By KEVIN OKLOBZIJA
Colin Blackwell had just one assist for the Rochester Americans in Friday’s night’s 12-3 annihilation of the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins, yet he may very well have played the biggest role of anyone on the ice.
The second-year winger delivered a mammoth body check on the game’s second shift that left defenseman Lukas Bengtsson injured and the rest of the Penguins focused on anything but smart hockey.
The result was a three-goal first-period for the Amerks, followed by a four-goal second, a five-goal third and had chanting along the way “… eight, nine, 10; we want 11.”
When’s the last time that ever happened at Blue Cross Arena at the War Memorial. For a Knighthawks lacrosse game, probably. For Amerks hockey? Who knows. The franchise hadn’t scored a dozen goals since a 13-3 win against the St. Catharines Saints on April 7, 1985.
“This was a big game for a lot of reasons,” said Amerks center Kyle Criscuolo, who scored two goals and assisted on two while linemate Seth Griffith scored two and set up three.
The Amerks ended a five-game losing skid and they broke out of the slump against the best team in the Eastern Conference (30-14-3-1).
Once in a battle for the North Division lead, the Amerks (26-13-7-5) have fallen 11 points behind the Toronto Marlies and have been caught by the Utica Comets for second. The rousing victory in front of 6,215 fans on Hall of Fame night can maybe provide a lasting spark.
Or maybe Blackwell will. He’d been out since Jan. 12, missing 13 games. It’s not a coincidence that the Amerks were 3-5-3-2 without him in the lineup.
“That’s the biggest thing, the grit, the intensity he brings,” coach Chris Taylor said.
He welcomed himself back with a monster check on Bengtsson as the two chased a loose puck into the left corner in the WBS zone. Bengtsson arrived first but had to know Blackwell was coming at full speed and was only two strides away.
Bengtsson bravely, but not wisely, chose to swat the puck with one hand to safety behind the net. In doing so, however, he left himself exposed for the big hit and Blackwell’s full-force shoulder check sent the defenseman airborne into the corner boards.
No penalty was called and Bengtsson needed to be helped off the ice. The Penguins, primarily Patrick McGrath, spent the rest of the period seeking justice — to no avail.
“Blacky got us going with that big hit,” Griffith said. “They were rattled at the get-go and we took advantage of them running around trying to make big hits.”
Indeed, foolish penalties by the Penguins enabled the Amerks to turn a 2-0 lead into a 5-0 blowout by the 5:34 mark of the second period. By the end of the game, the Amerks power play was 6-for-9.
“I watched the hit, it was clean,” said Taylor, who was an assistant coach last season for Wilkes-Barre/Scranton. “That hit motivated our guys. We haven’t had those types of hits for a while.
“We talk about it all the time, we need to finish our hits. I coached Lukas last year; he’s a good kid and you don’t want him to be hurt. But it was a good hit.”
Four players in the Amerks lineup also played for the Penguins last season: Kevin Porter, Adam Krause, Stuart Percy and Sahir Gill. Percy and Krause each scored goals.
“It was an emotional win for us, with a lot of guys coming from there last year,” Criscuolo said.
Biron’s night: Martin Biron was inducted into the Amerks Hall of Fame in pre-game ceremonies. Biron played his first two pro seasons with the Amerks, starting in 1997-98, and was the AHL’s first-team All-Star and goalie of the year in 1998-99.
He fought back tears on three occasions during his on-ice speech: when he thanked his parents, when he thanked his wife, children and in-laws, and again when he thanked the fans. “You guys helped me get to where I am today,” he said.
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