Patrick Williams, TheAHL.com Options Author
Good days have been in abundance these days in Rochester, the place a six-game profitable streak has pushed the Individuals into the North Division lead, one level forward of Cleveland.
High ahead prospects Konsta Helenius and Anton Wahlberg are again on the town from the IIHF World Junior Championship in Ottawa. Taking part in for Finland, Helenius gained a silver medal whereas selecting up six assists in seven video games. Wahlberg tied for fourth in match scoring with eight factors in seven video games (4 objectives, 4 assists) with Sweden. Each prospects are of their first full AHL seasons earlier than even reaching the age of 20. Helenius, at 18 years and eight months the youngest participant within the AHL this season, was chosen 14th total by Buffalo in final June’s NHL Draft and has supplied 17 factors (six objectives, 11 assists) in his 28 video games with the Amerks. The 19-year-old Wahlberg owns 10 factors (4 objectives, six assists) by way of 25 video games after becoming a member of the group as a 2023 second-round decide.
Tuesday noticed one of many Sabres’ brightest tales this season, Amerks ahead Tyson Kozak, earn one other recall to Buffalo. A 2021 seventh-round decide, the 22-year-old had spent his first two professional seasons constructing a spot for himself in Rochester earlier than getting a December promotion to Buffalo, the place he collected his first NHL objective in his second sport there. With 12 factors (six objectives, six assists) in 24 video games with Rochester, Kozak has already matched his AHL profession season-high.
And on Wednesday, two extra key items of the Sabres’ future bought excellent news from the AHL, as goaltender Devon Levi and ahead Isak Rosén earned invites to the 2025 AHL All-Star Basic introduced by Highlight 29 On line casino on Feb. 2-3. Will probably be the second consecutive All-Star look for the 21-year-old Rosén, who has a team-leading 27 factors (13 objectives, 14 assists) in 30 video games for Rochester. Levi has cut up his first two professional seasons between Rochester and Buffalo; the 23-year-old has gone 11-2-1 with a 2.19 goals-against common and a .914 save share in 14 video games for the Amerks this yr.
Rochester confirmed some early-season promise in setting up a six-game profitable streak, however misplaced seven of their subsequent eight video games to fall to 8-7-3-0 at U.S. Thanksgiving. However they’ve rattled off 13 wins in 15 contests since then, and so they’ve proven they’ll additionally deal with the grind of the AHL street, with a 15-3-1-0 document (together with a present eight-game win streak) and a plus-25 objective differential away from house. Even when the video games and the bus hours accumulate, they’ve been in a position to stick with their plan and produce a robust nightly effort.
The arrival of Levi from Buffalo on Nov. 18 helped flip the tide for the Amerks. He has allowed two objectives or fewer in 9 of his 14 begins, together with shutouts of Syracuse on Nov. 29 and Charlotte on Dec. 7.
“As a coach,” Amerks head coach Michael Leone mentioned through the crew web site Wednesday, “I respect our group loads for a way constant they’ve been to indicate up for each single sport and compete and work.”
The Amerks picked up victories in Springfield and Bridgeport final weekend to take them right into a considerably lighter portion of their schedule. They sit atop the division, however solely seven factors separate them from the fifth-place Crunch. They’ve an opportunity to achieve some extra floor this weekend, with Utica coming to city on Friday earlier than one other brief journey to Syracuse the subsequent night time.
Buffalo administration has made it clear {that a} aggressive Amerks crew is a wanted part for participant growth. The Sabres introduced in Seth Appert in 2020 to step behind the Rochester bench, and the membership reached the North Division Finals in 2022 earlier than taking Hershey to 6 video games within the Japanese Convention Finals a yr later. Appert is in Buffalo now as an assistant to go coach Lindy Ruff, and Leone took over following profitable stints with Inexperienced Bay of the USA Hockey League in addition to with the USA Nationwide Group Improvement Program.
Leone’s mandate has been a lot the identical as Appert’s: develop younger expertise and assist them to play significant video games down the stretch and into the Calder Cup Playoffs. And a part of that course of is studying the best way to play a mature, NHL-style sport individually and collectively. Shield leads. Stability threat versus reward. Handle shift size.
Some nights the Amerks are able to merely overwhelming opponents. They stacked up 15 objectives in a two-game go to to Belleville in mid-December. They’ve scored 26 objectives throughout their present six-game profitable streak. However they’ve additionally struggled with sport administration, notably throughout their skid in November. One dangerous shift or one ill-timed resolution can imply misplaced factors even in an in any other case well-played sport.
Not too long ago although, slightly than late-game misadventures, the Amerks are shutting down opponents – or at the very least not seeing one objective surrendered turning into two or three. Studying how to try this is one key distinction between the AHL degree and ranges additional down the event chain.
And that dedication has their head coach’s consideration.
“I believe our guys have purchased in with what it takes to win constantly at this degree,” Leone mentioned. “You’re feeling it on the bench with 10 minutes left to go in a sport, and we’re up. As a coach you’re comfy as a result of they’re saying all the appropriate issues and also you form of simply stand there and admire the blokes shopping for into that.”
On the American Hockey League beat for twenty years, TheAHL.com options author Patrick Williams additionally at the moment covers the league for NHL.com and FloSports and is a daily contributor on SiriusXM NHL Community Radio. He was the recipient of the AHL’s James H. Ellery Memorial Award for his excellent protection of the league in 2016.
