Article Written By Aidan Charde
Recap vs. Mountain Kings on Jan. 5 and 6
The Rochester Jr. Americans earned their first sweep since the end of October, beating the New Hampshire Mountain Kings twice last weekend.
The first win came in comeback fashion, as the Mountain Kings held onto a 2–0 lead in the middle of the third period. Despite playing well, the Jr. Amerks could not capitalize on some great chances in the offensive zone. A pair of four-on-four opportunities, though, presented the Jr. Amerks with the chance to tie the game with nine minutes remaining. In overtime, forward Thomas Rockey scored his ninth goal of the season to win the game for Rochester.
In game two, it looked like the Jr. Amerks were prepared to run away with it after goals by forwards Luca Leighton and Massimo Gentile gave Rochester a 2–0 lead less than seven minutes in. Although they cooled down, the Jr. Amerks still managed to ease to a 4–2 win to draw even closer to a playoff spot.
Preview: Jan. 12 and 13 vs. Philadelphia Rebels
WHEN: Jan. 12 at 8:15 p.m. | Jan. 13 at 8:30 p.m.
WHERE: Rochester Ice Center | Fairport, NY
PROMOTIONS: Jan. 12 – Youth Hockey Night | Jan. 13 – Movie Theme Night
WATCH: NAHL.TV
FOLLOW: @JrAmerksNAHL
History
The Rochester Jr. Americans welcome back the Philadelphia Rebels for the first time since opening weekend, when the Jr. Amerks started their franchise with a series split. Both games were high scoring, with game one ending 5–4 Rebels and game two ending 5–2 Jr. Amerks. The Rebels are sitting two spots behind the Jr. Amerks in the standings with a record of 13–19–1.
Disipio’s electric weekend
As mentioned last week, the Jr. Amerks are just 2–9 when forward Matteo Disipio does not score a point. That was no problem in the series against the Mountain Kings — Disipio assisted on the game-winner in overtime for game one as well as tallying one goal and three assists in the second game. He now sits fourth in the league in points with 43.
Middle of the pack
The Jr. Amerks have had a solid season and are firmly in the playoff race. Currently, they find themselves squarely in the middle of the league standings. They have allowed 105 goals, good for 16th in the league, while they have scored 109, which is the 12th-best mark.
Their goal differential of +4 is tied for 15th. Fortunately, the East Division is still a tight race — the sixth-place Jr. Amerks and third-place Johnstown Tomahawks are separated by three points.
Starter strength
Both the offensive and defensive starting lines have been elite for the Jr. Amerks this season. The pair of Tyler Procious and Alex Zakrzewski have combined for 52 points, the third-highest total by defensive teammates in the league. Meanwhile, Disipio and Massimo Gentile have a combined 82 points, also the third highest mark by teammates. The starting trio of Disipio, Gentile and Luca Leighton have also scored 41 goals this season, over a third of the team’s total.
Giant slayers
The Rebels are one of the bottom teams in the league. Their 27 points is tied for 26th in the league and they have allowed the fifth-most goals in the league. With that said, that has not stopped them from keeping the top teams in the division in check. They are a combined 4–7 against the Maryland Black Bears and Maine Nordiques, by far the two best teams in the East. For comparison, the Jr. Amerks are 2–6 against the same two teams.