Article by Aidan Charde
Recap: Maine Nordiques on Jan. 31 and Feb. 1
It was a series for the ages last weekend when the Rochester Jr. Americans earned two massive victories over the Maine Nordiques to pull ahead of the division rivals.
It was a messy weekend as the teams combined for a staggering 48 penalty calls between both games — 18 on Friday and 30 on Saturday. Miraculously, though, Rochester’s special teams play was as good as it has been all season, converting four of 11 powerplay opportunities and allowing one goal on 13 penalty kills.
Game one was certainly the most exciting game of the season and may go down as one of the wildest games in team history as Rochester won in the ninth round of shootouts to take a come-from-behind victory. Maine started the scoring with 15 seconds left in the first period, but defenseman Jordin Palmer evened the game with his third goal of the season.
A pair of powerplay goals from each team made the score 2–2 late in the second, the latter being from Jr. Amerks forward Owen King, before the Nordiques took their third lead of the game to hold a 3–2 lead into the locker rooms. Late in the third, King scored again to tie the game and send the contest into overtime.
With neither team able to net the game-winner in the extra period, the squads advanced to a shootout, a facet of the game the Jr. Amerks have historically struggled in. After Maine scored in the first round and Rochester failed on the first two, it was looking like a lost cause until King saved Rochester yet again on the last attempt, tying the score and sending the game to a sudden-death shootout.
Six more rounds followed, with each team netting one goal in the fifth round but neither able to take the win until Rochester forward Keanan Dewberry finally put the game away in the ninth round.
If there was momentum to be had from Friday night, it was certainly carried over into game two. Although it took the Jr. Amerks over 13 minutes to make it a 1–0 game on a goal from forward Jaden Dyke, forward Calle Karlsson doubled the lead shortly into the second period and forward Adam Gionta scored shorthanded soon after to make it 3–0. From there, it felt like the game was put away, especially after Maine benched their starting goalie following Gionta’s goal.
Defenseman Liam Chapman added another before the frame ended, giving Rochester a 4–0 lead into the break. King scored his third goal of the series early in the third and Dewberry capitalized on an empty net halfway through the period to make the game 6–0. But with eight minutes still to play, the game was far from over, and Gionta scored again to give Rochester their biggest home win in team history.
The Jr. Amerks now hope that excellent weekend can carry over into Philadelphia as they take on the Rebels before returning home for consecutive weeks.
Preview: Philadelphia Rebels on Feb. 7 and 8
WHEN: Feb. 7 at 7:30 p.m. | Feb. 8 at 7:30 p.m.
WHERE: Hollydell Ice Arena | Sewell, NJ
WATCH: NAHL.tv
FOLLOW: @JrAmerksNAHL
History
Aside from one series, Rochester has had Philadelphia’s number for most of their shared history. The Jr. Amerks are 8–3–1 against the Rebels all-time and 4–0–0 this season. Last year, the Rebels notably won Rochester’s inaugural game as well as a series late in the playoff race, but have otherwise struggled to hold up against the Jr. Amerks.
East Division playoff update
It is finally time. As the season enters the final stretch, all eyes drift to the standings in the East Division to see who will make the postseason and compete for the Robertson Cup. Currently, the Jr. Amerks and Maryland Black Bears are tied for first place with 57 points apiece. Those two teams do not meet the rest of the season, so that race may come down to the wire. The Nordiques fell behind in the fight for a bye, sitting at 54 points with four more games played than the Jr. Amerks. They do, however, sit comfortably ahead of the rest of the division — the fourth-place New Jersey Titans (48 pts) and fifth-place Johnstown Tomahawks (43 pts) would have some ground to make up. The Northeast Generals (40 pts) sit in the final playoff spot for now, but are just one point ahead of the New Hampshire Mountain Kings (39 pts) and may have to contend with the improved Danbury Hat Tricks (37 pts). The Rebels (33 pts) and Elmira Aviators (32 pts) take up the rear, but are not out of the race yet.
Offensive explosion
The Jr. Amerks scored seven goals for the first time since March 2 in a scoring outburst against the Nordiques that really came out of nowhere. Rochester had only scored more than four goals two times since the start of December and Maine’s goalie Carter Richardson was one of the best goalies in the league until recently — although he followed up an eight-game win streak with 14 goals allowed in the last four games, including six against Rochester.
Exceptional special teams play
A key story all season has been the exceptional special teams play by the Jr. Amerks, but that was even more evident last weekend. The unit converted on four of 11 opportunities while allowing just one goal on 13 Nordique chances, improving both marks to some of the best all season. The powerplay is hitting at a 20.8% rate, which is the highest it has been since Sept. 26, while the team has not had over its current 87.7% penalty kill since Sept. 14.
Gionta embraces the shorty
After his two shorthanded goals two weeks ago against Elmira, it seemed unlikely that Adam Gionta could do it again. And while he did only net one against Maine, making it three man-down goals in as many games, he surpassed Massimo Gentile last season for the second-most in a season for the team. He is still a pair of goals behind Luca Leighton for the all-time lead.
Rebels brutal on the road but borderline elite at home
Philadelphia’s record can be deceiving. Despite 15-22-2 overall, the Rebels come into the weekend with a home record of 12-6-2. On the road the team is just 3-16. The same can be said for the Rebels power play which is an impressive 23% at home but a horrendous 5% on the road. While not the loudest atmosphere, Philly knows their barn like the back of their hand and excel playing in it.
Rebels desperate amid 14-game cold streak
For a team in the playoff hunt, it can be hard to lose a few games in a row. The Rebels, though, are 4–10–0 since Dec. 7, sinking them to just one point out of last place in the division. That is a brutal stretch that knocked Philadelphia far from the race for the postseason, although they are not completely out yet. They have 20 games remaining and 12 of them are with teams they are fighting for the sixth seed, so expect a team that has nothing to lose this weekend.
