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GAMEDAY NOTES & QUOTES: CONFERENCE FINALS | GAME 3

Lineup notes & quotes from Coach Appert ahead of tonight's game

May 27, 2023

The Eastern Conference Finals return to Blue Cross Arena tonight for a 7:05pm puck drop on Game 3. The series between the Rochester Americans and Hershey Bears is split 1-1 after two games in Hershey, and the teams will square-off in front of a sold-out Rochester crowd.

 

“These are special moments,” Amerks head coach Seth Appert said Saturday morning.

"You want to the players to have fun with it. You want them to embrace it.”

There’s just something about a sunny Saturday in May when you’re still playing hockey. The excitement around the city is palpable; the energy in the locker room is contagious. The Rochester squad is really excited to play for the home crowd.

 

 

“You want to embrace the urgency of the moment, but you also want that fun of it because you’ve earned these moments,” Appert continued. “You never know when you’ll get them again, right? You talk to a lot of players that have played pro for 10, 12, 15 years and they’ve only been to the Conference Finals one, two, or three times maybe in those careers.”

 

It’s true for fans, too. It’s been 19 years since the Rochester Americans have appeared in the Conference Finals, dating back to 2004. That’s a long time for the hockey-hungry city of Rochester to wait to cheer on their team.

 

But the day has finally arrived, and the crowd is going to be amazing. Appert is so appreciative of the fans: “It’s been really neat to see the way this city has embraced this team.”

 

The Amerks have only played three games on home ice so far this postseason, but Appert has had the same message about the home crowd in each of them: he wants his team to get the crowd involved early and often.

 

It can be an early goal that ignites the crowd, or it can be a big hit, a fight, a huge save. There ae things his team can do to fully use the crowd to their advantage, and he wants them to do that, and he wants them to do it often.

 

Hershey is a veteran team who won’t be intimidated by a loud crowd immediately, but they also haven’t played in big, packed opposing barns yet in their postseason run. They’ve played games in Hartford and in Charlotte.

 

“This is going to be another animal,” Appert said of Blue Cross Arena. “You just want to make it as hard of an environment for them with our play and by bringing the crowd into the game.”

 

LINEUP NOTES

 

While Appert did not reveal his lineup for tonight, he did reveal that he’ll be playing Matt Savoie on a different line tonight than in Game 2. “Chemistry is a hard thing, and we haven’t had enough practices with them to see it in practice,” he said today. “I think it’ll still continue to play out.”

 

Savoie played the majority of his shifts on the wing with Brendan Warren at center and Kohen Olischefski opposite. Appert thought that he looked very comfortable on the wing, but also at center, which “is a real credit to him.”

 

 

In Thursday’s game, rookie Jiri Kulich led the Amerks in ice time for a forward. Appert thought that he didn’t have the strongest game on Tuesday in Game 1, but really liked his Game 2. “I felt like he had his legs,” he explained. “He was engaged right away. He was hunting pucks.”

 

Kulich has six goals in eight games, after starting the postseason on a goal-scoring streak. He’ll look to get back on the scoresheet tonight, and might see the most ice time again tonight as well: “You want a guy like him to be on the ice in those moments.”

 

As Hershey brings a physical game, it’s important for the Amerks to respond. Two guys who have been really strong so far in the series have been forwards Brendan Warren and Tyson Kozak.

 

“They naturally want to play that way,” Appert said of the duo. “But they also have the speed to get to spots to be physical and then the force because of that speed to have impactful hits.”

“When they hit people, the opponent knows it.”

Another lineup note: the Buffalo Sabres announced today that they signed defenseman Ryan Johnson to a two-year, entry-level contract. Johnson is not yet in Rochester, but he should join the team soon.

 

GAME NIGHT INFORMATION

 

The Eastern Conference Finals celebration starts early today with a ROC the Block Party on Broad Street, outside Blue Cross Arena, from 4-7pm. There will be a live band, food and drink specials, and plenty of fun for kids (and the whole family).

 

 

Doors to Blue Cross Arena open at 5:30pm for Game 3, and the first 10,000 fans will receive a blue Eastern Conference Finals rally towel, thanks to Seneca Niagara Resort & Casino.

 

Tonight’s game can be seen on MSG Network across New York state, and on AHLTV anywhere. Fans can also listen to Don Stevens and Brian Duff on the call on The Fan Rochester.

 

Tickets for Monday’s Game 4 are still available, but there are fewer than 700 remaining, so act quickly!

 

A potential Game 6 of the seven-game series would be at Blue Cross Arena on Friday, June 2. Tickets for the game will go on sale Monday at 10am. For access to an exclusive presale, sign up at Amerks.com/Playoffs — you’ll receive a code at 10am on Sunday morning to buy your tickets early.

 

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