GAME PREVIEW: AMERKS HOST COMETS TONIGHT
The Stillman brother's paths will cross again tonight when Riley and the Amerks host younger brother Chase and the Utica Comets
Nov 3, 2023TONIGHT'S GAME OVERVIEW
The Rochester Americans (5-2-1-0) look to rebound tonight as they welcome the Utica Comets (2-2-2-0) to The Blue Cross Arena for a 7:05 p.m. contest. The North Division showdown will be carried live on The Sports Leader 95.7 FM/950 AM The Fan Rochester as well as AHLTV.
The Amerks and Comets, who enter their third season under the affiliation of the New Jersey Devils, will meet 12 times during the 2023-24 season.
Tonight’s matchup is the first of a stretch in which the intrastate rivals will meet three times over a four-game span. The two clubs met on Oct. 28 as Rochester closed out the month of October with a 5-4 victory.
HEAD-TO-HEAD RESULTS AGAINST UTICA
After earning just a pair of wins through the first five games of the season series with the Comets in 2022-23, Rochester finished the campaign with a 7-3-0-0 record in 10 games.
Rochester has won seven straight games on the road against Utica, which includes this season’s preseason contest and the first game back on Oct. 29. Rochester has outscored Utica 27-16 during that same time.
The Amerks have scored at least one power-play goal in 20 of the 34 games (28-for-119) games against Utica since Seth Appert took over as head coach prior to the 2020-21 season. The team has registered multiple power-play tallies in six games overall, including two contests where they had three.
LAST TIME OUT
The Amerks fell behind 4-1 in the second period before dropping a 7-2 decision to the intrastate rival Syracuse Crunch Wednesday at The Blue Cross Arena.
Forward Brett Murray scored his second goal of the season in the first period while Jiri Kulich recorded his team-leading seventh tally during the final minute of the second frame. Michael Mersch, Ryan Johnson, Matt Savoie and Isak Rosen all earned an assist in the defeat. Olivier Nadeau made his professional debut, recording one shot
Goaltender Devin Cooley (3-1-1) suffered his first regulation loss of the season as he made 21 saves before Michael Houser (2-1-0) finished the contest in the final 12 minutes in relief.
STREAKING INTO NOVEMBER
The Amerks closed out the month of October with wins in three straight and five of their first seven games, finishing the first month atop the AHL’s North Division with a 5-1-1-0 record.
By recording 11 points in the standings through the opening seven games of the season, Rochester had its best start in 14 years. The 2009-10 Amerks started 5-1-1-0 and ultimately jumped out to a 12-1-1-0 to start to the year, a run that included a franchise-best 11-game win streak.
The Amerks 11 points and five wins this season were good for second in the Eastern Conference. Rochester’s 33 goals scored were second-most in the AHL while its 32.0% success rate on the power-play was the best in the Conference. The club was tied for most in the AHL with eight power-play goals and was previously one of six teams without a home regulation loss.
DYNAMIC DUO: THE SEQUEL
Jiri Kulich and Isak Rosen both return for their second seasons in Rochester after putting up one of the most impressive and productive seasons as teenagers in the history of the AHL during the 2022-23 campaign.
Through the first eight games of the season, Kulich is tied for eighth in overall scoring with 10 points (7+3) while his team-leading seven goals are tied for second. Additionally, he is one of 11 skaters in the league with a multiple game-winning goals. He shows eight goals and 11 points over his last 10 games dating back to the 2023 Calder Cup Playoffs.
Rosen, meanwhile, is also tied for eighth with 10 points (4+6) while his six assists are tied for 14th through eight games. Rosen began the season by owning the AHL’s longest active point streak after notching a point in each of his first six games.
The duo have combined for 113 points (49+54) in 143 regular season games. Rochester owns a 16-3-2-1 record when they each have at least one point and a 6-1-0-0 mark when they both score in the same game.
TOKARSKI SET TO JOIN ELITE COMPANY
Veteran goaltender Dustin Tokarski, who missed the first eight games of the season due to an injury he sustained in training camp, will make his season debut tonight against Utica.
Tokarski, who’s in his second stint with the Amerks, went 1-1-0 during a brief two-game stint with Rochester as part of the COVID-shortnened 2020-21 campaign. He went 12-20-7 in 42 appearances with the Buffalo Sabres from 2021-23.
Tonight, the two-time Calder Cup winner and AHL All-Star will become just the 18th goaltender in league history to play in 400 career games, a list that also includes former Amerks Bobby Perreault (512), Michael Leighton (507), Drew MacIntyre (440) and Ed Chadwick (417).
The 34-year-old Tokarski comes into the 2023-24 season ranked 18th all-time in games played and remains the only active goaltender on the list.
Currently in his 15th pro season, he joins Marcel Paille and Michael Leighton as the only goaltenders all-time to play at least 15 seasons in the AHL.
In addition to being a two-time Calder Cup winner (2012, 2019), Tokarski won a Memorial Cup in 2008 followed by a gold medal with Canada at the World Junior Championship in 2009.
ANOTHER FIRST-ROUNDER IN ROCHESTER
The Buffalo Sabres last week assigned rookie forward Matt Savoie to Rochester on a conditioning assignment. Savoie made his professional debut last Wednesday against Charlotte, recording an assist in the 4-3 win.
Prior to joining the Amerks in Games 2 and 3 of the Eastern Conference Finals against Hershey this past May, the highly touted 19-year-old totaled 192 points (73+119) in 149 career games with the WHL’s Winnipeg Ice from 2019-23. He was named a WHL East First All-Star Team selection in 2022.
Savoie is the second member of Buffalo’s 2022 Draft class to appear in one game with the Amerks, joining Kulich, and the sixth first-rounder since the start of 2016 (Alexander Nylander, Casey Mittelstadt, Ryan Johnson, Jack Quinn, Isak Rosen, Jiri Kulich). With the exception of Nylander and Mittelstadt, all players began their professional careers in Rochester.
SERIES NOTABLES
Amerks defenseman Riley Stillman goes up against his younger brother, Chase, for the second time in their pro careers. Chase in his rookie season after being selected in the first round (29th overall) by the New Jersey devils in 2021. Their father, Cory Stillman, appeared in 1,025 games at the NHL level, totaling 727 points (278+449) and won a pair of Stanley Cup Championships. Bud Stefanski, their grandfather, tallied 425 points in the AHL, won the 1984 Calder Cup and was named playoff MVP.
Comets forward Kyle Criscuolo is in his first season with the New Jersey Devils organization. In parts of two seasons with Rochester, he posted 54 points (21+33) in 94 games from 2017-19 while also skating in six playoff contests. He made his NHL debut with the Buffalo Sabres in 2017-18.
Utica forward Tyce Thopmson is the younger brother of former Amerk and current Buffalo Sabres forward Tage Thompson.
Comets forward Ryan Fitzgerald is the older brother of Casey Fitzgerald, a 2016 third-round pick of the Buffalo Sabres who played parts of four seasons with the Amerks from 2018-22.
Utica Comets vs Rochester Americans: Head To Head Stats
Summary
|
Description |
Result |
|
| Head to Head Record 2023-24 Regular Season | Utica 0-1-0-0 | Rochester 1-0-0-0 |
| Head to Head Record 2022-23 Regular Season | Utica 3-4-1-2 | Rochester 7-3-0-0 |
| Last 5 Years record between teams | Utica 21-16-2-3 | Rochester 21-18-1-2 |
| Utica vs. Rochester Last 5 Years record at Utica | Utica 11-8-0-2 | Rochester 10-9-1-1 |
| Utica vs. Rochester Last 5 Years record at Rochester | Utica 10-8-2-1 | Rochester 11-9-0-1 |
| Previous Meetings This Season | Rochester 5 @ Utica 4 (Oct 28 2023) Final |
How the two teams match up
|
Rochester |
Utica |
|
| Team Record | 5-2-1-0 -- 11 points | 2-2-2-0 -- 6 points |
| Division Ranking | 1st North | 6th North |
| Conference Ranking | 2nd Eastern | 13th Eastern |
| League Ranking | 5th | 24th |
| Past 10 Games | 5-2-1-0 | 2-2-2-0 |
| Streak | 0-1-0-0 | 1-0-0-0 |
| Last Game | 7-2 L vs Syracuse (Nov 1 2023) Final | 4-1 W @ Laval (Nov 1 2023) Final |
| Home Record | 2-1-1-0 | 0-1-1-0 |
| Away Record | 3-1-0-0 | 2-1-1-0 |
| GF | 35 | 18 |
| GA | 38 | 19 |
| PP (Overall) | (8/28) 28.6% | (3/18) 16.7% |
| PP (Home) | (3/12) 25.0% | (1/5) 20.0% |
| PP (Away) | (5/16) 31.3% | (2/13) 15.4% |
| PK (Overall) | (12/34) 64.7% | (4/25) 84.0% |
| PK (Home) | (6/16) 62.5% | (3/8) 62.5% |
| PK (Away) | (6/18) 66.7% | (1/17) 94.1% |
| PP vs. Opp. | (1/3) 33.3% | (1/1) 100% |
| PK vs. Opp. | (1/1) 0% | (1/3) 66.7% |
| Leading Rookie | Novikov (0-5-5) | Parent (4-4-8) |
| Most PIM | Cecconi - 28 | Russo - 12 |
| Team PIM/GM | 13.5/Game | 12.0/Game |
| Leading Scorers | Kulich (7-3-10) | Parent (4-4-8) |
| Rosen (4-6-10) | Willman (3-3-6) | |
| Jobst (4-3-7) | Stillman (3-2-5) | |
| Davies (2-5-7) | Clarke (3-1-4) | |
| Clague (1-6-7) | Vilen (0-4-4) | |
| Last 5 Games | 7-2 L vs Syracuse (Nov 1 2023) Final | 4-1 W @ Laval (Nov 1 2023) Final |
| 5-4 W @ Utica (Oct 28 2023) Final | 5-4 L vs Rochester (Oct 28 2023) Final | |
| 7-4 W vs Laval (Oct 27 2023) Final | 4-2 W @ Syracuse (Oct 27 2023) Final | |
| 4-3 W vs Charlotte (Oct 25 2023) Final | 2-1 L @ Bridgeport (Oct 21 2023) Final OT | |
| 8-4 L @ Laval (Oct 20 2023) Final | 5-2 L @ Toronto (Oct 15 2023) Final | |
| Leading After 1st | 3-0-0-0 | 1-0-0-0 |
| Leading After 2nd | 3-0-0-0 | 2-0-0-0 |
| Tied After 1st | 0-1-0-0 | 1-0-1-0 |
| Tied After 2nd | 0-0-1-0 | 0-0-0-0 |
| Trailing After 1st | 2-1-1-0 | 0-2-1-0 |
| Trailing After 2nd | 2-2-0-0 | 0-2-2-0 |
| Out Shooting Opponents | 3-1-0-0 | 0-0-2-0 |
| Out Shot by Opponents | 2-1-1-0 | 2-2-0-0 |
| 1-Goal Games | 4-0-1-0 | 0-1-2-0 |
| 2-Goal Games | 0-0-0-0 | 1-0-0-0 |
| 3-Goal Games | 1-0-0-0 | 1-1-0-0 |
Utica Comets
| # | Player | GP | G | A | PTS | PIM | +/- |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 61 | Chase Stillman | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| 67 | Xavier Parent | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 5 | 0 |
| 14 | Shane Bowers | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 1 |
| 92 | Graeme Clarke | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 51 | Kyle Criscuolo | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 90 | Timur Ibragimov | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | -1 |
| 93 | Daniil Misyul | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 7 | Simon Nemec | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | -1 |
| 12 | Tyce Thompson | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 20 | Max Willman | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | -3 |
| 22 | Colin Felix | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 19 | Ryan Fitzgerald | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 15 | Joe Gambardella | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 31 | Erik Källgren | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 5 | Robbie Russo | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 26 | Ryan Schmelzer | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -3 |
| 83 | Topias Vilen | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2 | Michael Vukojevic | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | -1 |
| 23 | Tyler Wotherspoon | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -1 |
| # | Player | GP | W | L | OT | MIN | GA | GAA | SV% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 31 | Erik Källgren | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 59:04 | 5 | 5.08 | 0.821 |
Rochester Americans
| # | Player | GP | G | A | PTS | PIM | +/- |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 26 | Mason Jobst | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 |
| 10 | X Brandon Biro | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 1 |
| 56 | Kale Clague | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 1 |
| 25 | Jiri Kulich | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | -1 |
| 28 | Michael Mersch | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 7 | Ethan Prow | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 11 | X Lukas Rousek | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 21 | Filip Cederqvist | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 7 | 1 |
| 4 | Jeremy Davies | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 81 | Brett Murray | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 74 | Nikita Novikov | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 93 | Matthew Savoie | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 29 | Michael Houser | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 23 | Ryan Johnson | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 16 | Justin Richards | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -1 |
| 18 | Isak Rosen | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 19 | Graham Slaggert | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -1 |
| 61 | Riley Stillman | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 45 | Brendan Warren | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -1 |
| # | Player | GP | W | L | OT | MIN | GA | GAA | SV% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 29 | Michael Houser | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 59:47 | 4 | 4.01 | 0.778 |