TACO BELL WRAP-UP: AMERKS SECURE SECOND PLACE IN NORTH DIVISION
Three games remain in Amerks’ regular season
Apr 14, 2025
By Andrew Mossbrooks | @ Mossbrooks48
The Rochester Americans (41-21-4-3) continued their push towards the Calder Cup Playoffs with a pair of home games at Blue Cross Arena last week.
A pair of Canadian teams made their way to the Flower City, unfortunately capitalizing as Belleville rallied for a 4-2 decision Wednesday, followed by Laval clinching the North Division with a 4-2 final Friday night.
The good news for the Amerks is that other teams around them in the North Division fell short over the weekend, meaning Rochester has secured second place and will have home ice advantage in the North Division Semifinal round.
MILESTONES
A pair of Amerks hit milestones in games played Friday in the team’s outing against the Rocket. Forward Josh Dunne skated in his 200th AHL game, while defenseman Erik Brännström played in his 500th professional game, having spent over half his career in the NHL.
Both players are first-year Amerks, with Brännström coming over last month via trade with the New York Rangers.
Dunne signed a two-year, two-way deal with the Sabres over the offseason. The power forward has been a steadfast presence for Rochester in the dot, playing a 200-foot game at center. Dunne’s two-way game has also seen plenty of moments to accrue points, with the O’Fallen, Missouri native scoring 10 goals and 28 points through 66 games with the red, white, and blue. The fifth-year pro is one of four forwards with 66 or more games played for the Amerks this season.
Brännström has five goals and seven points during his 10-game stint with the Amerks. The Swedish born defenseman has also played for Abbotsford and Hartford this season, collectively posting eight goals and 23 points in 24 AHL games. The 25-year-old has 294 games of service in the NHL, most recently playing 28 games for Vancouver this season.
KOMING AROUND
Rookie defenseman Vsevolod Komarov posted his first career multi-point game Friday against Laval, tallying a pair of assists. The Russian rookie has 18 points (2+16) through 66 games this season, while leading the team with 85 penalty minutes, which are third-most amongst rookie defenseman in the league. Komarov has also gone +5 over his last 11 games.
The 21-year-old was plucked in the fifth round of the 2022 NHL Draft by Buffalo. The blueliner went on to capture the Memorial Cup the next season with the Québec Remparts. The following season, Komarov split his time with Québec and Drummondville in the QMJHL, where he was named the league’s Defenseman of the Year and Playoff MVP.
MILLER’S MOMENT
The highlight from last week’s action came before the puck drop Friday. A near-capacity crowd of 8,920 fans filed into Blue Cross Arena to watch iconic goaltender Ryan Miller become the 69th inductee into the Amerks Hall of Fame.
Miller was also just the seventh goaltender in franchise history to take his place in the hall.
His four-year tenure with the Amerks from 2002-06 saw the two-time AHL All-Star post a 92-61-16 record with a 2.34 goals-against average and a .922 save percentage. Miller owns the second most shutouts in team history with 15 and holds the single-season record of eight set in the 2004-05 campaign. He’s also fourth all-time with 92 career wins.
Miller’s Hall of Fame induction video that played over the ice on the videoboard was narrated by current Amerks goaltender Devon Levi, who is one shutout away from tying Miller’s single-season record.
COMING UP NEXT
Rochester knows they will finish in the two-seed within the North Division, meaning they will face whoever finishes third in the North in a best-of-five series.
The third seed is currently occupied by Syracuse, setting the stage for what could be a third straight year of Rochester seeing its intrastate foe in the Division Semifinal round. The Crunch, however, have not secured that third spot just yet. A point behind them is Cleveland, whom the Amerks face this Wednesday at Blue Cross Arena.
The Toronto Marlies are two points back of Syracuse for third. Rochester ends its 69th season with a home-and-home against the Marlies on Friday and Saturday, respectively. Friday is the home finale and is Fan Appreciation Night at Blue Cross Arena.