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AMERKS SPLIT WEEKEND OF EMPIRE STATE ACTION

TACO BELL WRAP-UP: AMERKS SPLIT WEEKEND OF EMPIRE STATE ACTION

Rochester leads North Division heading towards midway point of the season

Jan 13, 2025

1.pngBy Andrew Mossbrooks | @ Mossbrooks48

 

The Rochester Americans (22-10-3-0) extended their win streak to seven games Friday night against the Utica Comets, then saw it end Saturday evening in Syracuse facing the Crunch.

 

Despite the sour ending to the weekend, the Amerks remain on top of the North Division with 47 points and are tied for the second-most points in the AHL. The club has also won three straight games on home ice at Blue Cross Arena after its dismantling of Utica in Rochester’s 5-1 win Friday. Collectively, the Amerks have won 14 of their last 17 games.

 

THE KIDS ARE BACK

 

Amerks rookie forwards Anton Wahlberg and Konsta Helenius returned to wearing the red, white, and blue after donning the colors of their respective countries the previous two weeks at the annual IIHF World Junior Championship.

 

Wahlberg, representing Team Sweden, powered his team to the semifinals with four goals and eight points in seven games played across 11 days. While the power forward was unable to capture a medal with his country, he returned to the Flower City with confidence and displayed it Friday night with a power-play goal for his sixth of the season as an Amerk.

 

Helenius did not score during the tournament, but did lead Team Finland with six assists on the team’s route to the finals. Coming up short to Team USA, Helenius still left Ottawa with a silver medal in hand. The Sabres’ first-round draft selection from this past summer returned to Rochester’s lineup Saturday in Syracuse. The 18-year-old leads Amerks rookies in scoring with 17 points (6+11).

 

GIT R DUNNE

 

From a 200-foot game view, Amerks forward Josh Dunne has arguably been the team’s most consistent presence this season. The fifth-year pro is one of five forwards that has appeared in all 35 of Rochester’s games played so far this season. Quietly, Dunne has amassed a four-game point streak, tallying assists in each of the last four outings and compiling points in seven of his last 10 games (1+6) overall.

 

On another impressive note, Dunne has finished with an even or better +/- in eight of his last 10 games. The O’Fallon, Missouri, native has posted at least one shot on goal in 14 straight games. The Amerks have won six of the last seven games Dunne has registered a point.

 

ALL GOOD THINGS MUST COME TO AN END

 

Both Rochester’s overall seven-game win streak and eight-game streak on the road came to a close Saturday with a 6-2 loss in Syracuse. The loss ends several remarkable stats the Amerks reached during this stretch:

 

 

  • Rochester went 36 days between losses on the road.

 

  • The team’s eight-game win streak away from home was the longest by an Amerks team in over 20 years.
    • Tied a franchise record set from Dec. 29, 1998 to Feb. 6, 1999.

 

  • The seven-game win streak was the Amerks’ longest of the 2024-25 season.

 

  • Prior to Saturday, Rochester outscored the opposition 38-16 in their previous eight road games.

 

  • Entering Saturday, the Amerks had killed off 23 of their last 25 penalties.

 

  • Rochester entered Syracuse having earned points in 24 of its last 30 games.

 

 

COMING UP NEXT

 

For the first time this season, the Amerks will play three games in as many days and in doing so, will go about it the traditional way: three games in three days in three cities.

 

First, Rochester will entertain the Lehigh Valley Phantoms, who have won four of their last six games, Friday night at Blue Cross Arena.

 

The scene then shifts to Lehigh Valley Saturday night in what will serve as the back half of a home-and-home series between the Amerks and Phantoms.

 

Following that, Rochester ventures to Chocolate Town Sunday evening for a clash with the AHL-best and two-time defending Calder Cup champion Hershey Bears, who despite some recent struggles, continue to lead the league with 23 wins and 49 points.

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