SENS RALLY IN THIRD TO GET BY AMERKS
Fiddler-Schultz, Murray provide scoring in 4-2 loss to Belleville
Apr 9, 2025The Rochester Americans carried a 2-0 lead into the third period but ultimately were unable to stop a desperate Belleville Senators team from scoring four straight unanswered goals in the final frame to a come away with a 4-2 win Wednesday night at Blue Cross Arena.
GAME SUMMARY PHOTO GALLERY POST-GAME REPORT
With the loss, Rochester falls to 41-20-4-3 on the season, continuing to hold onto second place in the North Division and third overall in the AHL with 89 points entering the final four games of the regular season. Belleville keeps its season alive and is now four points back of a playoff spot with five games remaining in its season.
Riley Fiddler-Schultz and Brett Murray each scored for Rochester, with Fiddler-Schultz posting his second straight multi-point game (1+1) against the Senators.
Devon Levi made 33 saves and managed to keep Belleville off the scoreboard through the first two periods. The second-year pro continues to lead the Eastern Conference with 24 wins.
FIRST PERIOD
While Belleville carried a 13-8 shot lead into intermission, it would be the Amerks striking first, doing so the same way they did to open the scoring against the Senators on Saturday.
With an early penalty to Belleville’s Cole Reinhardt, Rochester went on a power-play and Fiddler-Schultz scored 3:07 into the contest.
The rookie Amerk redirected a one-timer blasted toward the goal from Kale Clague, nearly duplicating the opening minute goal from the Rochester duo less than a minute into Saturday’s contest. Fiddler-Schultz’s tip eluded Senators’ goaltender Leevi Meriläinen for the 1-0 advantage.
The goal marks the first time Fiddler-Schultz has scored in consecutive games in his AHL career, with the Alberta native recording his 12th of the season.
Levi turned aside every shot faced in the period, including a dangerous scoring chance from Xavier Bourgault in the slot that the second-year pro made a blocker save on late in the period.
SECOND PERIOD
A save of the season candidate was made midway through the second while Rochester was on the penalty kill.
Belleville’s leading goal-scorer, Wyatt Bongiovanni, caught a pass sprung to him across the ice from left to right. On the one-timer, Levi slid across, dropping and rolling in almost windmill-like fashion to flick away the scoring threat to keep the Senators off the board.
Murray capitalized on a buzzer-beater to double the Amerks lead through 40 minutes. After the pressure was held in Rochester’s defensive zone for much of the period, a last-minute push saw the script flip.
Zachary Metsa prevented multiple Belleville clearing attempts in the dying seconds, then on his last prevention, the Amerks’ alternate captain gloved the puck down, placing it on his stick before shuffling the puck to Fiddler-Schultz for a shot from the right side. Murray was planted at the front of the net, with the puck hitting off the veteran in the blue paint and trickling past Meriläinen for the 2-0 edge with 1.3 seconds remaining in the frame.
THIRD PERIOD
Levi made it over 100 minutes before allowing a goal against the Senators. After shutting out Belleville Saturday, the Sens were unable to score in Rochester until 1:05 into the third period.
Senators’ captain Garrett Pilon fed a puck off the right-wing boards to Donovan Sebrango, who pinched in, skating down the slot to solve Levi with a wrist shot that beat the blocker of the All-Star goaltender, making it a 2-1 game.
Pilon played his role again in tying the game for Belleville midway through the period on a five-on-three power-play. With back-to-back delay of game penalties called against Rochester, the Senators took advantage of the two-skater advantage, as Pilon evened the score with a shot down low over the shoulder of Levi.
Belleville scored in heartbreaking fashion to take the lead with 55 seconds left, as Stephen Halliday crashed the net for Sebrango’s shot to hit off the rookie forward and past Levi for the 3-2 edge.
Keean Washkurak tacked on the empty-net conversion in the final five seconds for the 4-2 final.
UP NEXT
The Amerks will induct Ryan Miller into the team’s Hall of Fame Friday night ahead of hosting the AHL-leading Laval Rocket. The North Division showdown will be carried live on The Sports Leader 95.7 FM/950 AM The Fan Rochester, beginning at 7:05 p.m. Friday night, as well as AHLTV on FloHockey. The matchup will also be televised live locally on CW Rochester.
Goal Scorers
BEL: D. Sebrango (7), G. Pilon (10-PPG), S. Halliday (17-GWG), K. Washkurak (10-EN)
ROC: Fiddler-Schultz (12-PPG), B. Murray (26)
Goaltenders
BEL: L. Meriläinen – 23/25 (W)
ROC: D. Levi – 33/36 (L)
Shots
BEL: 37
ROC: 25
Special Teams
BEL: PP (1/5) | PK (0/1)
ROC: PP (1/1) | PK (4/5)
Three Stars:
1. BEL – G. Pilon
2. ROC – R. Fiddler-Schultz
3. BEL – S. Halliday