GAME PREVIEW: AMERKS LOOK FOR FIFTH STRAIGHT HOME WIN TONIGHT AGAINST MARLIES
Mar 22, 2024TONIGHT'S GAME OVERVIEW
The Rochester Americans (30-22-6-2) look for their fifth straight win on home ice tonight as they welcome back the Toronto Marlies (27-20-9-2) for a North Division showdown at The Blue Cross Arena. The 7:05 p.m. matchup will be carried live on The Fan Rochester as well as AHLTV.
The Amerks, who have points in 18 of their last 26 games dating back to Jan. 17, currently lead the fifth-place Marlies by three points in the AHL's North Division standings. Toronto, however, has two games in hand on Rochester coming into the weekend and has points in seven of its last 10 road contests, going 5-3-1-1 ove that span.
Toronto has scored seven goals in each of its last two games, outscoring its opposition 14-4 in back-to-back wins to keep pace with the Amerks.
SEASON SERIES SNAPSHOT
Tonight is the fifth of six meetings between the Amerks and Marlies and the third in the past seven days. Despite splitting a home-and-home series last weekend, Rochester maintains a 3-1-0-0 record thus far in the season-series, which wraps up with one final get-together on April 17.
Rochester’s three third-period goals against the Marlies back on Oct. 14 were the first by the club since a three-goal frame in the final 20 minutes on Mar. 24, 2019 at Toronto (also a 5-4 overtime win).
In the last 27 regular season games against Toronto, Rochester has scored at least one goal in the first period 19 times, which includes a four-goal outing in the series-opener on Oct. 23, 2021. Toronto, on the other hand, has scored 25 times in the final 20 minutes of regulation, which includes a five-goal frame on Jan. 14, 2023.
LAST TIME OUT
The Amerks erased three different deficits before ultimately outlasting the Hartford Wolf Pack for a wild 6-5 win in a back-and-forth affair Wednesday at The Blue Cross Arena.
Jiri Kulich logged his second three-point outing of the season and ninth multi-point effort overall. Ethan Prow, Isak Rosén, Michael Mersch, and Brett Murray all scored one goal apiece. Calle Själin, Jeremy Davies, Brandon Biro, Ryan Johnson, Mason Jobst, Nikita Novikov, and Viktor Neuchev all registered an assist.
Goaltender Dustin Tokarski (8-9-3) made his 21st appearance of the season for the Amerks. The veteran netminder, who appeared in his 500th professional game and 420th in the AHL, made 25 saves to earn his first win since Jan. 19.
MURRAY MAKING HIS MARK
Back on Feb. 18 against Utica, Brett Murray became just the 36th forward in the 68-year history of the franchise to appear in 250 games for Rochester. Since joining the organization ahead of the 2019-20 campaign, the Bolton, Ontario, native has recorded 72 goals and 82 assists for 154 points while also posting 16 points (7+9) in 24 postseason contests.
Murray, who is third amongst all Amerks this season in goals (16), is one point away from reaching the 30-point mark for the third consecutive season. Since Feb. 24, Murray has produced five goals and two assists for seven points over his last 11 outings with the team while also totaling 21 shots over that span.
RACE TO 20
After seeing three players reach the 20-goal mark last season, the Amerks could potentially have the same or more by the season's end.
With goals in two of his last three games, Jiri Kulich is on the brink of his second straight 20-goal season. Kulich, whose 19 goals lead all Amerks, can become the first Amerks player to score 20 or more goals in back-to-back seasons since Cole Schneider and Justin Bailey each did so in 2015-16 and 2016-17.
Mason Jobst, the team's leading point-getter who's amid a career-year in terms of scoring, needs just two more goals to reach the mark for the first time in his pro career. He, too, has goals in two of his last three games and enters the weekend riding a season-long six-game point streak (2+6).
Brett Murray (16) is also on pace for his second straight 20-goal season while Isak Rosen is also within reach after scoring his career-high 15th goal of the season on Wednesday, reaching the mark in 10 fewer games than his rookie campaign.
NEW NEAR, NEW NEUCHEV
After producing just five points in his first 23 games, rookie foward Viktor Neuchev has unsurprisingly emerged as Rochester’s top scoring rookie through late March.
Dating back to Dec. 29 and the turn of the New Year, Neuchev has erupted for 21 points on eight goals and 13 assists over his previous 25 games.
Neuchev has recorded at least one point in 14 games over that span, including a season-long six-game point streak from Dec. 29 to Jan. 20 which saw him score three goals and record eight points.
Buffalo’s third-round selection (74th overall) in 2022, Neuchev’s most impressive performance of the season came back on Jan. 27, finding the back of the net for the third time in four games with the game-winning goal while also adding two assists in the 7-4 win over Laval. Since Jan. 5, Neuchev has recorded six multi-point games, which includes a pair of three-point efforts.
Of Neuchev’s 10 goals this season, seven have been scored on home ice and three have come against Laval. Neuchev, who had a 40-goal season while playing for Russia’s junior league during the 2021-22 campaign, currently leads all Amerks rookies with 26 points (10+16) and 68 shots in 46 games.
WORKING OVERTIME
The 4-3 overtime win against Syracuse on March 8 was the fourth game over the last 14 for Rochester that went beyond regulation, with three of the four producing a 2-1 score. Overall, the Amerks have gone to extra time on 19 different occasions, the second-most by any team this season (Cleveland), including each of the first three games of the campaign.
Two of the last four games against Toronto have required extra time to determine a winner, which include the Amerks overcoming a first-period deficit and scoring once in the second stanza.
Four of Jiri Kulich’s team-high five game-winning goals this season have come by way of overtime while Isak Rosen, Brandon Biro, Jeremy Davies, and Zach Metsa have each netted the clinching goal during the extra frame.
Never before in the near 68-year history of the franchise have the Amerks opened a season with three consecutive overtime contests.
Of Rochester’s 12 games in February, five were decided past regulation. The club was 1-3 in overtime in the month and showed an 0-1 record in the shootout.
Dating back to Jan. 20 of last season, 29 of Rochester’s previous 97 regular-season games have required overtime to determine a winner. Of the Amerks 46 wins during that same span, 16 have come came following the end of regulation.
The Amerks show a 8-6 record in overtime this season and are 3-2 in the shootout.
Rochester tied an AHL record with 29 overtime games in 2017-18, showing a 9-11 record in overtime and 3-6 in the shootout.
LEANING ON LEVI
Devon Levi has earned the start in 17 of the last 22 games since being reassigned to Rochester on Jan. 20, including five straight to open the month of February. Curently on NHL recall with Buffalo, he enters the week end having won four straight and five of his last six dating back to March 1.
Levi, who boasts a 11-5-3 record in 19 appearances with the Amerks, totaled 130 saves on 136 shots he faced over a three-game win streak in February, boasting an impressive 1.95 goals-against average and a .956 save percentage over that span.
His career-high 52 saves in the Amerks overtime win at Toronto on Feb. 19 were the most by an Amerks goaltender since Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen had 54 in a 2-1 win at Syracuse on Feb. 25, 2022.
Levi, who ranks fifth among all rookie netminders with a 2.52 goals-against average, has held the opposition to three or fewer goals in 16 of his 19 starts. He’s 11-2-3 this season in those games.
Levi won the Mike Richter Award, given annually to the top goaltender in men’s college hockey, for the second straight year following the 2022-23 season.
The only two-time winner in the award’s history, Levi led the nation again with a .933 save percentage, and tied for third in both shutouts (6) and saves (1,183).
TOKARSKI ON THE MOVE
Veteran goaltender Dustin Tokarski, who missed the first eight games of the season due to an injury he sustained in training camp, made his season debut back on Nov. 3 against Utica.
In doing so, the two-time Calder Cup winner and AHL All-Star became just the 18th goaltender in league history to play in 400 career games, a list that also includes former Amerks Bobby Perreault (512), Michael Leighton (507), Drew MacIntyre (440) and Ed Chadwick (417).
Tokarski, who’s in his second stint with the Amerks and 10th different AHL franchise, went 1-1-0 during a brief two-game stint with Rochester as part of the COVID-shortnened 2020-21 campaign. He went 12-20-7 in 42 appearances with the Buffalo Sabres from 2021-23.
On Wednesday, he earned his second straight start and appeared in his 500th pro game. He has played in 80 NHL contests and 420 AHL games.
Tokarski, who’s 8-9-3 in his first 21 appearances, surpassed the 10,000-save mark for his AHL career following a 31-save effort against Utica on Nov. 10. He also reached the 12,000-save mark for his pro career the week prior when he made his season debut against the Comets.
Entering tonight, the 34-year-old Tokarski is only five wins away from tying Red Almas for 11th all-time in career wins (218). He’s also 20 games away from tying Drew MacIntyre for 13rd all-time (440) and will tie Yann Danis for eighth all-time on his next shutout.
JOBST HAVING A CAREER YEAR
Forward Mason Jobst enters the contest with 28 points (11+17) over his last 28 games, the most by an Amerk since the turn of the new year. Jobst, who hasn't gone more than one game without a point over that span, recorded a career-best three-assist outing on Feb. 16 against Wilkes-Barre/Scranton and followed that up by scoring goals in three straight games, including his career-high 16th goal of the season against Belleville on Feb. 23.
Since then, the fifth-year forward has already surpassed his goal total in 18 fewer games this season and successfully reached the 40-point mark for the first time in his career with another three-assist effort last Wednesday in Syracuse to take over the team's scoring lead.
Jobst has totaled 94 points (36+58) in 139 career games as an Amerk and has amassed 119 points (47+72) over 213 career American Hockey League games with Rochester, San Jose, Bridgeport, and Binghamton.
SERIES NOTABLES
Amerks captain Michael Mersch enters the weekend having played 602 professional games. Mersch, who has 149 points (63+86) with the Amerks since the start of the 2020-21 season, became the 58th forward in franchise history to skate in at least 200 games back on March 1 at Belleville.
Amerks defenseman Ethan Prow comes into tonight's contest having played 401 career AHL games. Since the start of the 2015-16 campaign, the Sauk Rapids, Minnesota native has totaled 51 goals and 170 assists for 221 points while also logging 13 points (2+11) in 31 postseason contests with Rochester, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton and Springfield.
Both Rochester (15-5-1-2) and Toronto (16-2-3-0) come into the matchup sporting winning records when leading after the first period. The Marlies are 18-1-3-0 this season when carrying a lead into the second period while the Amerks remain a near-perfect 19-0-0-1 in that regard.
Since the start of the 2022-23 campaign, Rochester has gone 8-for-45 (17.8%) on the power-play against the Marlies while also showing a 73.8% success-rate on the penalty kill (31-for-42).
In 26 of the last 40 meetings between the two teams dating back to the 2016-17 season, the team that scored first has come away with the victory. Additionally, in 27 of the last 32 meetings, the winning team has scored at least four goals dating back to the 2017-18 season.