GAMEDAY NOTES AND QUOTES: AMERKS FACE RED-HOT ROCKET
Jan 27, 2024
By Andrew Mossbrooks | @Mossbrooks48
The Rochester Americans (19-14-3-1) play the penultimate game of their current four-game homestand tonight as they host the red-hot Laval Rocket (18-15-4-2) in a battle for third place at Blue Cross Arena.
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This is the sixth of eight scheduled meetings with Montreal’s AHL affiliate this season, with the final two encounters coming next weekend in Laval.
“Their lineup is better,” said Amerks head coach Seth Appert. “That’s the American League. You go through these crazy times where you’re depleted and you’re in a bit of survival mode. They were in that mode for a little bit, combined with their goaltending not being very good at the time. Now, (Jakub) Dobeš has been excellent for them the last four weeks or so. They signed Kasimir Kaskisuo and his save percentage is 94 percent (.948%). When you’re getting goaltending like that and a strong healthy lineup like they do now, you’re going to win and they are right now at a high level.
Prior to last night, Laval had a nine-game point streak and had won five straight.
BETTER DECISIONS WITH THE PUCK
While Appert appreciated the effort of his team in Friday’s 4-0 loss to Utica, the bench boss did cite the need for better puck management in order to execute.
“You have to simplify,” said Appert. “I think we complicated puck decisions (on Friday). Our defense moved the puck incredibly slow and unpredictable and therefore our forwards didn’t do a good enough job finding support or simplifying decisions through the neutral zone. We’re at our best when we’re a transition team and the only way you can transition is when you force turnovers. You can’t force turnovers if you’re turning the puck over so much. You end up chasing the game.”
Last night was just the third time Rochester was shutout this season and the second against Utica. The Amerks have scored 121 goals on the year, with 23 coming against Laval in their five games played this season.
RETURN OF THE MOOSE
After being traded earlier in January, former Amerk Filip Cederqvist makes his return to the Flower City, only this time as a member of the Rocket.
“I’m happy for Moose (Cederqvist). He’s playing a lot and he’s on a good line. He’s a great kid and competed his tail off for us for a year and a half. He was really good. He’s got a real strong work ethic and I enjoyed coaching him. He gave us a lot of good minutes. I wish him all the success after tonight.”
Cederqvist’s first 74 AHL games were spent wearing the red, white, and blue, as the Skara, Sweden, native scored 10 goals and registered 24 points over two seasons with the Amerks. The 23-year-old forward added three assists in eight playoff games with Rochester last year.
KULICH
After returning from World Juniors, Amerks star Jiri Kulich has been held to no goals and two assists in his six games back in North America. Appert described Kulich as ‘emotionally fatigued a bit’ after Friday’s game given the intensity of the tournament he had just participated in.
“He played good last night. He played fast, he played hard. I have zero issues with the way Jiri Kulich played last night, but I do think he’s a notch mentally and emotionally below where he was before World Juniors. It’s a long pro season for any 19- or 20-year-old kid and then you throw in the World Juniors and the emotional and physical toll with that and international travel and it’s real.”
While Kulich’s numbers have been lowered of late, the second-year Amerk has showcased himself against Laval through his two AHL seasons, scoring eight goals and 13 points in as many games against the Rocket. This includes a hat trick against the team back on Oct. 18 and two overtime game-winning goals.
“He’s going to score. I have zero worries about that. It isn’t as easy as just scoring. Throughout the year, there’s ebbs and flows of your emotional and physical energy, and you have to manage that. The older you get, the more you understand how to do those things and how to be a really good and effective player on a night you don’t feel as good. Those are lessons you learn and he’s going through that right now.”