AMERKS SWEEP ROAD TRIP, EXTEND WIN STREAK TO FIVE STRAIGHT
Kulich, Kisakov score in season debut in 4-2 win over Monsters
Nov 6, 2024The red-hot Rochester Americans (6-3-0-0) put the finishing touches on a perfect four-game road swing, doubling up the North Division rival Cleveland Monsters (4-3-0-1) by a 4-2 score Wednesday at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse.
With the win, Rochester has won five straight, outscoring its opponents 26-10 over that span, while improving to 6-3-0-0 on the season and taking over sole possession of third place in the AHL’s North Division standings. Overall, the Amerks have found the back of the opposition’s net 36 times, including seven power-play tallies dating back to Oct. 23, which tops the North Division and are fifth-most in the league.
Defenseman Zach Metsa (0+2) produced a pair of assists to help Rochester claim its 10th win in its last 11 road games dating back to the 2023-24 campaign. Rookie Konsta Helenius scored for the third time in as many games and fourth overall while Graham Slaggert also tallied a second-period goal. Jiri Kulich, who was loaned to Rochester after starting the season with the Buffalo Sabres, and Aleksandr Kisakov both made their season debuts while scoring three minutes apart in the third. Lukas Rousek, Isak Rosén, Brendan Warren, Kale Clague, Brett Murray, and Vsevolod Komarov all chipped in an assist to cap the scoring.
Goaltender Felix Sandström evened his record to 2-2-0 on the season as he stopped 22 of the 24 shots he faced in the victory. Sandström has won four of his last six appearances dating back to last season with Lehigh Valley.
FIRST PERIOD
In the first period, Rochester nearly got on the scoreboard first despite being shorthanded as Kulich raced down a rolling puck through the center of the ice. After finally settling it down, the Czechia native attempted to fire a shot through the five-hole but was denied.
The Amerks successfully cleared off their first two penalties, but their second delay of game infraction proved to be costly as Cleveland was able to capitalize on the man-advantage at the 18:18 mark when Trey Fix-Wolansky converted for his fourth of the campaign.
SECOND PERIOD
Rochester began the second period with 31 seconds of a carryover power-play, and despite being unable to tie the score, they began to increase the pressure on the Monsters.
Shortly after Cleveland’s infraction expired, Slaggert sped through the neutral zone with the puck before dishing it to his left once inside the offensive zone. Kisakov patiently waited before sliding a pass back to Komarov atop the point. The rookie defenseman sent it towards the front of the net for Warren to one-touch across the crease for Slaggert to tie the score at the 4:58 mark.
Rochester, which at one point had a 10-1 shot advantage in the first seven minutes, continued to use the momentum from the goal and its fourth successful penalty kill of the night as they drew an interference violation with under five minutes left in the frame.
The visitors won the face-off to the right of Greaves and used all five skaters before Helenius blasted in Clague’s rebound from the near dot. After Rousek laid a one-time feed for Clague, Helenius scooped up the bounce and rifled another shot on the netminder as Anton Wahlberg provided a net-front screen.
THIRD PERIOD
In the early minutes of the third period, Rochester earned another power-play opportunity and wasted little time to make use of the extra skater as Kulich extended the lead to 3-1.
While the Amerks were on the man-advantage, Mason Jobst cleanly won the face-off back to Mesta from the left circle inside Cleveland’s zone. The second-year blueliner drifted towards the middle of the ice and moved the puck to Rosén while Kulich snuck to the far dot. Rosén gathered the attention of the Monsters before teeing up Kulich with a cross-ice feed for the latter to boom past Greaves at 3:45 into the final frame.
Rochester didn’t let up with a two-goal cushion as less than three minutes later Jobst carried the puck down the left wing, where he eventually was pinned to the boards with a pair of Cleveland skaters. Murray joined the group and took ownership of the puck and rimmed around the boards to Metsa. The former Quinnipac University standout steered it to Kisakov in the slot to whistle past Greaves as Murray was atop his crease.
The Monsters made it a two-score game late in regulation on Mateychuk’s goal, however, the damage was done, and Rochester was victorious for a fifth straight game.
UP NEXT
The Amerks return home to The Blue Cross Arena on Friday, Nov. 8 as they welcome the Hartford Wolf Pack for the only time this season. The 7:05 p.m. matchup will be the first of two scheduled meetings between the two teams and will be carried live on The Sports Leader 95.7 FM/950 AM The Fan Rochester as well as AHLTV on FloHockey.
STARS AND STRIPES
With tonight’s win, the Amerks have won 10 of their last 11 road games dating back to last season ... The Amerks have won three straight and five of the last six meetings against Cleveland … Including a pair of assists tonight, Zach Metsa has recorded 11 points (4+7) in nine career games against the Monsters … Konsta Helenius has scored in each of his last three games, giving him four on the season and moving him into third amongst all AHL rookies ... Isak Rosén is the first Rochester skater this season with 10 points as he has two goals and five assists during his five-game point streak.
Goal Scorers
ROC: G. Slaggert (2), K. Helenius (4), J. Kulich (1), A. Kisakov (1)
CLE: T. Fix-Wolansky (4), D. Mateychuk (2)
Goaltenders
ROC: F. Sandström – 22/24 (W)
CLE: J. Greaves– 44/48 (L)
Shots
ROC: 48
CLE: 24
Special Teams
ROC: PP (2/7) | PK (6/7)
CLE: PP (1/6) | PK (5/7)
Three Stars:
1. ROC - K. Helenius
2. ROC - G. Slaggert
3. ROC - Z. Metsa