Recap: March 27 and 28 vs. Maryland Black Bears
It was a difficult weekend for the Rochester Jr. Americans, who dropped both games against the NAHL-leading Maryland Black Bears, extending the team’s losing streak to five ahead of the postseason.
The good news for Rochester is that it is already locked into its seed — no matter what happens, the team will enter the playoffs in second place in the division, holding a bye and home ice advantage in the first round of play.
Both games were close for most of the contest, even if the final scores were a little inflated by difficult third periods. In game one, Maryland scored on a powerplay with 90 seconds remaining in the first period, a lead they never gave back.
The Jr. Amerks kept the Black Bears out of the net for the entire second frame, stopping 23 of Maryland’s first 24 shots of the game. Unfortunately, a herculean effort by Maryland in the third period earned them 16 shots to Rochester’s four, converting twice and running away with the 3–0 win. It was the first time in team history that the Jr. Amerks were shut out by the Black Bears.
Much like Friday night, game two was close for much of the game, although the Black Bears took the lead far earlier in the contest, scoring less than two minutes in for a 1–0 lead which they doubled halfway through the second period.
Down two goals, the Jr. Amerks once again had a difficult period of puck control, being outshot 13–4 by the Black Bears, but both goalies were perfect for the first 15 minutes of the final period. Eventually, forward Cameron Doran made it through, cutting the deficit in half — until the Black Bears scored 20 seconds later to retake the two-goal lead. Maryland tacked on a fourth in the final minute, taking a 4–1 win.
Rochester gets one more regular season series to get back on track before the playoffs. As a reminder, the Jr. Amerks will sit out the first weekend of action and return to the ice on April 17 and 18 at home against the highest remaining seed. That series will be best-of-five.
Preview: April 3 and 4 vs. Elmira Aviators
WHERE: LECOM Events Center | Elmira, NY
WHEN: April 3 at 7 p.m. | April 4 at 7 p.m.
WATCH: NAHL.tv
FOLLOW: @JrAmerksNAHL
History
The Aviators have given Rochester fits across two seasons, but the Jr. Amerks still hold a 9–3–2 record against their in-state rivals, including a 4–2–0 record this year.
By the Numbers
Rochester
36–20–1 | 73 pts | 2nd place | 205 GF | 155 GA | L5 streak
Elmira
21–27–9 | 51 pts | 9th place | 165 GF | 216 GA | W1 streak
Stat of the Series
This weekend will mark the fifth and sixth game between the squads in just over a month. Since Feb. 20, Rochester has played 14 games — four of them against Elmira.
Ending high
The weekend may not matter in terms of points, but it would be crucial for the Jr. Amerks to earn a win and snap a franchise-record losing streak ahead of the playoffs. There is reason to believe it is possible, too, as Elmira and Maryland are drastically different opponents. The Black Bears are miles ahead of any other team in the league, sitting 15 points clear of the second-best team in the NAHL, and are riding a 16-game win streak. Elmira has shuffled between last and second-to-last in the division most of the season and has a goal differential 99 goals worse than Rochester’s.
Record watch
With one series left in the season, some eyes may be on the record books. Ryan Shaw, who has missed the past five games, is still in the vicinity of breaking the team’s franchise points record of 81, needing just six to tie if he plays this weekend, whereas Adam Gionta tied his own record for most game-winning goals with six, getting a chance to top that. Sam Schulte and Murray Kanerva each have four goals on the year, and while it is unlikely they will top Liam Chapman’s record seven from last year in two games, both need just one to sit in second place. Additionally, Schulte, despite playing a mere 21 games for Rochester, sits in fourth place in the team’s defenseman assists record and fifth in points. Just one point would move him into a tie for fourth in the latter.
Prepping for postseason
As the Jr. Amerks prep for the playoffs, this weekend’s series is the final tune-up before they take a week off during the first round of NAHL playoffs. Depending on results from that weekend, the team will play the Maine Nordiques, New Jersey Titans or Northeast Generals in the best-of-five matchup in the second round. While the Aviators have been eliminated, picking up any sort of momentum into the break and ahead of a critical playoff series is important for the team, so look for the team to be as determined as ever this weekend.
Hot scorers incoming
The Aviators may be at the bottom of the league, but they enter the game with some players ready to go. Corson Maguire has scored in 13 of the 17 games he has played with Elmira since being acquired via trade at the end of January, averaging 1.24 points per game as an Aviator. Meanwhile, leading scorer Evan Dantas has just two points in his last five games, but that followed a stretch of 12 points in eight games. Fortunately for Rochester’s defense, Dantas is the only player on the team to be averaging over one point per game across the entire season.
