GAME PREVIEW: AMERKS MAKE LONE VISIT TO WILKES-BARRE/SCRANTON TONIGHT
Nov 10, 2021TONIGHT'S GAME OVERVIEW
After starting the season with eight straight contests against North Division opponents, the Rochester Americans (5-3-0-0) make their only trip of the season to Mohegan Sun Arena at Casey Plaza to face the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (5-4-0-1). The 7:05 p.m. matchup will be the first of just two meetings between the two clubs this season and will be carried live on 95.7 FM/950 AM ESPN Rochester as well as AHLTV.
The Amerks enter the contest having won five of their last seven games to remain second in the AHL’s North Division standings. Conversely, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, hosting Rochester for the first time since Jan. 18, 2019, resides in fifth place in the Atlantic Division.
HEAD-TO-HEAD SERIES SNAPSHOT
After being swept in the two-game season-series in 2017-18 against Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, Rochester has gone a perfect 5-0-0-0 in the five meetings since, the team’s second-longest active win streak against any opponent.
The Amerks have scored eight power-play goals in their last five games against the Penguins dating back to the start of the 2017-18 season, going 8-for-25 (32.0%) with the man-advantage over that span. Conversely, Rochester’s penalty kill unit has successfully cleared 12 of the 13 shorthanded opportunities (92.3%) against.
Since the start of the 2017-18 campaign, Rochester has outscored Wilkes-Barre/Scranton 27-11, while also outshooting the Penguins 172-142. Both teams come into tonight’s matchup boasting perfect 3-0-0-0 records when leading after the first and second periods this season.
LET'S GO STREAKING
The Amerks come into the week winners of five of their last seven games and have scored 25 goals, five of which have come on the power-play. A total of 18 different Rochester skaters have recorded at least one point and 10 have posted multi-point performances as the Amerks have taken 10 out of a possible 14 points. The team also has the AHL’s third-ranked offense.
After being held without a point in the first two games of the season, Michael Mersch, a four-time 20-goal scorer, has responded with 11 points (6+5) and four multi-point outings to move into second on the team in scoring. Friday’s 4-1 loss to Toronto snapped a five-game goal-scoring streak for the Amerks captain. His goal streak established a new career-high while his point streak marked his longest since posting a career-best seven-game point streak from Mar. 27 to April 10, 2015 as a member of the Manchester Monarchs (12 points, 7+5).
With six points (1+5) in his first eight outings to start the season, Oskari Laaksonen leads all Amerks defensemen and comes into the matchup tied for ninth in scoring among all AHL blueliners. The second-year pro saw his career-long four-game point streak come to an end after scoring the overtime game-winner in Laval to close out October and notching an assist in last Wednesday’s 4-3 come-from-behind win over Belleville.
Goaltender Aaron Dell, who was recalled to Buffalo on Saturday, has backstopped the Amerks to three straight wins. Until now, the netminder has never began a season with a win in each of his first three starts at either the NHL or AHL level. He’s currently tied for 11th in the league in wins and is on pace to match his career-best seven-game win streak he posted from March 20 to April 7, 2015 with Worcester.
QUINN-TISSENTIAL QUALITIES
Jack Quinn was named the AHL’s Rookie of the Month for October after leading all first-year players with 10 points (5+5) through the first month of the regular season. Entering the second week of November, he remains one of five AHL rookies currently leading his respective team in scoring.
Quinn has tallied six goals and six assists for 12 points, already surpassing his offensive output from his truncated 2020-21 campaign, and became the first AHL player to reach the 10-point mark this season. Dating back to last season, the Ottawa, Ontario, native has totaled 15 points (6+9) in his last 11 games.
Quinn has been held scoreless just twice through his first eight games and comes into tonight having recorded five multi-point performances this year.
He is the third eighth overall pick of the Sabres in the last five years to spend time in Rochester, joining Alexander Nylander and Casey Mittelstadt.
HEAD OF THE ROOKIE CLASS
The Amerks currently own three of the AHL’s top scoring rookies in Jack Quinn, JJ Peterka and Linus Weissbach, who have combined for 26 points
(11+15) through their first eight games of the season.
Quinn, Buffalo’s eighth overall pick in 2020, comes into the week tied for the league-lead in goals (6) and second in points (12) among all AHL rookies. His 12 points also place him inside the league’s top six scorers overall.
Peterka, meanwhile, is third amongst all first-year players with a team-high seven assists while his nine points are tied for fourth-most. He and Quinn, taken just 26 picks apart from one another by the Buffalo Sabres in the 2020 NHL Draft, currently make up one of only two rookie duos across the AHL to rank among their respective team’s top three individual scorers.
After going scoreless in his pro debut, Weissbach has recorded five points over his last seven games, including a two-goal effort in Toronto back on Oct. 23. Buffalo’s seventh-round selection in 2017, Weissbach enters play tonight tied for 12th in goals (3) and tied for 20th in scoring among all AHL rookies. He’s in his first pro season following four years at the University of Wisconsin, where he recorded 114 points (34+84) in 127 career games.
FROM SILVER AND GOLD TO RED, WHITE AND BLUE
Last Thursday, the Buffalo Sabres acquired forwards Peyton Krebs and Alex Tuch, a top-10 protected 2022 first-round pick, and a 2023 second-round pick from the Vegas Golden Knights in exchange for forward Jack Eichel and a 2023 third-round pick.
Krebs was reassigned to Rochester Thursday afternoon before making his Amerks debut Friday against Toronto. He has five assists in three games, which includes two appearances with the Henderson Silver Knights (AHL).
The 20-year-old Krebs was named the WHL’s 2020-21 Player of the Year after leading the league in assists (30) and points (43) in 24 games during his third year as captain of the Winnipeg Ice. He recorded 231 points (62+169) in 199 career WHL games.
The Calgary native won a silver medal with Team Canada at the 2021 IIHF World Junior Championship. He also served as Canada’s team captain and tied for the team lead with 10 points at the 2019 U18 World Championship.
SERIES NOTABLES
Casey Fitzgerald, Sean Malone and Brett Murray are the only three Amerks that were on Rochester’s roster during the last meeting versus the Penguins.
Tonight is the 46th all-time meeting between the two teams. Rochester has claimed six of the last eight get-togethers, including each of the last five.
Rochester’s 1-0 shutout win on Nov. 30, 2018 versus Wilkes-Barre/Scranton marked its first 1-0 victory since Mar. 27, 2013 against the Syracuse Crunch.
Penguins assistant coach Kevin Porter spent parts of five seasons with Rochester and was a five-time team captain from 2012-14 and 2017-2020. In 269 career games with the Amerks, Porter produced 68 goals, 116 assists for 184 points to rank 35th all-time in franchise history among all forwards.
Penguins captain Taylor Fedun patrolled the Amerks blueline for parts of three seasons (2016-19), leading Rochester to two playoff appearances. The 33-year-old veteran defenseman is currently on recall with the parent Pittsburgh Penguins after earning his first promotion to the big club earlier this month.
Fedun has appeared in 364 career AHL games, including 83 with Rochester..
Rochester Americans vs Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins: Head To Head Stats
Summary
|
Description |
Result |
|
| Head to Head Record 2021-22 Regular Season | Rochester 0-0-0-0 | Wilkes-Barre/Scranton 0-0-0-0 |
| Head to Head Record 2020-21 Regular Season | Rochester 0-0-0-0 | Wilkes-Barre/Scranton 0-0-0-0 |
| Last 5 Years record between teams | Rochester 5-0-0-0 | Wilkes-Barre/Scranton 0-5-0-0 |
| Rochester vs. Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Last 5 Years record at Rochester | Rochester 3-0-0-0 | Wilkes-Barre/Scranton 0-3-0-0 |
| Rochester vs. Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Last 5 Years record at Wilkes-Barre/Scranton | Rochester 2-0-0-0 | Wilkes-Barre/Scranton 0-2-0-0 |
How the two teams match up
|
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton |
Rochester |
|
| Team Record | 5-4-0-1 -- 11 points | 5-3-0-0 -- 10 points |
| Division Ranking | 5th Atlantic | 2nd North |
| Conference Ranking | 10th Eastern | 5th Eastern |
| League Ranking | 16th | 8th |
| Past 10 Games | 5-4-0-1 | 5-3-0-0 |
| Streak | 0-3-0-0 | 0-1-0-0 |
| Last Game | 4-3 L @ Hartford (Nov 6 2021) Final | 4-1 L vs Toronto (Nov 5 2021) Final |
| Home Record | 3-2-0-0 | 2-1-0-0 |
| Away Record | 2-2-0-1 | 3-2-0-0 |
| GF | 22 | 32 |
| GA | 29 | 34 |
| PP (Overall) | (5/45) 11.1% | (5/27) 18.5% |
| PP (Home) | (4/21) 19.0% | (2/10) 20.0% |
| PP (Away) | (1/24) 4.2% | (3/17) 17.6% |
| PK (Overall) | (9/45) 80.0% | (7/27) 74.1% |
| PK (Home) | (6/21) 71.4% | (4/16) 75.0% |
| PK (Away) | (3/24) 87.5% | (3/11) 72.7% |
| PP vs. Opp. | (0/0) 0% | (0/0) 0% |
| PK vs. Opp. | (0/0) 0% | (0/0) 0% |
| Leading Rookie | Poulin (2-3-5) | Quinn (6-6-12) |
| Most PIM | Bellerive - 15 | MacInnis - 18 |
| Team PIM/GM | 12.7/Game | 14.1/Game |
| Leading Scorers | Puustinen (4-4-8) | Quinn (6-6-12) |
| Bellerive (1-5-6) | Mersch (6-5-11) | |
| Poulin (2-3-5) | Peterka (2-7-9) | |
| Robert (4-0-4) | Malone (2-5-7) | |
| Legare (2-2-4) | Laaksonen (1-5-6) | |
| Last 5 Games | 4-3 L @ Hartford (Nov 6 2021) Final | 4-1 L vs Toronto (Nov 5 2021) Final |
| 6-2 L vs Providence (Nov 5 2021) Final | 4-3 W vs Belleville (Nov 3 2021) Final | |
| 4-0 L @ Lehigh Valley (Nov 3 2021) Final | 6-5 W @ Laval (Oct 30 2021) Final OT | |
| 4-3 W @ Springfield (Oct 30 2021) Final OT | 4-3 W @ Laval (Oct 29 2021) Final | |
| 3-2 L @ Hartford (Oct 29 2021) Final SO | 7-3 L @ Belleville (Oct 27 2021) Final | |
| Leading After 1st | 3-0-0-0 | 3-0-0-0 |
| Leading After 2nd | 3-0-0-0 | 3-0-0-0 |
| Tied After 1st | 2-1-0-1 | 1-0-0-0 |
| Tied After 2nd | 2-0-0-1 | 1-0-0-0 |
| Trailing After 1st | 0-3-0-0 | 1-3-0-0 |
| Trailing After 2nd | 0-4-0-0 | 1-3-0-0 |
| Out Shooting Opponents | 2-0-0-0 | 0-3-0-0 |
| Out Shot by Opponents | 3-4-0-1 | 5-0-0-0 |
| 1-Goal Games | 4-1-0-1 | 3-0-0-0 |
| 2-Goal Games | 1-0-0-0 | 1-0-0-0 |
| 3-Goal Games | 0-1-0-0 | 0-1-0-0 |