Written by Aidan Charde
Recap: March 13 and 14 vs. Danbury Hat Tricks
The Jr. Americans earned two big wins over the Danbury Hat Tricks last weekend, getting them one point shy of clinching the East Division’s second seed and a first round bye for the second year in a row.
Game one was one of the cleanest and most dominant performances of the season for Rochester, who got on the board early with a strike from defenseman William Penoyer from the blue line two minutes into the contest.
The rest of the first period was just OK for both teams, and though the Jr. Amerks extended the lead with 3:35 left in the frame off a goal from forward Lukas Bellinger, the Hat Tricks cut into the lead 29 seconds later.
One minute into the second period was where everything changed: A five-minute major and ejection on a Danbury defenseman — the same one who scored the goal in the first period — for kneeing gave the Jr. Amerks five minutes of man-up play. Because it was a major, it was not killed when defenseman Sam Schulte netted his fourth as a Jr. Amerk, so Rochester stayed on the powerplay and added a second from forward Brendan Giles to make the game 4–1.
Forward Keanan Dewberry joined the party a few minutes later, giving Rochester a 5–1 lead and forcing Danbury to pull its goalie with 30 minutes left in the game. It did not seem to matter much, though, as Rochester added one more in the period off the stick of forward Adam Gionta to make the score 6–1 heading back to the locker rooms.
With the game all but over, defenseman Murray Kanerva scored his first goal since September to add insult to injury, earning Rochester a 7–1 win.
Game two was not quite as high-octane, but it had its exciting moments. It took most of the first period for a goal to be scored, but Giles earned his second of the weekend to take the lead into the first intermission.
Danbury came out fighting in the second period and was able to tie the game at one halfway through the frame, but it lasted for less than five minutes when Giles’ second of the night gave Rochester the lead back.
Clinging to a 2–1 lead, the third period was as stressful as ever, but as the clock wound down and Danbury pulled its goalie, a win started to become more likely. Gionta collected a turnover with 15 seconds remaining and passed it to a wide-open Giles, who hit the empty net for his second hat trick in 11 days to give Rochester the 3–1 win.
Recap: March 17 vs. Elmira Aviators
The Jr. Amerks had another Tuesday night game, but luck was not on their side this week as they fell to the Elmira Aviators despite taking a first period lead.
Giles stayed hot on the week, scoring his fifth goal in five days to take a 1–0 lead and it was added to by forward Ryan Flaherty, who doubled the lead with his first goal since November. The two-goal period was part of a barrage of shots from Rochester, who logged a franchise-record 25 shots on goal in the frame.
The offense cooled down from there, which opened the door for Elmira. The Aviators notched two goals in the second period, tying the game, before adding two more in the first 10 minutes of the third period to jump to a 4–2 lead.
Forward Cameron Doran put Rochester back in the game, scoring his seventh of the year to bring the game within one, but it was too little too late — the Aviators regained the two-goal lead 43 seconds later and added a sixth goal on the empty net to take the 6–3 victory.
The Jr. Amerks have one final home series against the New Jersey Titans this weekend before ending the season with four road contests. The team is still hunting for its playoff seeding, but any updates to scheduling and ticket information will be posted on social media.
Preview: March 20 and 21 vs. New Jersey Titans
WHERE: Rochester Ice Center | Rochester, NY
WHEN: March 20 at 7:30 p.m. | March 21 at 7 p.m.
WATCH: NAHL.tv
FOLLOW: @JrAmerksNAHL
History
The Jr. Amerks have played the Titans the fewest of any East Division opponent, but they definitely hold the edge in the series. Rochester has a record of 8–5–1, but most of that comes from a 3–1–0 record this season.
By the Numbers
Rochester
36–13–1 | 73 pts | 2nd place | 198 GF | 139 GA | L1 streak
New Jersey
28–21–5 | 61 pts | 4th place | 160 GF | 162 GA | L1 streak
Stat of the Series
In the first four contests, New Jersey held the easy edge, winning three of the four games with a goal differential of +6. Since then, Rochester is 7–2–1 with a goal differential of +13.
East Division playoff update
Several seeding matchups are coming down to the wire, but the Maryland Black Bears (92 pts) have wrapped up the division already. The Jr. Amerks (73 pts) need a single point to clinch the second seed, but seven straight losses by the Maine Nordiques (62 pts) opened the door for the New Jersey Titans (61 pts) and Northeast Generals (58 pts) to take the third seed. The Danbury Hat Tricks (55 pts) are looking to hold onto the last playoff spot ahead of the Johnstown Tomahawks (52 pts), while the New Hampshire Mountain Kings’ (50 pts) five-game win streak kept them alive. The Elmira Aviators (47 pts) and Philadelphia Rebels (46 pts) are on the cusp of elimination.
Streak breakers
Defenseman Murray Kanerva and forward Ryan Flaherty each broke lengthy goal scoring droughts last week, hitting their first goals of 2026. Kanerva’s last goal came Sept. 24, 38 games ago, when he hit two goals for Rochester’s first multi-goal game by a defenseman. Flaherty’s goal broke a 31-game streak dating back to Nov. 29. Looking to break streaks soon are Ryan Shaw, who has gone uncharacteristically quiet, going without a goal since Feb. 27, his longest streak without a goal all year, and Owen King, who has not scored since Feb. 6 — albeit with nine games missed to injury.
Giles making a name for himself
The signing of Brendan Giles came amid a flurry of other moves, so it may have been overlooked at first, but Giles is anything but overlooked now. Since his first game on Feb. 13, Giles has 11 goals in 12 games and two hat tricks, just the second Jr. Amerk to have two in a career, let alone in two weeks. Giles’ scoring prowess is invaluable to a team with great top-end scoring, but little in the middle. Since March 3, Giles has eight goals, which accounts for 36.3% of the team’s scoring. Yes, you read that right.
Chemistry building
As the season draws to a close and Rochester’s seeding gets locked up, it becomes time to build chemistry for the playoffs. The team is not inexperienced, but a myriad of trades and signings throughout the season leaves the team with a handful of players who have played little time together. Over the final six games, the Jr. Amerks will need to ensure every player is ready for when the lights get brighter and the stakes are raised.
Clinching scenarios
It will not take much for Rochester to lock up the second seed and, since Maryland has clinched the first seed, it would leave the Jr. Amerks with little to play for but pride the rest of the way. Rochester can clinch with any of the following:
Rochester win vs. New Jersey
OR
Rochester loss in overtime vs. New Jersey
OR
Maine loss of any kind vs. Elmira
Titans back from the brink
On Feb. 28, the Titans were in a precarious position. They were in fourth place, just two points ahead of the sixth seed and seven behind the Maine Nordiques in third. While they were likely in the playoffs, a home playoff game was far from certain — that is, until the Nordiques lost seven games in a row, earning just a single point, while the Titans gained seven points against tough competition. They now sit just one point shy of Maine with five games remaining. The seeding for third and fourth matters for Rochester as well: If Rochester clinches the second seed, they will play the highest remaining seed after the first round of playoffs, which will most likely be the third seed. Rochester is 3–1–0 vs. New Jersey this season, but 2–4–0 against the Nordiques.
