SCOTT METCALFE: PROTECTOR OF THE SHIELD

Amerks legends and former teammates mourn the passing of the “ultimate teammate”

Jun 10, 2025

By Andrew Mossbrooks | @ Mossbrooks48

 

It has been a somber several days in the hockey community of Rochester.

 

Friday’s news served as the forerunner to the rain descending from the skies through the early part of June, creating a feeling of sadness reverberating through the Rochester Americans’ family.

 

Scott Metcalfe, who spent nine years wearing the red, white, and blue, including the team’s 1996 Calder Cup championship season, has passed away at the age of 58.

 

 

“My heart breaks for his family,” said fellow teammate Kevin Kerr, who was a fellow rookie with Metcalfe during the 1987-88 season in Rochester. Kerr would go on to play parts of three seasons with the player fondly referred to as ‘Metter’. “He was a larger-than-life personality. He was a great competitor, passionate about the game, and it was evident in the way he played.”

 

In their early years, Kerr and Metcalfe shared a line with a name, who like them, was also trying to break into the pro game. Enter Rob Ray.

 

“He was the most ultimate teammate I ever played with,” said Ray. “I learned more from him in a year and a half than any other player. He taught me how to respect the game and everyone around it. Even after getting to the NHL, he would still call me and offer advice and support. I’ll never forget that.”

 

 

As a trio, the line of Metcalfe, Ray, and Kerr played to the tune of a bygone era. In the 1988-89 season, the trio combined for 993 penalty minutes. That’s over 200 more than the entire Amerks roster amassed just this past season (788).

 

It was a byproduct of the times, and a part of the identity Metcalfe exemplified.

 

“He was a protector to all who wore the Amerks jersey,” said Hall of Fame goaltender Martin Biron.

 

 

“He was a fierce competitor on the ice,” said fellow Calder Cup champion and Hall of Famer Scott Nichol. “He stood up for his teammates and would do anything to win. He held everyone accountable and backed it up with how hard he played every night.”

 

“He set an incredible example of what it means to be a pro,” said Calder Cup-winning goaltender Steve Shields.

 

“He was absolutely beloved in the locker room,” said Amerks all-time scoring leader Jody Gage.

 

 

Metcalfe played parts of 14 seasons professionally, with nine being spent in the Flower City. Of his 788 professional games, 499 of them came in an Amerks jersey. None were more important than Game 7 of the Calder Cup Finals on June 13, 1996 when a then 29-year-old Metcalfe would lift his one and only championship as a pro, capturing the Amerks last and most recent Calder Cup, a moment that to this day the Amerks continue to chase.

 

“Winning the Calder Cup in 1996 with him was the highlight of my career,” said Shields.

 

“Metter was so excited and so proud of winning the Calder Cup,” said Nichol. “He wanted to share it with the fans and the city. That parade down main street was epic, and he was right in the middle of it!”

 

 

Metcalfe would play his final game for Rochester in 1998, then his last as a pro in Adirondack in 2001. Afterwards, the Toronto, Ontario, native would return to Rochester, establishing roots and calling the city his forever home. Metcalfe wouldn’t wear the jersey in a professional game again, but he would continue to be an Amerk in the community.

 

“He did so much for the community, even well after his retirement,” said Gage.

 

“Scott was the first person to show me how to impact a community,” said Shields. “He showed me how to do it in a positive way. No one cared about the Amerks or Rochester more.”

 

 

“Metter was a huge part of our Amerks family,” said Biron.

 

From visits in the community, to appearing annually at the Amerks Alumni Golf Tournament, to joining Hall of Fame broadcaster Don Stevens on the airwaves for several seasons, Metcalfe immersed himself in Amerks culture. He went from a teenager playing major junior in Kingston and Windsor to a Calder Cup champion and eventually, a forever Amerk in our little city of Rochester.

 

Today, we mourn. Every day moving forward, we remember.

 

 

Metcalfe lived a life of love and hockey, both intertwined to one another with Rochester, New York acting as the crossroads that brought them together.

 

As the Hall of Famer said almost 29 years ago to the day: “We got the job done. Let’s go and enjoy it.”