By KEVIN OKLOBZIJA
The Rochester Americans billed Sunday’s matinee against the Cleveland Monsters as Bills Day, complete with special football-style jerseys, endless renditions of “Shout” and the team’s Stampede drumline.
Truth be told, however, it was really Kids’ Day.
Jiri Kulich, still three weeks shy of his 19th birthday, scored the first two goals and Isak Rosen, who 11 days earlier turned 20, scored the third goal and assisted on the fourth as the Amerks defeated Cleveland 5-2 in front of 7,761 fans at Blue Cross Arena at the War Memorial.
The victory capped a perfect three-win weekend, and, coupled with a shootout loss on Tuesday, gave the Amerks seven of a possible eight points for the week.
“It’s super big,” Rosen said. “To get three big wins is super important for the playoff push and for the guys to feel good.”
Indeed, the Amerks (31-25-4-3) have gone from nearly falling out of the playoff picture to challenging for second place in the American Hockey League’s North Division. They’re still fourth with 69 points, but just one behind Syracuse and two behind second-place Utica with nine games remaining.
Perhaps more importantly, they’ve built a bit of a comfort zone of seven points on the two teams on the outside looking in, Laval and Belleville. The top five earn playoff spots, with seeds four and five meeting in the best-of-three play-in round.
“I don’t think anything about the North Division is comfortable,” Amerks coach Seth Appert said. “You have a good week and you’re close to second. You have a bad week and you’re close to seventh.”
A team-wide commitment to clamping down defensively is a big reason for the surge. The have points in 11 of the past 16 games (8-5-1-2).
“For about 15 games we’ve been saying as a staff to our team, we like how we’re playing, we like what we’re doing, we like how we’re fighting for what we’re trying to be about,” Appert said.
For an even longer period of time the coaching staff has liked the progression of the rookie corps in general, but Kulich and Rosen specifically.
Since Jan. .25, Kulich has produced 14 goals, 9 assists and 23 points in 26 games, reaching the 20-goal plateau on Sunday. In his first 29 games, the Czech-born winger produced 5-10-15.
Rosen had scored just 3 goals in his first 31 games, and in that stretch went 16 games without a goal. But he has produced 8-8-16 in his past 26 games.
“Their willingness to get into the hard areas of the ice and do things that help you win besides score have just increased dramatically,” Appert said. “Rozie is backchecking his tail off, he’s forechecking. He’s not going to run guys through the wall; we don’t need him to. He’s finishing checks, he’s getting above people and cutting their hands off so he can win puck battles.”
In other words, they’re doing a great deal of the little things that create offense or deny scoring chances for the opposition. Like in the second period, when Rosen, a zone away from the Monsters rush, tracked down the puck carrier and snuffed out the fast break.
“I just have been incredibly impressed the past three months or so the jump that he’s taken and his physical commitment to being a winning hockey player,” Appert said. “Usually when that comes, with the offensive package he’s got, your offensive numbers start to come with it, just like it did for JJ (Peterka) and Jack (Quinn).”
Kulich started the scoring 7:41 into the first period, moving into the deep slot to redirect home a centering pass by Matt Bartkowski.
He pushed the lead to 2-0 with a power-play goal 5:21 into the second period, taking a return pass from Lukas Rousek before firing a one-timer that hit a defender’s stick, then goalie Danill Tarasov and finally the right post before caroming into the net.
“When you score some goals, you feel more comfortable,” Kulich said.
Rosen then stretched the Amerks lead to 3-0 just 2:11 later by lasering a snap from the right of the slot past relief goalie Jet Greaves.
An instant earlier, Rosen was flattened in the corner by defenseman Billy Sweezey. At 5-foot-10 and 156 pounds, he gets knocked down often. But Rosen got back on his skates, took a pass from Ethan Prow, moved to the slot and zipped the shot past Sweezey and the Greaves.
“That’s what I have to do,” Rosen said. “I’m not the biggest guy out there, I have to take a hit and try to make a play. That’s the thing I’ve been improving and the thing I need to improve to take the next step in my game.”
Said Appert: “It’s really fun as a coaching staff when you see players, especially as talented and as young as those guys are, buying in to be winning players and not just talented players.”
The Monsters pulled within 3-2 early in the third period, but Sean Malone provided clinching insurance by tipping in a Rosen shot on a power play with 8:05 remaining.
Notes: With Kulich reaching 20 goals, it’s the first time in 16 years that the Amerks have had rookies reach the 20-goal plateau in back-to-back years (Clarke MacArthur in 2005-06, Drew Stafford in 2006-07). Peterka scored 28 and Quinn 26 last year. … Amerks center Mason Jobst somehow avoided being penalized at 13:56 of the second period for participating in the play after his helmet had been knocked off. A hit by Tyler Angle on Jobst in the right corner sent the helmet flying. A scrum ensued along the left-wing boards and Jobst joined the fray, without his helmet. Rules require a player to immediately leave the ice or put his helmet back on. The Monsters complained to referees Mason Riley and Jordan Samuels-Thomas but to no avail. … Cleveland may ask the AHL to review Peter Tischke coming onto the ice from the bench in the closing seconds to start an altercation (one never took place). It was unclear whether it was a legal line change.
A second 3-win weekend for the good guys. A lot of the whining and complaining about the 3-in-3’s is unwarranted IMO. For decades the AHL has had them. Yeah, they aren’t ideal, but still the players need to be able to play thru them. Honestly didn’t notice any untoward fatigue by the Amerks in the 3rd period of a close game. Winning does factor in. When you’re winning often you forget how ‘tired’ you are.
So here we are…suddenly 7 points clear of the last two spots and only 2 points out of 2nd, with a game in hand. Who’d a thunk it honestly?
Amerks have had some excellent crowds on Sunday afternoons. I mean, really excellent. Once the NFL ends, I’d love to see more of these games, if at all possible and as many fewer Wednesday games as the schedule will allow.
I’m not a huge fans of the way too many ‘special’ jersey nights. I love our Crest and thats what this team should be wearing. If there’s too much special, then nothing is special and its all just gimmicky. (had to gripe about something, right!)
Perhaps one, maybe two per year tops. Yeah, good luck with that.
Anyway, the wins are great. The goalies were solid. The d’ was perhaps the best it has been this second half. And maybe this team could be a playoff contender, not a pretender?
Let’s hope they do well in these final 9 games.