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Posts tagged 'Drew Schiestel'

Posts Tagged ‘Drew Schiestel’

Griffins 3 Goals in Under 3 Minutes Defeats Amerks; Gongalsky vs Piche

January 26, 2012 - By
Griffins 3 Goals in Under 3 Minutes Defeats Amerks; Gongalsky vs Piche

The Amerks lost on Wednesday night and there’s two ways you could look at the standings after this game.  The glass half empty way is that the Amerks are following the Buffalo Sabres lead and slowly sinking in the standings.  There’s only four points that separates the Amerks from the Rockford IceHogs who are in last place in the conference.  They’re also only six points from last place in the league.  The glass half full way is that the Amerks are only two points from eighth place in the conference and four points from sixth place.  The good news is that the Amerks play nine out of 12 games in February on home ice so if there was ever a time to really turn things around it’d be in February.  The ship hasn’t sunk but there’s reason for concern.

The real downfall has been the inconsistencies.  Everything from goal scoring to goaltending to wins and losses.  This is a hard working group of hockey players with a lot of potential how much they can really accomplish is the question.  The hope for any sports team is to get into the playoffs and then anything can happen.  It’s going to take [...]Read More

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Amerks vs Barons Again.. Pre Game Notes and Thoughts

January 20, 2012 - By
Amerks vs Barons Again.. Pre Game Notes and Thoughts

The Amerks lost on Thursday by three goals and they’ll get another crack tonight at the Barons.  The difference between the Amerks and Barons was defense and goaltending.  The Barons were able to keep the puck clear of their zone and advance the play which ultimately lead to goals scored.  Yann Danis was also great coming up with some big saves when needed.  Paul Szczechura, Marcus Foligno and Jonathan Parker all had great chances but Danis was able to make the save.

Drew MacIntyre will be starting for Rochester tonight.  It’ll be another chance for MacIntyre to have a big game and challenge Leggio for the top goaltending spot he’s had recently.  Rolston said he has no confidence issues in either goalie but didn’t think Leggio was as sharp as he has been so MacIntyre will get the start.  This team as it is needs the goalie to be able to bail them out of games.

Drew Schiestel wasn’t at the morning skate today but is traveling and Ron Rolston expects to have him back in the lineup tonight.  Schiestel hasn’t been one of the top defensemen but he’ll make the defense better than they were last night.

As for [...]Read More

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Amerks Gameday Notes, Lineup and Injury Updates

January 19, 2012 - By
Amerks Gameday Notes, Lineup and Injury Updates

The biggest news in Rochester other than Kodak filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy is that Michael Ryan is back in the lineup for the Rochester Americans.  The last appearance of Michael Ryan on a gameday was October 16th when he was on the ice for warmups but didn’t come out for the game.  It was reported as “headaches” and he’s missed 35 games since then.  It’ll probably take a few games for Ryan to get his timing back but they’re looking for some instant offense out of him.

Zack Kassian had a solid two games against Binghamton and Hershey when he first came back and then was “ok” last weekend against Toronto and Hershey.  Rolston attributed that to Kassian just getting back to town, settling in and getting reacquainted with the team.  hmm.. I think that would’ve been the case with the first two games back, not the second two.  Kassian should be playing on a line with Michael Ryan and Paul Szczechura so a big game will be expected from him.

One thing the Amerks don’t want to do is get into a shootout type of situation against the Barons.  They don’t want the game to get into a shootout to [...]Read More

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Amerks Sign Defensemen Maury Edwards and Brock Matheson

January 18, 2012 - By
Amerks Sign Defensemen Maury Edwards and Brock Matheson

The Rochester Americans are short on defensemen for the first time this season and have added two players prior to three games in three nights starting on Thursday.  The team signed Maury Edwards (Cincinnati Cyclones) and Brock Matheson (Stockton Thunder) to PTO’s, both from the ECHL.

The Amerks lineup will be without Shaone Morrisonn who was suspended for three games because of this hit last Saturday on Brian Willsie of the Hamilton Bulldogs.  The Amerks are also without Joe Finley (healthy scratch Wednesday night) and TJ Brennan who are on recall to the Buffalo Sabres.  With those three players out it leaves the team with Alex Biega, Drew Schiestel, Dennis Personn, Nick Crawford and Corey Fienhage.

That’s not a defense that any team will be very fearful of.. with the current coaching staff though I’m confident they’ll give them some good guidance at dealing with what they have and not thinking about what or who is missing.

From the Amerks press release on Matheson:

(Rochester, NY)… The Rochester Americans announced today that the team has signed defenseman Brock Matheson of the ECHL’s Stockton Thunder to a professional tryout.

Matheson, 24, has appeared in 19 games for Stockton this season, [...]Read More

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Amerks Shootout Win Extends Streak to Four Games; Adversity is No Problem

December 29, 2011 - By
Amerks Shootout Win Extends Streak to Four Games; Adversity is No Problem

(Update: Added shootout video and Travis Turnbull incident) This Rochester Americans team is supposed to lack goal scoring.  It’s supposed to be missing a couple of players as veteran leadership.  It’s supposed to lack depth.  It’s also supposed to be torn apart by all of the injuries and call ups but the players put everything out on the ice and won in a shootout against the top team in the league.  They were down 2-1 and 3-2 during the game but came back each time and didn’t slow down at all.  With the four game winning streak in hand the Amerks have climbed back to within one point of the North Division leading Toronto Marlies.  The players are certainly giving reasons to believe that the glass is half full and filling up.

(Picture by Steven Christy from http://okcbarons.com/)

Paul Szczechura, Shaone Morrisonn and Evan Rankin were all out of the lineup with injuries but watching the game it was hard to tell.  Sure, the team failed to score on five power play chances which is where a Szczechura or Rankin could have helped but when you can score at even strength it’s not as bad.

We’ve shared concerns about this [...]Read More

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Amerks Extend Win Streak to Three; Rankin Down; Back at it Tonight

December 28, 2011 - By
Amerks Extend Win Streak to Three; Rankin Down; Back at it Tonight

The Amerks travelled to to play a two game set against the Oklahoma City Barons and they came out on top of the first game with a 4-3 win in overtime.  The team was up 2-1 before the Barons scored two goals in 56 seconds and then Paul Szczechura scored halfway through the third to tie the game and eventually send it to overtime.  Watching the game online they had some struggles but didn’t back down from the top team in the league and came out victorious with an overtime goal scored by Drew Schiestel.

This was the third straight win for the Amerks and just like that they’re within three points of the North Division leading Toronto Marlies.  They’re still eighth in the Western Conference but can quickly jump to third by taking over the top spot in the division.  Assuming the team keeps playing hard every night, players can stay healthy and there’s few call ups anything is possible.. as everyone says, it’s a long season and it’s still only December.

Back to the game….. Paul Szczechura (aka Chewy.. aka Sahara if you listen to Rick Jeanneret) fresh off a recall to the Buffalo Sabres scored the first goal [...]Read More

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Amerks Lost in Albany and Lose All Three Weekend Games

December 5, 2011 - By
Amerks Lost in Albany and Lose All Three Weekend Games

The first of three sets of three game weekends in December is completed but not with the results anyone wanted.  The Amerks lost all three games this weekend to the Houston Aeros, Hamilton Bulldogs and Albany Devils.  The scores of the games were 4-3, 3-2 and 4-2 and the positive way to look at those is that on paper they were close games.  It’s surprising the scores weren’t different but this Amerks team works hard and even though they’re short on players due to injuries and call ups they’re not using that as an excuse and throwing in the towel.  With these three losses and wins by other teams the Amerks are now in the eighth spot in the conference with four other teams breathing down their necks.

Albany was the last stop of the weekend for the Amerks and they didn’t put anything on the scoreboard until there was less than five minutes left in regulation.  Marcus Foligno scored at 15:16 of the third period and then Drew Schiestel scored his first of the season with only a minute and 12 seconds left on the clock.  At that point they were only down 3-2 until Albany scored an empty [...]Read More

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Turnovers a Factor in Amerks 3-2 Loss to the Bulldogs

December 4, 2011 - By
Turnovers a Factor in Amerks 3-2 Loss to the Bulldogs

The Amerks have played two games this weekend and so far they’ve lost to one of the better teams in the conference and now the worst team in the conference.  The Bulldogs got their first win in seven games on Saturday against the Amerks, one of the only teams in the league that they can seem to beat.  Joonas Nattinen scored an unassisted goal thanks to a Drew Schiestel turnover halfway through the third period to score the game winning goal as the Hamilton Bulldog went on to win the game 3-2.

The Amerks got on the scoreboard first thanks to a great pass from Mark Voakes to Alex Biega from the bottom of one face off circle across ice to the top of the other face off circle where Biega was able to put a shot on Bulldogs goalie Nathan Lawson.  The rebound went to the side of the in a spot that Derek Whitmore was occupying and he put in the rebound.

The Bulldogs tied the game 1-1 at 18:46 of the first period courtesy of a turnover by Corey Fienhage.  Fienhage had the puck behind the Amerks net and was trying to clear the puck around the [...]Read More

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Amerks Gameday Notes vs the Houston Aeros

December 2, 2011 - By
Amerks Gameday Notes vs the Houston Aeros

The Amerks just finished up their morning gameday skate in preparation for tonights game against the Houston Aeros, one of the top teams in the West Division.  The Aeros have only lost three games in regulation so far this season out of a total of 21 games.  They’ve lost two in overtime and four in the shootout as well but still managed to get points out of those games.

Looks like David Leggio will be starting in net for the Amerks tonight, he was the first off the ice.  Leggio hasn’t played bad at all but it’s odd that Drew MacIntyre had played two great games, appeared to earn that #1 spot with Rochester, was called up to the Buffalo Sabres and upon returning isn’t getting the start against a top team in the league.  Well, tonight is the night for Leggio to shine in net.

But of course given the way things are going lately it wouldn’t be surprising to find out that MacIntyre is unable to play for some reason.

TJ Brennan was also absent from the ice for the game day skate which is an indication he’s not playing.  That’ll leave the Amerks with six healthy defensemen. [...]Read More

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Gameday: Amerks on the Road in Binghamton

October 29, 2011 - By
Gameday: Amerks on the Road in Binghamton

The Amerks are on the road tonight in Binghamton looking to kill their four game winless streak against the reigning Calder Cup Champions.  Even though the Amerks are on a losing streak they’ve managed to earn points in three out of four of those games.  After tonights game the Amerks will be back home to practice and then go back again to Binghamton next Friday.

Looking at the positives, the Amerks know they’re missing a couple of key players that could make a difference in the roster but they continue to stay competitive in games and are finding ways to score.  Players like Michael Ryan and Paul Szczechura out of the lineup are forcing others to move up in roles that they are not be ready for.  Things are headed in the right direction, they’re not being embarrassed on the ice night in and night out.

The Amerks coaching staff see’s positive signs with what they have and will continue to coach to that.  Rolston immediately said no when asked if there have been any talks with the Buffalo Sabres to make changes to the roster to improve it.  They understand the veteran element is missing that could help lead [...]Read More

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Amerks Injury Updates and the Parker Suspension

October 20, 2011 - By
Amerks Injury Updates and the Parker Suspension

The Amerks finished up their morning skate today after a day off yesterday and Ron Rolston gave us some updates on injuries to the team.  The only “new injury” was Derek Whitmore who sat out today with a muscle strain but is expected back tomorrow.

Jonathan Parker was suspended for one game for the high stick that broke the nose of Grand Rapids Griffins forward Brent Raedeke in the first period.  There was no penalty called on the play, the referee had called the play accidental.  The American Hockey League on the other hand says that players need to be in control of their own sticks and handed down the one game suspension.

The Amerks will be down a forward for tomorrow’s game due to the suspension of Parker and Marcus Foligno.  Rolston said that a defenseman will likely move up to fill in the role of the 12th forward.

Paul Szczechura has no real time frame to return.  Ron Rolston had said early November but it really comes down to when the doctors clear Szczechura to play.  He had been injured last April in game three of the playoff series between the Norfolk Admirals and Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins and had to [...]Read More

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‘Early November’ for Paul Szczechura

October 19, 2011 - By
‘Early November’ for Paul Szczechura

Paul Szczechura is probably a forgotten name to the casual Rochester Americans fan.  He was signed over the summer but hasn’t played a game yet and appears as though we’ll have to wait until “early November” for his return.

Kevin Oklobzija wrote in the D&C:

Amerks center Paul Szczechura isn’t ready to play. Rolston said he expects to have him in the lineup “in early November.” Szczechura is still recovering from a knee injury suffered during the playoffs with the Norfolk Admirals.

“Initially we thought with his progress he was ahead of schedule but his doctors had set a certain date (for a return) and they’re staying firm with it,” Rolston said. “They don’t want to take any chances.”

Besides having a name that will likely be misspelled few times he’s expected to be a top center.  During the 2010/2011 season with the Norfolk Admirals he scored 22 goals and 30 assists in 79 regular season games.  He was injured during game 3 of the playoffs when he had to be helped off of the ice after suffering a leg injury, a leg injury that continues to heal.  He’s been skating with the Amerks since training camp but has not been [...]Read More

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