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Amerks Weekly – Oct 23 – Oct 29

Amerks Games This Week

  • Wednesday – 10/23 – 7:05pm – vs Hershey (4-2-1-0)
  • Saturday – 10/26 – 7:00pm – at Syracuse (2-2-1-0)
  • Saturday – 10/26 – 5:05pm – at Springfield (3-4-0-0)/

AHL North Division Standings as of October 23rd

The Amerks went 0-1-0-1 last week, securing just one of a possible four points and slipping to an early deficit in the division behind the so-far undefeated seasons for both Toronto and Utica.

What Happened Last Week?

Record Oct 16-Oct 22: 0-1-0-1

Check out our latest Amerks Review post for details on last weeks performances.

Notable: Rasmus Asplund went down in the 1st period on Wednesday night after blocking a shot and did not return to the game. He was held out of the game on Friday nursing an upper body injury, but he has been a full participant in practices this week and is expected back in the lineup on Wednesday night at home.

The highlight of last week (or lowlight, depending on how you look at it) was Nathan Gerbe’s impeccable shootout winner to beat Andrew Hammond in Rochester on Friday night.

Also notable: the Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen era is getting closer. He was assigned to Rochester on Sunday and has been a full participant in practices this week. Reports are that he’ll need a few more weeks before he’s ready for game action, but the end of his rehab is drawing nigh.

Three Stars

.1. Lawrence Pilut – Welcome back, Larry! Pilut played in his first game of the season after rehabbing from his offseason shoulder surgery, and as @Mark_inFairport put it, he looked like he hadn’t missed a beat.

.2. J.S. Dea – Dea had his first two-point game as a member of the Amerks on Wednesday night. The team will be relying on him to produce points all season long. Interim head coach Gord Dineen has been juggling his forward lines a bit recently, but Dea has spent a few games with Andrew Oglevie on his right wing and the two have shown some chemistry.

.3. Will Borgen – Borgen played with Pilut last week and they were a formidable pair. In the team’s ugly 7-1 loss at Utica on Saturday night, Borgen had a +/- rating of 0, which is even more impressive considering that only one of Utica’s goals came on the power play. Will also had his second significant and impressive professional fight, dropping Cleveland’s Marko Dano after he took a run at CJ Smith’s head.

Stats Leaders

Look Ahead

The Amerks will look to right the ship with three games in the next week.

Wednesday night, the Hershey bears will roll into town in a battle of the AHL’s two oldest franchises.

On Saturday they’ll make their first of six trips to Syracuse to face a Crunch team that, like the Amerks, are still trying to find their footing in this young season.

They’ll conclude their weekend road trip on Sunday with another trip to Springfield for an early evening game against the Thunderbirds.

Transactions

  • October 18, 2019 – Curtis Lazar (F) – ⬇️ from Buffalo to Rochester
  • October 18, 2019 – Michael Houser (G) – ⬇️ from Rochester to Cincinnati
  • October 20, 2019 – Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen (G) – ⬇️ from Buffalo to Rochester/

Video Room

Game 5 – 10/18/2019 – Home Loss (SO) vs Cleveland

Game 6 – 10/19/2019 – Away Loss at Utica

Injury Report

  • Taylor Leier – Shoulder – Month-to-Month. Leier also had offseason shoulder surgery, but he is not expected back until sometime in December.
  • Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen – Hips – Week-to-Week. Reports are that UPL’s recovery and rehab are on schedule and we can expect him to take the ice sometime in November./

Have A Laugh

Nathan “Perpetual Healthy-Scratch“ Paetsch has won Halloween with his perfect “stapled to the bench” costume. You can’t help but love a guy who has a solid sense of self-deprecating humor.

Farmville

The Cincinnati Cyclones are 1-0-1-0 as they start their quest to return to the top of the ECHL and avenge last season’s premature ending. They finished 2018-2019 with the best record in the league but fell to rival Toledo in the second round of the playoffs.

Old Friends

  • Justin Bailey: 3+2=5 in 5 games with AHL Utica
  • Nicholas Baptiste: 0+2=2 in 2 games with AHL Toronto.
  • Kyle Criscuolo: 0+2=2 in 5 games with AHL Lehigh Valley
  • Jack Dougherty: 1+0=1 in 4 games with AHL Belleville
  • Brendan Guhle: 0+2=2 in 4 games with NHL Anaheim
  • Alexander Nylander: 2+2=4 in 5 games with NHL Chicago
  • Danny O’Regan: 0+5=6 in 4 games with AHL Hartford
  • Matt Tennyson: 0+0=0 in 1 game with AHL Binghamton, 0+2=2 in 3 games with NHL New Jersey
  • Scott Wedgewood: 1-1-0-0, 3.41 GAA, .898 SV% in 1 game with AHL Syracuse/

Talking Points