GAME PREVIEW: AMERKS VISIT BELLEVILLE TO FACE STREAKING SENS
Amerks face Senators for first time since home opener
Dec 13, 2024
By Andrew Mossbrooks | @ Mossbrooks48
The Rochester Americans (13-8-3-0) are in Belleville for the weekend to wrap up their season long five-game road trip, taking on the red-hot Senators (12-4-0-4). Friday is the first of two games on the weekend against the Senators and is the first time Rochester plays at CAA Arena this season.
Friday marks the second of eight times Rochester and Belleville will face-off, and the first time the Amerks opened their 69th season on home ice back on Oct. 11, when the Senators rallied to spoil the opening night festivities via a 3-2 win.
LAST TIME OUT
The Amerks picked up their second consecutive win of their current road trip Wednesday night in Laval, when a three-goal second-period propelled Rochester past the Rocket, 3-1. Riley Fiddler-Schultz, Ethan Prow, and Isak Rosén scored 5:51 apart, while Devon Levi made 25 saves in goal to earn his fifth consecutive win.
Prow’s goal came on the power-play, giving the Amerks their first man-advantage conversion on their road trip, while Rosén registered his team-leading 18th point (8+10). Levi also lowered his goals-against-average to 1.84, tying him for the third-best average in the AHL.
Belleville topped Syracuse by a 2-1 final Wednesday night to earn its fifth consecutive win as they sit a single standings point back of Rochester for third in the North Division. Stephen Halliday scored the game-winning goal to extend his point streak to six games (3+3).
RILEY THE RELIABLE
Fiddler-Schultz’s goal Wednesday was his third point in eight games this season. The second-year Amerk has registered a shot on goal in each game he’s played, and has finished with an even or better plus/minus in all but one game.
“He’s worked extremely hard to earn this opportunity,” said Amerks head coach Michael Leone earlier this month. “He’s got the right mindset, and he plays winning hockey. That’s the way you have to play to get the minutes he gets.”
Last season, Fiddler-Schultz spent the bulk of his season with ECHL-Jacksonville, finishing second on the team in goals with 23. Before turning pro last season, the Edmonton, Alberta, native captained Calgary in the Western Hockey League and posted a 75-point campaign (31+44).
TALE OF THE TAPE
Friday marks the 44th all-time meeting between Rochester and Belleville since the Senators entered the AHL in the 2017-18 season. The Amerks are 18-23-2-0, but have posted a .500 or greater win percentage in four of the first five head-to-head season series.
In 2023-24, Rochester went 3-4-0-1 against the Ottawa Senators’ AHL affiliate, with two games going past regulation and reaching a shootout. Entering the weekend, Belleville owns the second-fewest regulation losses in the AHL at just four, meanwhile, the Amerks have won nine road games, placing them second in that category across the league.
MISSING MALCOLM
When the Senators paid a visit to Rochester to start the season in October, Amerks fans had a chance to see defenseman Jeremy Davies again, playing across the way on enemy lines after two years wearing the red, white, and blue. Tonight, another familiar face goes against Rochester, as goaltender Malcolm Subban is a Belleville Senator.
The 12th-year pro has over 300 games under his belt and is six wins from 100 for his AHL career. Subban, 30, took the crease 39 times for the Amerks during the 2022-23 season, and backstopped the team to its furthest playoff run in two decades as Rochester reached the Eastern Conference Finals.
As an Amerk, Subban posted a 20-14-5 record with two shutouts. Since joining Belleville, the Toronto, Ontario, native has gone 5-3-1 in nine appearances. He has won each of his last two starts.
While with Springfield last season, Subban went 1-1-0 against Rochester, winning a shootout for the Thunderbirds a year ago today, while surrendering five goals back in the Flower City when the Amerks roared to a 7-3 win.