PLAYOFF PREVIEW: AMERKS FACE ROCKET NORTH OF THE BORDER IN GAME 3
Remainder of North Division Final series takes place at Place Bell
May 20, 2025
By Andrew Mossbrooks | @ Mossbrooks48
With the series tied 1-1, the Rochester Americans are north of the border to continue their North Division Final series against the Laval Rocket with Game 3 Wednesday night at Place Bell.
After winning Game 2, the Amerks have guaranteed this best-of-five series to go at least four games, meaning they will play Game 3 tonight, followed by a potentially decisive Game 4 on Friday. Should the two sides split those games, a winner-take-all Game 5 would come Sunday afternoon. The winner of this series advances to the Eastern Conference Finals.
GAME 2 RECAP
After special teams guided the Rocket to a 5-4 victory in Game 1, the Amerks flipped the script on their Canadian counterparts, killing all four penalties faced while scoring two power-play goals of their own as part of a 5-3 win to take Game 2 and even the series.
Isak Rosén scored twice, including an empty net goal, while Jiri Kulich slammed home the game-winning conversion, breaking a 3-3 tie 12:07 into the third period.
Game 2 mimicked that of its predecessor, with both Laval and Rochester trading multiple leads throughout the game. The Amerks finished the contest scoring three unanswered after the Rocket carried a 3-2 lead into the final minute of the second period. With 40 seconds to play in the period, Lukas Rousek sparked the rally by clamping down near a scrum at the front of the goal to shovel the puck past Laval’s Jacob Fowler to tie the game, setting the stage for Kulich and Rosén to come through in the third. Kale Clague also remained red hot, scoring his fifth goal of the playoffs.
Devon Levi had his lightest workload of the postseason, facing just 19 shots. He made 16 saves to secure his fourth win of the playoffs and sixth overall in his AHL career. Fowler, who had gone 3-0 in postseason play entering the night, sustained his first defeat with a 31-save performance.
Laval’s scoring came from its leading point-producer in Laurent Dauphin, as well as captain Lucas Condotta and Jared Davidson.
NO FAIL IN KALE
Entering Wednesday, Clague is part of a three-way tie for the league lead in goals during the 2025 Calder Cup Playoffs with five. He is the only defenseman with more than three goals and the only blueliner with more than two goals with a team still alive in the chase for a Calder Cup.
The seventh-year pro is playing for the pursuit of a championship for the first time since he was 19 years old in junior hockey with Moose Jaw in 2018 (WHL). Clague hadn’t been with a playoff team in pro hockey until this season with the Amerks.
Four of Clague’s five goals have come from a one-timer at the left point. His two goals in this series have been the first of each game, while his three against Syracuse were all scored in the first half of the third period, including the game-winning-goal in Game 1 of the North Division Semifinals.
In addition to his five goals, the Regina, Saskatchewan, native has four assists to help him lead Rochester in point production with nine points through the playoffs thus far. That is best among all defensemen and most by any player in the Eastern Conference.
LEVI IN LAVAL
For the first time in his young career, Devon Levi will play a playoff game close to home. The 23-year-old hails from Dollard-des Ormeaux, a city about 25 minutes southwest of Place Bell.
In his first three contests versus the Rocket, Levi allowed just three combined goals and went 3-0-0. He has faced the team nine times in his career, with seven of those being regular season encounters. In Laval, Levi has churned out a 3-2-0 record over two years against Montreal’s AHL affiliate. The Quebec native has a masterful .939 save percentage coupled with a 1.81 goals-against average at Place Bell.
Through his five starts in this year’s playoffs, Levi owns a 2.01 goals-against average with a .931 save percentage. Including the regular season, the AHL All-Star has posted nine shutouts over his last 44 games.
BOULET BULLETS
With points in each of the first two games, Rocket forward Alex Barre-Boulet has continued his success against the red, white, and blue. The seventh-year pro turns 28 the day of Game 3 and has been a thorn in the side of Rochester since turning pro with the Crunch in 2018.
In 72 career regular-season games against the Amerks, Barre-Boulet has operated at above a point-per-game pace, amassing 24 goals and 49 assists for 73 points. The Montmagny, Quebec, native’s success isn’t exclusive to the regular season, either. Barre-Boulet is facing Rochester for a third straight year in the playoffs after facing off as a member of Syracuse in each of the previous two years’ North Division Semifinal series. In 16 playoff games against the Amerks, Barre-Boulet has 16 points (4+12) in 12 games.
Including time in the NHL, Barre-Boulet has skated in 456 professional games. The winger has points in seven of his last eight games dating back to the regular season finale for Laval last month.
