GAME PREVIEW: NEW ENGLAND SWING STARTS WITH AMERKS IN PROVIDENCE
Rochester continues Atlantic Division road trip
Jan 24, 2025
By Andrew Mossbrooks | @ Mossbrooks48
Following a pair of games in the Keystone State, the Rochester Americans (23-11-3-1) open the New England portion of their four-game road trip with the scene shifting to Amica Mutual Pavillion Friday night as the team faces off against the Providence Bruins (21-13-3-1).
Friday marks the first of two meetings on the season against the Boston Bruins’ AHL affiliate and lone contest in Rhode Island. The two sides encounter each other again March 14th at Blue Cross Arena. Last season, Rochester split its season series with Providence, including a come-from-behind 3-2 overtime win on the road. The Amerks have earned points in four of their last five trips to Providence, going 2-1-1-1 since the 2018-19 season.
LAST TIME OUT
A back-and-forth affair between the two of the top teams in the Eastern Conference ended with Hershey hanging on to secure a 5-4 win against the Amerks Sunday evening. The game concluded Rochester’s first of four weekends in which the team will play three games in as many days. The Amerks went 1-1-0-1 with each game being decided by one goal and Rochester utilizing a different goaltender each time.
On Sunday, Michael Houser made 25 saves in his first AHL start in over two months, while Zachary Metsa led the way offensively with a goal and an assist. Vsevolod Komarov, Aleksandr Kisakov, and Noah Östlund rounded out the scoring for Rochester in just the second regulation loss over the last 10 games.
The Bruins had a four-point weekend, dropping both Syracuse and Springfield while doing so in shutout fashion. After Michael DiPietro recorded a 26-save shutout Saturday against the Crunch, fellow goaltender Brandon Bussi turned aside all 27 shots he faced to blank the Thunderbirds Sunday evening.
Providence enters the weekend having not allowed a goal in 129:31 minutes while the team has won three straight and four of its last five to position themselves third in the Atlantic Division.
ROSE(N) TO THE OCCASION
Amerks forward Isak Rosén leads the team in scoring entering the final full weekend of January with 16 goals and 31 points. The third-year pro is a top-25 scorer in the AHL and was named to the league’s All-Star Classic for a second straight season, becoming the first Amerk to do so in back-to-back years since Lawrence Pilut did so in 2019 and 2020.
Last weekend, Rosén scored twice in the team’s 3-2 win Saturday in Lehigh Valley, while adding an assist Sunday in Hershey. His 16 goals are tied for 12th-best in the AHL. Since Dec. 27, Rosén has amassed seven points (4+3) in nine games.
In four career games against Providence, Rosén has two assists, with both coming last season.
MASON IT WORK
After a slow start to the season, Amerks captain Mason Jobst has picked up the pace, scoring five goals and collecting nine points over his last eight games. Jobst now ranks sixth in team scoring with 20 points (8+12) and is one of six Rochester skaters with eight or more goals this season. Additionally, Jobst is also one of six Amerks that have appeared in all 38 of the team’s games to date this season.
The Speedway, Indiana, native boasts six two-point games on the season and is coming off an MVP year with Rochester, posting career-highs in goals (22) and points (50). Jobst is currently plus-5 on the season, which would be on pace to be a career-high in 2024-25.
The sixth-year pro also leads Rochester forwards in penalty minutes at 34 and in 16 career games against Providence, the Amerks captain has three goals and five assists for eight points against the Bruins.
BRUIN’ FOR A GOOD TIME
The Amerks enter Amica Mutual Pavillion Friday night hoping to snap a three-game win streak for the Bruins, while subsequently looking to avoid what would be a fourth loss in the last five games for Rochester.
Providence’s goaltending tandem of DiPietro and Bussi represent the only team in the league that has multiple goaltenders with more than two shutouts on the season, as each rank in a tie for fourth place with three shutouts a piece. DiPietro also ranks second and fourth, respectively, amongst all goaltenders in goals-against-average and save percentage.
Providence is one of seven AHL teams yet to surrender triple-digit goal totals, ranking them in a tie for the fifth-fewest goals against across the league.
Offensively, the team is led by Vinni Lettieri, a veteran forward of over 300 AHL games. While Lettieri is operating at a point-per-game pace with 35 (14+21) in as many outings, he is also currently on recall with the Boston Bruins.
Even with his absence, the team showcases six other players active on Providence with 20 or more points, including prospect Georgii Merkulov, who has scored 65 goals over the last three seasons. Last year in Rochester, Merkulov scored two goals and an assist in a win over the Amerks.