Rochester Amerks getting players back
Matthias, Duco return to lineup; others scheduled to be back soon
From virtually unbeatable to mediocre at best; that’s the seven-word summary of the Rochester Americans.
Before injuries, recalls and a personal issue with Mike York plucked 14 players out of their lineup, the Amerks were the class of the American Hockey League.
They went 12-1-1 through the first 14 games and were 18-3-1 when December began.
Even now, with the Hamilton Bulldogs coming to town tonight, the Amerks’ 20-10-2 record is admirable.
Except they haven’t been very competitive of late. They have lost four in a row and are just 2-7-1 in the past 10 games.
The slump has bumped them down a notch in the North Division standings, which makes tonight’s 7:05 game against the Bulldogs even more important. First-place Hamilton has 43 points in 31 games and the Amerks have 42 points in 32 games.
Then again, is it really a slump when two-thirds of the original lineup is missing?
Sure it is, considering recalls are a way of life in the AHL.
Normalcy may not be too far away, though. Left winger/center Shawn Matthias and left winger Michael Duco are being returned by the parent Florida Panthers, meaning there will be more size and scoring potential tonight.
That means just two forwards that have been with the Amerks — Steve MacIntyre and Victor Oreskovich — are active with Florida (left winger Kenndal McArdle is on injured reserve). There also is one defenseman, Jason Garrison, on recall.
With no extra healthy players in Florida, the Amerks are one Panthers injury away from another recall, however.
Also, the list of injured Amerks is still six, but there are now projected return dates for some.
Goalie Alexander Salak (strained shoulder) won’t be back until around Jan. 8, but goalie Tyler Plante could be back any day.
Plante has been fitted with a new brace for his injured knee (strained medial collateral ligament) and a recent MRI revealed no other damage.
“If he says he’s ready to go, he can play,” trainer Kent Weisbeck said.
Center David Brine (ribs) is skating but hasn’t been subjected to contact. While he has full range of motion in terms of shooting, the matter of pain tolerance will come into play when he is hit or hits.
Right winger Graham Mink (strained muscle in rib cage) will be evaluated today to determine if he’s closer to a return.
Weisbeck said Jan. 8 is the target date for defensemen Rory Fitzpatrick (hernia surgery) and Luke Beaverson (dislocated shoulder). While it’s possible that they could feel strong enough to play Jan. 2 at Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, rushing back for that one game probably won’t happen when another six days off will enhance the healing.
KEVINO@DemocratandChronicle.com
Hockey night
The matchup: Amerks vs. Hamilton Bulldogs (affiliate of the NHL’s Montreal Canadiens).
Time/place: 7:05 tonight/Blue Cross Arena at the War Memorial.
Tickets: $11, $14, $17, $19, $20.
Promotion: It’s the first of four Dollar Dogs and Drafts night. $1 Zweigle’s hot dogs and $1 14-ounce draft beer, from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. The other nights are Friday home games in January.
Broadcasts: Time Warner Cable SportsNet (channel 26), WHTK-AM (1280), WHTK-FM (107.3).
Website: www.amerks.com.
