BREAKING DOWN THE AMERKS DEFENSIVE CORE
Oct 13, 2022By Suzie Cool
This is a point we’ve reiterated all week going into Opening Night for the Rochester Americans tomorrow; the team is young. Primarily the group of forwards.
And, as scary as that is, we’ve seen young forwards thrive over the last couple of seasons. We’re not saying that it’s going to happen overnight. It’ll take some time, however, there’s a lot to be excited about, not just with the young group of forwards coming in, but the defensive core that Buffalo Sabres organization has begun to build.
We see the prime examples that have come from Rochester the last two seasons in defensemen Casey Fitzgerald and Mattias Samuelsson, both earning Opening Night roster spots with Buffalo and the latter signing a seven-year, $30 million contract extension yesterday.
But who are some of the names left to help Rochester on the blueline? All mobile, puck-moving defensemen who have spent extensive time in the American Hockey League.
Here’s a look at who will be patrolling the blueline in Rochester during the 2022-23 campaign:
#2 OSKARI LAAKSONEN
Laaksonen appeared in a career-high 71 games during last season with the Amerks, ranking second among all Rochester defensemen in both assists (29) and points (34). In the 2022 postseason, Laaksonen put up one assist after making his AHL playoff debut in Game 2 of the North Division Finals against the Laval Rocket on May 23.
In 2020-21 with Rochester, Laaksonen was named to the 2020-21 AHL North Division All-Star Team after tallying two goals and adding a team-high 15 assists while appearing in all but one game. Additionally, this was Laaksonen’s first season in the AHL and first in North America.
Internationally, Laaksonen has won a gold medal with Finland at the 2019 IIHF World Junior Championship, which he won alongside fellow Sabres prospect Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen. Laaksonen went on to record two points on a goal and an assist with plus-5 rating in seven tournament games.
Laaksonen was a Sabres’ third-round selection (89th overall) in the 2017 NHL Draft and signed his three-year, entry-level NHL contract with Buffalo on June 15, 2020.
#4 JEREMY DAVIES
Davies is one of four Amerks defensemen signed to a one-year NHL contract with the Sabres.
In 2021-22, Davies spent much of the campaign with the Milwaukee Admirals, posting six goals and 25 assists in 31 games while closing out the regular season by recording four goals and eight assists for 12 points over the final 10 games. Additionally, Davies added six helpers in nine postseason contests with Milwaukee.
While Davies made his NHL debut with the Nashville Predators in 2020-21, the defenseman saw time in six games with the Predators last season and tallied two assists.
#7 ETHAN PROW
During the 2021-22 campaign with Rochester, Prow ranked third in scoring amongst all AHL defensemen with 49 points on 10 goals and 39 assists in 70 games during his first season with the Amerks. Prow went on to finish the postseason tied for second among all Amerks defensemen with four assists in 10 Calder Cup Playoff contests during the Amerks’ run to the North Division Finals.
After six years in the pro ranks, Prow went on to appear in four games with the Sabres, which featured his first NHL goal on his first NHL shot in his NHL debut at the age of 29 against the New Jersey on Dec. 29.
Prior to the start of the 2021-22 campaign, Prow was named as one of four alternate captains for Rochester.
On July 13, Prow decided to return to the Amerks, signing a two-year AHL contract.
#16 PETER TISCHKE
After making his Rochester debut again the Belleville Senators on Oct. 27, Tischke went on to skate in five contests with the Cincinnati Cyclones before being returning to the Amerks roster.
From then on, Tischke appeared in 33 games with the Amerks during the 2021-22 campaign, notching two goals and two assists. While Tischke missed the final 21 games of the regular season, he went on to make his professional postseason in debut in Game 2 of the first-round play-in series at Belleville on May 6, totaling 15 penalty minutes in eight Calder Cup Playoff contests during the Amerks’ postseason push.
While Tischke was on a one-year AHL deal with Rochester last season, the defenseman opted to re-sign a one-year contract with the Amerks on July 14.
#20 LAWRENCE PILUT
Pilut begins his second stint in Rochester having spent the last two seasons overseas with the KHL's Traktor Chelyabinsk, scoring 39 points on seven goals and 32 assists in 97 contests while also producing 10 points on a goal and nine assists in 20 postseason contests. During his final campaign with Chelyabinsk in 2021-22, Pilut tallied 11 assists, which finished third among the club’s blueliners, in 40 games.
Prior to his time in the KHL, the two-time AHL All-Star selection spent two seasons in the Buffalo organization. Originally Pilut signed a two-year, entry-level NHL deal as an undrafted free agent with Buffalo in May of 2018 and most recently just signed back with them on a one-year, two-way NHL contract on July 15.
In his time in the Sabres organization, Pilut spent ample time with both Buffalo and Rochester. With the Sabres, Pilut has appeared in 46 games at the NHL level while accumulating six points on a goal and five assists. While with the Amerks, the defenseman has skated in 67 games and has tallied 10 goals and 39 assists for 49 points.
During the shortened 2019-20 campaign, Pilut was having a career-year in the AHL, compiling 23 points in 37 games. Pilut’s offensive output earned him a nod to the North Division All-Star roster for the 2020 AHL All-Star Classic.
#27 CHASE PRISKIE
After making his NHL debut during a four-game stint with the Florida Panthers, Priskie finished second among all Charlotte Checkers defensemen with 23 assists and third with his 31 points. Overall, Priskie ranked fifth among league blueliners in assists.
Priskie became a free agent during the offseason, which presented the opportunity to join the Sabres organization and officially signed his one-year NHL contract with the club on July 13.
#52 MITCH ELIOT
On July 14, Eliot chose to return to the Flower City on another one-year AHL contract for his second season with the Amerks.
Eliot was a consistent presence on the blueline for Rochester last season, appearing in a career-high 51 games in the AHL. After posting three goals and seven assists for 10 points in the regular season, Eliot skated in four contests with the Amerks during the 2022 Calder Cup Playoffs. The defenseman’s professional playoff debut came in Game 1 of the first-round series against Belleville on May 4.
#56 KALE CLAGUE
Clague is going into his first season in the Buffalo organization after signing a one-year,NHL deal with the club on July 13.
In 2021-22, Clague played an NHL career-high 36 games between the Los Angeles Kings and Montreal Canadiens and tallied 10 points on two goals and eight assists. Additionally, Clague recorded four assists in five games with the Ontario Reign last season.
During the shortened 2019-20 campaign, Clague was set to have his best offensive year yet having already totaled 25 points on eight goals and 17 assists in 49 games before the COVID-19 shutdown. Clague’s performance on the ice was enough to have him named to that year’s AHL All-Star Classic, which was held in Ontario.
While Amerks head coach Seth Appert has emphasized the young group of forwards we’ll be working with this season, he’s taken the time make to everyone aware at just how experienced the defensive core will be. This particular group of defensemen is a little smaller, however, they’re more mobile and will be able to force turnovers, making it hard for opponents to transition effectively.
“They're going to bring experience number one, which we don't have a ton of,” stated Appert when asked about what this group of defensemen brings to his young group of forwards. “All of the D that we've either acquired in the offseason or brought back are mobile, transitional puck-moving defensemen. We thought that was an area of need organizationally in terms of guys that can go up to Buffalo, but also with us we want to be a fast transition-based organization and to be able to do that, you have to force your opponent into turnovers. If you can't force your opponent into turnovers, then it's hard to transition. So, the D Corps is very good at that. They're built for that.”
As imminent as the help provided by the individuals will be to this Amerks roster, Appert and staff have the same in mind for them: the continued development of this group of defensemen to one day graduate full-time to the NHL like we’ve seen with others in the very recent past.
“Priskie, Clague, Pilut, Davies – are all guys that that have had NHL time and you see why they've had NHL time,” said Appert. “They're smart, they're mobile, they're good with the puck, they defend well, and we want to help them. They're going to help us, and we want to help them with our coaching staff and especially the work that (assistant coach) Mike Weber does. We want to help these guys continue to develop so they can become full time NHL players.”