Article Written By Aidan Charde
Recap: New Hampshire Mountain Kings on Feb. 21 and 22
In what might have been the most exciting weekend in team history, the Rochester Jr. Americans earned four points, clinched the playoffs, extended the divisional lead and had a comeback for the record books all in two days.
Game one was filled with anticipation as the Jr. Amerks were able to clinch the postseason, however unlikely it may have been — it required a win as well as losses from both the Danbury Hat Tricks and Philadelphia Rebels. The former seemed inevitable as forward Calle Karlsson scored twice in five minutes to give Rochester an early 2–0 lead before forward Landon Brownlee extended it in the second period.
Defenseman Jacob Reese scored his first career goal on a snipe from behind the faceoff circle, giving the Jr. Amerks a 4–0 lead and making it look likely that Rochester would at least satisfy the first requirement. While Danbury was down early, a good sign for Rochester, the Rebels took a 4–1 lead over the Northeast Generals late into the third period.
But over the next few minutes, New Hampshire would claw back into the game, scoring twice to tighten the lead. Meanwhile, the Generals began a comeback of their own, scoring three times in four minutes to tie the contest. As Rochester clutched up and scored two more goals, a second from Brownlee and one from defenseman Dexter Kichline, the Generals found the net with 30 seconds left to win and send the Jr. Amerks to the playoffs.
The second game did not go as smoothly, but may be the most notable game in franchise history. Despite dominating the early part of the game, including allowing just one shot across two early penalty kills, the Mountain Kings scored twice in three minutes with just four shots. It was enough for Rochester to make a goalie change, but that did not stop the momentum as New Hampshire found the net 30 seconds into Danick Leroux’ tenure and did not stop, jumping out to a 5–0 lead before Kichline scored his second goal of the weekend with eight seconds left to send the home team to the locker room down 5–1.
The mood in the arena was somber, but the Jr. Amerks did not give up. A solid second period saw Karlsson score as well as defenseman Liam Chapman while the defense held strong, ending the frame 5–3 Mountain Kings.
The third period was one for the ages. A simply flawless defensive effort made it seem like Rochester controlled the puck for at least 15 minutes in the final frame. Forward Keanan Dewberry got the squad within one five minutes into the frame and the crowd could feel the tension. Every time New Hampshire got the puck out of their zone, the Jr. Amerks back line would not let them get any momentum and would simply retake possession.
As the clock wound down, Karlsson struck gold for a fourth time in two games, tying the contest to raucous cheers. The team still had to kill another five minutes of action, but as the final buzzer sounded, a wave of excitement passed through the stands as the Jr. Amerks managed to snag at least one point from a 5–0 deficit.
One point was not enough for the team, though, and they would not be denied. A few possessions in the extra frame came and went before forward Adam Gionta found a lane, broke free, and slapped one past the goalie to finalize the comeback for the ages.
It was a weekend to remember on all counts, but 12 games still remain for the East Division leaders. They head to Connecticut to face the Danbury Hat Tricks for the start of a two-week road trip before returning home for three straight series.
Preview: Danbury Hat Tricks on Feb. 28 and March 1
WHEN: Feb. 28 at 3:30 p.m. | March 1 at 3 p.m.
WHERE: Danbury Ice Arena| Danbury, CT
WATCH: NAHL.tv
FOLLOW: @JrAmerksNAHL
History
The Hat Tricks have given Rochester some trouble this season, but the Jr. Amerks still hold a decisive 6–1–1 record against the team. Last year, Rochester beat them by a combined score of 20–3 and while this season’s scores have not been as vicious, the Jr. Amerks have still only failed to score a point against them once.
East Division playoff updates
The Rochester Jr. Americans (68 pts) clinched the postseason, but still have not finalized seeding yet. Series splits from both the Maryland Black Bears (63 pts) and Maine Nordiques (62 pts) extended Rochester’s lead, but only time will tell who ends up with the bye week. The New Jersey Titans (58 pts) remain firmly in fourth place, but may have to fend off the Johnstown Tomahawks (50 pts) who look to earn the rights to host round one with a top-four seed. The Mountain Kings (44 pts) occupy the sixth and final spot at the moment, but are just ahead of the Northeast Generals (42 pts) in seventh place. No one is fully out of it yet, though, as Danbury (39 pts) and Philadelphia (39 pts) sit tied in eighth just ahead of the Elmira Aviators (38 pts) in last.
The (un)usual suspects
Forward Calle Karlsson has been as hot as ever recently, tallying 20 points in his last 12 games, but the team has seen good production from otherwise uncommon names as of late. Defenseman Dexter Kichline entered last weekend with one goal, but added two more as well as three assists to take the NAHL’s first star of the week. Defenseman Liam Chapman has three straight two-point games and set a defensive record for goals in a season with six, while forward Landon Brownlee has notched a quarter of his 28 points in the last three games. Hopefully these players can finish the season as strong as they have been in the last few games.
All or nothing
After several weeks of final scores that were mostly 2–4 goals, the Jr. Amerks have had a strange trend in February. Across the month, Rochester played eight games in which they scored five or more goals six times and just one goal twice. It is no surprise that the offense has been electric this season, as they currently hold the second-most goals scored in the league, but it is strange to see a pair of one-goal performances sandwiched in between a phenomenal offensive run.
On the brink of clinching home ice
However improbable it may be, the Jr. Amerks have the chance to clinch a top-four seed this weekend — which would guarantee them at least two home games in the playoffs. With 12 games remaining and an 18-point lead over the fifth-place Johnstown Tomahawks, Rochester would need to win both games and have Johnstown lose both games with at least one in regulation. The Tomahawks play the Mountain Kings this weekend.
Hat Tricks struggle in net, but still in the hunt
With 12 games left to go, Danbury has to make up just five points on the Mountain Kings to sneak into the playoffs. While the team is much better after a slew of trades earlier this season — especially offensively — but goaltending leaves something to be desired. The team has gone through six goalies this season with all of them having a goals allowed average of over 3.0 and save percentage at or below 90%. Their 183 goals allowed is more than every team except the Generals and Minnesota Mallards.
