER MASH
Cleveland comes to town for the fifth of eight meetings in the season series, with the two teams having split the quartet of contests. Two of the games have reached overtime, with each side winning in the opposing team’s venue.
The Monsters have 18 wins on the season, with only 10 coming in regulation. With a game in hand, the Buckeye State adversary are only four points back of Rochester entering play Saturday.
Like Levi, the Monsters have a workhorse of their own in veteran netminder Ivan Fedotov, who is tied with the Amerks’ goaltender for the league lead in starts (27). Despite spending the bulk of last season in the NHL with Philadelphia, Fedotov has struggled of late, winning only one of his last five appearances.
The Monsters have gone to overtime 14 times, leading all North Division teams.