GAME PREVIEW: HOME-AND-HOME WRAPS UP TODAY IN TORONTO
Mar 16, 2024TONIGHT'S GAME OVERVIEW
The home-and-home series shifts north of the border between the Rochester Americans (29-21-6-2) and Toronto Marlies (25-20-9-2) for a rematch at Scotiabank Arena in downtown Toronto. The 1:30 p.m. matinee will be carried live on The Sports Leader 95.7 FM/950 AM The Fan Rochester as well as AHLTV.
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The Amerks, who have points in 17 of their last 24 games dating back to Jan. 17, currently lead the fifth-place Laval Rocket by three points in the AHL's North Division standings. Rochester has won four of its last five games and have not suffered back-to-back regulation defeats since Jan. 31 and Feb. 2.
Toronto host Rochester for the third and final time this season with a 25-20-9-2 record having lost five of its last seven games.
SEASON SERIES SNAPSHOT
Today is the final meeting between the two clubs in Toronto after Rochester took the first two meetings in overtime by a combined score of 7-5. The Amerks are looking for their fourth consecutive time for the first time since the 2017-18, 2018-19 seasons.
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 26 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 24 times in the final 20 minutes of regulation, which includes a five-goal frame on Jan. 14, 2023.
LAST TIME OUT
The Amerks used five different goal-scorers and a 41-save effort from Devon Levi as they defeated Toronto by a 5-3 score Friday at The Blue Cross Arena.
Nikita Novikov (1+1) and Jiri Kulich (1+1) each tallied a pair of points. Mason Jobst, Isak Rosen, and Viktor Neuchev all found the back of the net while Joseph Cecconi, Jeremy Davies, Brandon Biro, Graham Slaggert, Michael Mersch, Riley Stillman, and Damien Giroux all notched a helper in the win.
Levi (11-7-5) earned his 17th start in the last 20 games since being reassigned to Rochester on Jan. 20. The rookie netminder stopped 41 saves to pick up his fourth straight win and fifth victory in his last six outings. Additionally, Levi, who has held the opposition to three or fewer goals in 15 of his 19 starts, boasts a 11-1-3 this season in those games.
MURRAY MAKING HIS MARK
This past Sunday 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 71 goals and 82 points for 153 points while also posting 16 points (7+9) in 24 postseason contests.
Murray, who is third amongst all Amerks this season in goals (15), is two points away from reaching the 30-point mark for the third consecutive season. Since Feb. 24, Murray has produced four goals and two assists over his last nine outings with the team while also totaling 19 shots over that span.
ROUSEK RACKING UP THE POINTS
Lukas Rousek has been one of the team’s most consistent point-getters since the turn of 2024, having recorded points in 16 of 24 games in that stretch while also producing 22 points over his last 30 games since Dec. 20.
Rousek, a sixth-round selection (160th overall) by the Sabres in the 2019 NHL Draft, currently leads the team with 28 assists and is second in points (38) and seventh in goals (10). Among all Amerks who have appeared in at least 30 games, he is second in points per game (0.79).
Currently on recall with Buffalo, the AHL All-Star saw his career-long point streak come to an end on Jan. 26, stopping at 13 games. He totaled 14 points between Dec. 20 and Jan. 20, the second-longest point streak in the league behind only Toronto’s Alex Steeves, who had a point in 16 straight games.
Rousek’s point streak was the longest by an Amerk in 24 years since Hall of Famer Domenic Pittis had points in 14 straight contests from Jan. 22 to March 4 during the 1999-2000 campaign.
NEW YEAR, 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 the middle of March.
Dating back to Dec. 29 and the turn of the New Year, Neuchev has erupted for 17 points on seven goals and 10 assists over his previous 22 games.
Neuchev has recorded at least one point in 10 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 five multi-point games, which includes a pair of three-point efforts.
Of Neuchev’s eight goals this season, six 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 23 points (9+14) and 64 shots in 44 games.
WORKING OVERTIME
The 4-3 overtime win against Syracuse last Friday was the fourth game over the last 12 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 most by any team this season, including each of the first three games of the campaign.
Five of the last 11 games against Syracuse have required extra time to determine a winner, including three which saw the Crunch overcome a pair of 2-0 deficits before defeating Rochester in overtime on back-to-back nights.
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 96 regular-season games have required overtime to determine a winner. Of the Amerks 45 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 20 games since being reassigned to Rochester on Jan. 20, including five straight to open the month of February. He enters the weekend having won five of his last six and eight of his last 12 dating back to Feb. 14.
Levi, who boasts a 11-5-3 record in 19 appearances with the Amerks, totaled 130 saves on 136 shots he faced over his recent three-game win streak, 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 11th among rookie netminders with a 2.52 goals-against average and wins (11), 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.
Currently in his 15th season, he joins Marcel Paille and Michael Leighton as the only goaltenders all-time to play at least 15 seasons in the AHL.
Tokarski, who’s 7-8-3 in his first 19 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 six wins away from tying Red Almas for 11th all-time in career wins (218). He’s also one game away from tying Neil Little for 15th all-time (419) 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 26 points (10+16) over his last 26 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 Wednesday in Syracuse to take over the team's scoring lead.
Jobst has totaled 92 points (35+57) in 137 career games as an Amerk and has amassed 117 points (46+71) over 211 career American Hockey League games with Rochester, San Jose, Bridgeport, and Binghamton.
SERIES NOTABLES
Amerks captain Michael Mersch enters today having played 600 professional games. Mersch, who has 147 points (62+85) 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 today's contest having played 399 career AHL games. Since the start of the 2015-16 campaign, the Sauk Rapids, Minnesota native has totaled 50 goals and 169 assists for 219 points while also logging 13 points (2+11) in 31 post-season tilts with Rochester, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton and Springfield.
Both Rochester (15-5-1-2) and Toronto (15-2-3-0) come into the matchup sporting winning records when leading after the first period. The Marlies are 17-1-3-0 this season when carrying a lead into the second period while the Amerks remain a near-perfect 18-0-0-1 in that regard.
Since the start of the 2022-23 campaign, Rochester has gone 8-for-41 (19.5%) on the power-play against the Marlies while also showing a 75.0% success-rate on the penalty kill (30-for-40).
In 25 of the last 39 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 26 of the last 31 meetings, the winning team has scored at least four goals dating back to the 2017-18 season.