APPERT’S PREMONITION LEADS AMERKS INTO DO-OR-DIE GAME
For the second straight year, the North Division Semifinals comes down to a winner-take-all Game 5 between the Rochester Americans and Syracuse Crunch.
May 8, 2024
By Andrew Mossbrooks | @Mossbrooks48
The Rochester Americans were 20 minutes away from seeing their 2023-24 story come to a close Saturday night. While in Syracuse against a top-10 defense in the AHL, the Amerks stared down the tunnel to the ice surface at Upstate Medical University Arena, trailing 3-0 in a must-win game with one period left to play.
We all know what happened next.
Two goals from Brandon Biro were sandwiched between a Joseph Cecconi conversion, tying the game to set up Brett Murray for the overtime winner, guiding the Amerks to a tie series and allowing the Flower City’s team to live to fight another day. The showing was impressive, to say the least, but the most fascinating moment of this Rochester rally didn’t take place on the ice. It came in the locker room.
“I just told the guys to take a break and take a breath, because we’re going to win this game,” said Amerks head coach Seth Appert following the dramatic Game 4 come-from-behind victory, the first of its kind when trailing 3-0 entering the third period and facing elimination. I said that on the way through (the locker room) immediately (after the second period) and I said in seven or eight minutes we’ll talk about it. Then when I came back, we just very calmly laid out how we believed we could get back into it.”
“We gotta get one in the first six or seven minutes. You get one in the first six or seven, you put a seed of doubt in their (Syracuse’s) mind. Then, you get one in the next seven or eight minutes after that and you’ll be sitting there with five minutes to go with a chance to tie it late.”
Appert’s plan was executed almost to a tee.
Biro scored for the Amerks 19 seconds into the third to plant the seed of doubt. Cecconi would tally another just past the midway point of the period to help his team have a chance. Then, with 5:12 to play in their season, Biro lifted the Amerks to a new lease on life, tying the game at three apiece.
“He almost called it verbatim as to what happened on the ice,” said Murray, who ended the night 11:46 into overtime with his second career postseason game-winner in his first playoff game of the year.
“I remember thinking like ‘wow, he actually believes we’re going to win this game,’” said Mason Jobst.
“That was crazy,” said goaltender Devon Levi, who combined for 101 saves over two playoff games in Syracuse. “That’s one of my top memories playing hockey.”
Appert, doing his best Nostradamus impression, came into the Amerks’ locker room with confidence, not optimism. He spoke with belief, not hope. He knew the next time he would leave the ice, it would be with a fist pump, not a handshake.
“It was the way that he said it,” said Murray. “You could tell that he believed what his plan was and what he thought was going to happen. When you have a coach that believes in his team and in us as much as it seemed he did in that moment, it gives you a bit of a spark and a little bit of life. We were able to use that and execute that game plan that he predicted in the intermission. It was almost to the minute that he had everything down. It was almost like it was scripted.”
Despite the improbableness of the event, the game was not scripted. The Amerks are just authoring it as they go. Creating new layers and scenes in their own story. Game 4 is a great moment, however, a story is often remembered most for its ending. We’ve all likely read a book or watched a movie or television show that had some incredible moments that got soured by a dissatisfactory conclusion. It can make or break stories.
For Rochester, Game 4 is not the end of its story, but winning that contest only guaranteed them six more days. Come Friday night at home, the stipulation remains: if the Amerks lose, their season is over.
“We believe in what we do,” said Appert.
“I think this time in-between games probably benefits us a little bit,” said Jobst. “Quite a few days off to allow us to refocus on things we need to do. It was an amazing game and a great comeback, but there are still things we did wrong and need to work on. Having three or four days of practice will allow us to refocus and make sure we’re better so we don’t put ourselves in a hole again.”
“We really were able to see how good we are,” said Levi, who posted a career-high 60 saves in Game 3’s double overtime loss. “I think we know that we have something special here and that’s a big confidence boost, but it’s one game on Friday and anything could happen. We just had a great outcome (in Game 4), but that doesn’t guarantee a great outcome on Friday. We need to stay even keeled moving forward. I think both us and Syracuse have different challenges this week. They’re coming off a loss and we’re coming off an unbelievable win. I think both could be equally paralyzing if you let it take too much of your headspace. It’s a 2-2 series, which means that it’s not a series anymore. It’s just this one game. Everything that’s happened doesn’t matter anymore.”
“This team has battled through quite a bit,” said Murray. “You work for something for so long and you’re growing every single day to become a great playoff team. You want to be a team that’s willing to work for each other no matter what the score is. No one is going to give up on the guy beside him. We love each other and care for each other too much to let that happen, and we care for this city and this organization too much to let that happen.”
It's déjà vu for the Amerks and Crunch. A winner-take-all Game 5 in the North Division Semifinals with a trip to the third round of the Calder Cup Playoffs on the line. The Amerks ended the Crunch’s story 12 months ago. They look for the same ending in the sequel to this saga.
Two teams enter Blue Cross Arena Friday night, but only one will remain after Game 5.