A night to forget for the Amerks; ‘it felt like we were a PeeWee team’

By KEVIN OKLOBZIJA

When Michael Leone walks into the dressing room to address the Rochester Americans after a game, it’s rarely a good sign.

“I usually don’t talk to the team,” the second-year head coach said of his post-game routine.

He made an exception on Wednesday night following a no-show performance by pretty much everyone other than goalie Devon Levi in what became a 3-1 loss on home ice to the undermanned Cleveland Monsters.

“It was honestly probably the worst game we’ve played since I’ve been the coach here,” Leone said. “We’re a team that gives up 26 shots a game. We gave up I don’t even know; it felt like 50 (officially 40).

“We were outbattled, outcompeted. In every facet of the game, we just weren’t good tonight.”

Bet you’re glad you weren’t one of the 4,403 at Blue Cross Arena at the War Memorial for the Thanksgiving eve game. And if you were in attendance, you probably wish you hadn’t been.

Nothing to see here, move along.

“There’s a standard around here on how we need to play,” Leone said. “Honestly it felt like we were a PeeWee hockey team; we couldn’t pass the puck, we just had too many turnovers on (zone) exits.”

Which is why they were outshot 14-7 in a scoreless first period and why they were being outshot 30-17 and trailed 2-1 after two periods.

For a brief stretch late in the second period, the Amerks did have a little of their mojo. But it pretty much disappeared after Corson Ceulemans’ goal at 18:27 broke a 1-1 tie.

“Credit to them (the Monsters), they’ve got a lot of guys out and they were really good tonight,” Leone said. “I thought once we got the power-play goal (by Jake Leschyshyn at 14:27 of the second period) we started to play better but they got a goal late and then they had a really good third period, they pushed, they didn’t sit back.”

While Leone made sure his team knew what he thought of their effort, the players already knew. They knew all along.

“We know when we don’t have it,” said defenseman Zac Jones, who assisted on Leschyshyn’s goal and is second in the AHL in assists with 17. “We didn’t have our normal energy. Sometimes it happens and it bites you in the butt.”

If there was one positive it was play of Levi. He stopped 37 shots and a significant number were high-quality chances. Earlier this month he endured a stretch of three games where he allowed 14 goals on only 78 shots. But he was good against Cleveland.

“I’m just trying to be consistent, do the same thing every day regardless of what the outcome is,” Levi said. “You need to have lows to achieve highs. The other week was good adversity for me.”

The first goal he allowed on Wednesday came 8:39 into the second period, when Tate Singleton lasered a wrister past him from the right circle.

Leschychyn’s power-play goal – he swept home a rebound of Jones’ point shot – tied the score just under six minute later. It gave him a share of the team lead with Trevor Kuntar at eight.

But Cleveland regained the lead with 1:32 remaining in the period when Ceulemans converted a goal-mouth pass from Luca Del Bel Belluz. Mason Geertsen was late getting back into the defensive zone, giving Del Bel Belluz an open lane down the right of the slot. He then finessed a pass across the deep slot and Ceulemans had an open net.

The Amerks did mount some pressure during a third-period power play, and should have given a five-on-three man advantage for 51 seconds. Linesman T.J. Dockery corrected ruled that Monsters center Owen Sillinger had played the puck with his left hand on a faceoff.

But rather than allow Dockery’s call to stand, the four officials huddled at center ice and, after a fairly long discussion, ruled there was no faceoff violation. Replays showed they were clearly wrong.

Of course, considering how the Amerks had played up to that point, there was certainly no assurance they could have capitalized with the five-on-three.

“On the video, when you see it, it’s probably a penalty for sure,” Leone said. “It’s unfortunate but it happens.”