GAME PREVIEW: AMERKS LOOK TO SNAP SKID TONIGHT AGAINST PENGUINS
Jan 25, 2023TONIGHT'S GAME OVERVIEW
The Rochester Americans (19-14-2-1) kick-off a three-game homestand while also looking to halt a four-game slide tonight as they host the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (19-14-2-3) for the only time this season at Blue Cross Arena. Game time is slated for a 7:05 p.m. start and will be carried on The Sports Leader 95.7 FM/950 AM The Fan Rochester as well as AHLTV.
Tonight's matchup is the first of two meetings between the two teams this season and the only contest in Rochester. Both teams boast nearly identical records despite the Penguins having played two more games. Rochester has 10 home wins while Wilkes-Barre/Scranton has 11 road victories.
HEAD-TO-HEAD SERIES SNAPSHOT
After being swept in the two-game season-series in 2017-18 against Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, Rochester has gone a perfect 7-0-0-0 in the seven meetings since, the team’s longest active win streak against any opponent.
The Amerks have scored 10 power-play goals in their last seven games against the Penguins dating back to the start of the 2017-18 season, going 10-for-32 (31.2%) with the man-advantage over that span. Conversely, Rochester’s penalty kill unit has successfully cleared 20 of the 21 shorthanded opportunities (95.2%) against in that same time frame.
Since the start of the 2017-18 campaign, Rochester has outscored Wilkes-Barre/Scranton 35-13, while also outshooting the Penguins 224-217.
LAST TIME OUT
After falling behind 3-0, the Amerks were unable to generate any offensive firepower in a 4-1 loss to the Hartford Wolf Pack Saturday at XL Center.
Sean Malone scored his ninth goal of the season from Isak Rosen and Michael Mersch. The contest was Malone's first since Dec. 28 as he missed the last nine to due to injury. Mersch earned his 13th point (6+7) over his last 11 games, while Rosen was credited with his first assist since Dec. 17.
Goaltender Michael Houser (3-5-0) made his 10th appearance of the campaign and first since Dec. 9. He made 29 saves but suffered his fourth straight defeat.
SUBBAN SURGING INTO FEBRUARY
After suffering a defeat in his season-debut on Nov. 18, Subban has gone 9-3-1 since, including seven straight wins between Dec. 10 to Jan. 14. The seven-game win streak was the longest of his pro career and the third-longest streak among all AHL goaltenders behind Toronto's Joseph Woll and Calgary's Dustin Wolf.
He was the first Amerks goaltender to post seven straight wins since Jonas Johansson won nine consecutive contests during the 2019-20 campaign.
Subban had arguably his best performance of the season during a 75-save weekend in Rochester’s two-game sweep over the Charlotte Checkers in mid-December. A night after stopping a regular-season career-high 45 saves, Subban was flawless in a 30-save shutout on Dec. 17, his first in the AHL since April 8, 2017, with the Providence Bruins.
Subban, who picked up his 100th career win in the 5-4 overtime victory over Utica on Dec. 28, has topped the 40-save mark three times in his last nine starts and is currently tied for 20th amongst all netminders with nine wins.
BIRO PILING UP THE POINTS
Despite missing six games due to injury, third-year forward Brandon Biro has blazed his way atop the team's scoring lead following a productive December in which he led the team with 16 points (6+10) in 10 games. He recorded multi-point efforts in seven of his 10 appearances, including six straight between Dec. 9 and Dec. 30 before closing out the month with an assist in the 3-2 win in Toronto.
Named to the roster for the 2023 AHL All-Star Classic, Biro currently paces the Amerks in assists (20) and points (29) through 30 games and his recent seven-game point streak to close out the 2022 calendar year was the longest of his career.
Dating back to last season, Biro has totaled 70 points on 21 goals and 49 assists over his last 78 games and hasn't gone more than five games without a point since Nov. 27, 2021.
HINOSTROZA JOINS AMERKS AHEAD OF BUSY WEEK
Forward Vinnie Hinostroza is expected to make his Amerks debut tonight after clearing waivers last week and officially joining the team on Tuesday.
Hinostroza appeared in 19 games with the Buffalo Sabres, producing eight points (0+8) to begin the 2022-23 season. In 81 career games with the Sabres, he's recorded 33 points (13+20) dating back to the start of the 2021-22 campaign.
Originally a sixth-round selection (169th overall) of the Chicago Blackhawks in 2012, Hinostroza has totaled 145 points (51+94) in 353 career NHL games with Buffalo, Chicago, Florida and Arizona.
Has amassed 82 points (30+52) in 109 career American Hockey League games, all with the Rockford IceHogs, between 2014-15 and 2017-18. Posted his best season during the 2015-16 campaign when he set career-highs in goals (18). assists (33) and points (51) in 66 appearances. Hinostroza led the team in scoring that year while finishing second in assists and third in goals.
Prior to turning pro, played two seasons at the University of Notre Dame, where he was a teammate of current Amerk Anders Bjork. He recorded 76 points in 76 games, earning Hockey East All-Rookie Team honors in 2013-14 followed by a Hockey East First Team All-Star selection in 2014-15.
Internationally, has represented the United States on three separate occasions, including at the 2016 IIHF World Championship most recently.
PROWESS ON THE BLUELINE
Entering last Wednesday against Laval, Ethan Prow was the only Amerks defenseman to appear in all 33 games this season. Overall, he has skated in 105 of the 112 games dating back to the start of the 2021-22 campaign.
By being held without a point for just the third time since Christmas, Prow saw his four-game point streak (2+3) halted. The seventh-year veteran has posted seven points (2+5) in his last 10 outings dating back to Dec. 28.
Through 35 games this season, Prow is tied for 26th in scoring amongst all AHL defensemen. His 15 assists are 25th in the league. He is five assists away from notching his fourth consecutive season with 20 or more assists and needs one more point to reach the 20-point mark for the fifth straight year dating back to the 2018-19 campaign.
SERIES NOTABLES
Amerks veteran defenseman Matt Bartkowski, a Pittsburgh, Penn., native, spent the 2021-22 season with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton as an assistant captain. In 72 games, Bartkowski registered 16 points (4+16) while also skating in six postseason contests, notching one assist.
Penguins assistant coach Kevin Porter spent parts of five seasons with Rochester and was a five-time team captain from 2012-14 and 2017-2020. In 269 career games with the Amerks, Porter notched 68 goals and 116 assists for 184 points to rank 35th all-time in franchise history among all forwards.
Penguins captain Taylor Fedun patrolled the Amerks blueline for parts of three seasons (2016-19), leading Rochester to two playoff appearances. The 35-year-old veteran defenseman and two-time assistant captain for the Amerks produced 44 points (8+36) in 83 games.
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton forward Alexander Nylander began his professional career in Rochester after being drafted eighth overall in the 2016 NHL Draft by the Buffalo Sabres. Nylander recorded 86 points (30+56) in 165 career games with Rochester from 2016-19.
Penguins goaltender Dustin Tokarski began the 2020-21 season with the Amerks, going 1-1-0 in two appearances.
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins vs Rochester Americans: Head To Head Stats
Summary
|
Description |
Result |
|
| Head to Head Record 2022-23 Regular Season | Wilkes-Barre/Scranton 0-0-0-0 | Rochester 0-0-0-0 |
| Head to Head Record 2021-22 Regular Season | Wilkes-Barre/Scranton 0-2-0-0 | Rochester 2-0-0-0 |
| Last 5 Years record between teams | Wilkes-Barre/Scranton 0-5-0-0 | Rochester 5-0-0-0 |
| Wilkes-Barre/Scranton vs. Rochester Last 5 Years record at Wilkes-Barre/Scranton | Wilkes-Barre/Scranton 0-2-0-0 | Rochester 2-0-0-0 |
| Wilkes-Barre/Scranton vs. Rochester Last 5 Years record at Rochester | Wilkes-Barre/Scranton 0-3-0-0 | Rochester 3-0-0-0 |
How the two teams match up
|
Rochester |
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton |
|
| Team Record | 19-14-2-1 -- 41 points | 19-14-2-3 -- 43 points |
| Division Ranking | 4th North | 5th Atlantic |
| Conference Ranking | 9th Eastern | 7th Eastern |
| League Ranking | 19th | 16th |
| Past 10 Games | 4-5-1-0 | 5-5-0-0 |
| Streak | 0-3-1-0 | 0-1-0-0 |
| Last Game | 4-1 L @ Hartford (Jan 21 2023) Final | 5-1 L @ Utica (Jan 24 2023) Final |
| Home Record | 10-7-1-0 | 8-8-2-1 |
| Away Record | 9-7-1-1 | 11-6-0-2 |
| GF | 113 | 109 |
| GA | 121 | 102 |
| PP (Overall) | (23/122) 18.9% | (25/148) 16.9% |
| PP (Home) | (18/67) 26.9% | (12/73) 16.4% |
| PP (Away) | (5/55) 9.1% | (13/75) 17.3% |
| PK (Overall) | (26/111) 76.6% | (24/138) 82.6% |
| PK (Home) | (11/53) 79.2% | (10/70) 85.7% |
| PK (Away) | (15/58) 74.1% | (14/68) 79.4% |
| PP vs. Opp. | (0/0) 0% | (0/0) 0% |
| PK vs. Opp. | (0/0) 0% | (0/0) 0% |
| Leading Rookie | Kulich (7-10-17) | Houde (8-6-14) |
| Most PIM | Weissbach - 32 | Andonovski - 50 |
| Team PIM/GM | 9.7/Game | 11.9/Game |
| Leading Scorers | Biro (9-20-29) | Nylander (16-16-32) |
| Weissbach (13-13-26) | Puustinen (14-16-30) | |
| Rousek (10-15-25) | Caggiula (9-18-27) | |
| Murray (13-11-24) | Hållander (8-17-25) | |
| Mersch (7-15-22) | O’Connor (8-14-22) | |
| Last 5 Games | 4-1 L @ Hartford (Jan 21 2023) Final | 5-1 L @ Utica (Jan 24 2023) Final |
| 1-0 L @ Bridgeport (Jan 20 2023) Final OT | 3-2 W @ Bridgeport (Jan 21 2023) Final | |
| 5-2 L vs Laval (Jan 18 2023) Final | 5-2 L vs Lehigh Valley (Jan 20 2023) Final | |
| 7-5 L vs Toronto (Jan 14 2023) Final | 3-2 L vs Syracuse (Jan 18 2023) Final | |
| 3-1 W vs Laval (Jan 11 2023) Final | 3-2 W @ Charlotte (Jan 15 2023) Final SO | |
| Leading After 1st | 11-2-0-0 | 9-3-0-2 |
| Leading After 2nd | 13-3-1-0 | 12-0-0-0 |
| Tied After 1st | 4-6-2-1 | 4-7-0-1 |
| Tied After 2nd | 1-2-1-1 | 4-4-1-3 |
| Trailing After 1st | 4-6-0-0 | 6-4-2-0 |
| Trailing After 2nd | 5-9-0-0 | 3-10-1-0 |
| Out Shooting Opponents | 5-6-1-0 | 11-9-1-0 |
| Out Shot by Opponents | 14-5-1-1 | 8-4-1-3 |
| 1-Goal Games | 10-4-2-1 | 10-5-2-3 |
| 2-Goal Games | 6-2-0-0 | 3-5-0-0 |
| 3-Goal Games | 0-3-0-0 | 2-2-0-0 |