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Posts tagged 'Drew Schiestel' (Page 2)

Posts Tagged ‘Drew Schiestel’

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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Gameday Thoughts and Lineup: Griffins at Amerks

October 16, 2011 - By
Gameday Thoughts and Lineup: Griffins at Amerks

The Amerks are coming off of their first win on the season on Friday night when they defeated the Lake Erie Monsters by the score of 3-1.  The team played a better game offensively connecting more passes which resulted in less costly turnovers.

The Griffins and Pirates didn’t play each other at all last season so there’s no real head to head matchup comparison available.

The first two losses of the season were split by David Leggio and Drew MacIntyre, both allowed some questionable goals but neither game would be considered bad.  David Leggio did play a better game on Friday night against and the Lake Erie Monsters and because of that will likely get the start tonight.  The Griffins were the first AHL team that Drew MacIntyre played for from 2004-2006.

If Travis Turnbull can continue to go after the puck and not back down from players he’ll continue improving.  If Derek Whitmore continues with his same effort and energy he’ll continue to put points on the board along with helping Zack Kassian grow.  The key is Mark Voakes playing a leading role as the teams number one center, something he may not be ready for but is being [...]Read More

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Gameday: Amerks at Monsters, Scoring Will be a Necessity

October 14, 2011 - By
Gameday: Amerks at Monsters, Scoring Will be a Necessity

The Rochester Americans are about to face off against the Lake Erie Monsters, you can listen to the game live on WHTK 1280AM 107.3FM or whtk.com.  Both teams have lost their first two games and are looking for their first win of the season.  In two losses the Amerks have have tallied an amazing 10 goals against and only scoring three.  The Monsters have had three goals scored against and only one for.

If you’re watching on AHLLive or listening here’s the roster sheet for tonight.

We do know that scratches for the Amerks due to injuries will be Paul Szczechura, Drew Schiestel, Jacob Lagace, Maxime Legault and possibly Dennis Persson.  The starting goalie will be up in the air, both Drew MacIntyre and David Leggio will want to make up for their losses.

The key to winning this game is going to be to score some goals.  It’s that simple.  To win you have to score.  The defense will also need to play much better to prevent quality chances from the Monsters.

Who’s going to score these goals?  That’s still anyone’s guess at this time.

The Buffalo Sabres have their home opener tonight so it’s doubtful too many eyes [...]Read More

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Amerks Home Opener had Some Awesome and Some Booing

October 14, 2011 - By
Amerks Home Opener had Some Awesome and Some Booing

The game that was played for 60 minutes on the ice pretty much speaks for itself.  The team was outplayed by a more skilled Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins team.  Going into further detail really won’t accomplish much and does anyone really want to discuss it further?  It’s only two games into the season, there’s absolutely no reason to hit a panic button but there’s reason for concern.  Time to get into the good things before the negative..

The Rochester Americans home opener overall though had a great atmosphere to it.  There were fans in the building early for the current Amerks players to walk the red carpet and then for the alumni to arrive.  Many of the alumni were seen hanging out throughout the game and intermissions with fans chatting.

The Moose and Sabretooth were hanging out signing autographs and taking pictures together.

The new video scoreboard that had a cost of over 200k was impressive (even if it didn’t show any shots on goal).  The video quality was improved and just added to the overall atmosphere.

It was also great running into people that you only see during hockey season and catching up on life.

The home opener had that special [...]Read More

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Amerks Gameday Notes, Injuries, Lineup and Attendance

October 13, 2011 - By
Amerks Gameday Notes, Injuries, Lineup and Attendance

As of writing this there’s about 8,700 tickets sold for tonights game and everyone is aware of the excitement and anticipation for the game tonight.  The players are even aware that it’s their time to shine and prove to fans there’s a reason for them to keep coming back for more after the home opener.

“It’s real important for us to go out and showcase ourselves and showcase that we have a good team and a team worth cheering for,” Derek Whitmore said.  ”Rochester loves a winning hockey teams and they’ll support you, it’s almost like an audition for us to showcase what we have.”

As expected, Drew MacIntyre will be the starting goalie for the Amerks in tonights game.  Once the Penguins finish their morning skate will try and post an update with their goalie as well.

The latest short term injury for the Amerks is defenseman Dennis Persson.  He has a lower body injury from earlier this week in practice and is day to day.

With Persson and Drew Schiestel out of the lineup it gives Joe Finley and Nick Crawford a chance to step in and show they’re just as deserving to be in the lineup.  Matt [...]Read More

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Drew Schiestel Out 4-6 Weeks with MCL Sprain

October 11, 2011 - By
Drew Schiestel Out 4-6 Weeks with MCL Sprain

Updated 3:42pm: From @kevinodandc Amerks refute a newspaper report out of Hamilton that says D-man Drew Schiestel will miss 4-6 wks with MCL sprain. The Amerks say not true.

He also tweeted that the team is simply reporting it as a “lower body injury” and will be evaluated again later in the week.

We know it’s a knee injury, sounds like the time frame is in question.  Obviously they’re hoping it’s not as long as 4-6 weeks.

Original story:

After only one game the Amerks have their first injury that will miss an extended number of games.  Defenseman Drew Scheistel sprained his MCL in his left knee late in the game on Saturday against the Hamilton Bulldogs and will miss 4-6 weeks.

This was Schiestel’s first regular season game after blowing out his right knee last January with the Portland Pirates.

Schiestel is considered a top prospect, here’s hoping he can get rid of these knee demons to prove himself.

Stick tap to SabresProspects.com for information.

From the The Hamilton Spectator:

After making an innocuous pass, he got bumped near his blue line. Not hammered. Not flattened. Just got involved in one of those thousand-times-a-game collisions.

Problem was, his toe was [...]Read More

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Bulldogs Outplay the Amerks and Win 5-2

October 8, 2011 - By
Bulldogs Outplay the Amerks and Win 5-2

The first game of the Terry Pegula owned Rochester Americans is in the books, now it’s time to figure out how to erase it from the history books.  The Bulldogs easily defeated the Amerks by the final score of 5-2.

If you look at the stat sheet it shows Amerks had 32 shots on goal but very few of them I would have considered quality scoring chances.  They rarely had the puck for extended periods of time in the Bulldogs zone really making them work to defend the puck.

Corey Tropp had a couple of great chances with an open net but wasn’t able to put his stick on the puck.

David Leggio made 22 saves in the game and even though he allowed five goals, two of them were on the power play (one was a five on three) and the others he wasn’t given much help on defense.  Whether it was turn overs or giving the shooter the advantage I’d hardly put much blame on him.

Rookies Brayden McNabb and Phil Varone made some poor passes throughout the game and probably quickly learned that the American Hockey League is a whole different level than what they’re used to.

[...]Read More

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Video and Updates from Amerks Morning Practice

October 6, 2011 - By
Video and Updates from Amerks Morning Practice

The Amerks spent a lot of time during practice today working on full line drills, really getting into game day mode.  One line that appeared to be getting more time than others was Derek Whitmore, Travis Turnbull and Zack Kassian.  Some other line combinations were Michael Ryan, Colin Stuart and Mark Voakes.. Marcus Foligno and Phil Varone were often paired up with a rotating right winger.. Colin Stuart was also paired with Corey Tropp and Michael Ryan as well.   I’ll get a better look on Friday morning at the different lines and who seems to be sticking together.

On the defensive side, Brayden McNabb and Joe Finley, Nick Crawford and Shaone Morrisonn, Drew Schiestel and TJ Brennan (Brennan also worked with Alex Biega) were all often paired up.  At times Finley also worked with Morrisonn and Biega.

What does all of that really tell us?  They’re still working on creating lines ahead of the first game of the season.  Derek Whitmore and Zack Kassian seemed to be the two players always on the same line with a different center.

Maxime Legault and Paul Szczechura were the only players that I noticed were not on the ice.  Kyle Bocheck also [...]Read More

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Amerks Gameday Notes, Defense to Get a Look

September 30, 2011 - By
Amerks Gameday Notes, Defense to Get a Look

The Rochester Americans play their one and only exhibition game tonight at 7pm at The Sports Centre at MCC (formerly ESL Centre) against The University of Western Ontario Mustangs.  Tickets to the game will be available for $5 at the door.  Free admission will be granted to kids wearing their youth hockey jersey or to any high school or college student with a valid school ID.  Doors open at 6 p.m.

Heading into training camp the team had a number of scenarios they were working on for exhibitions and this is the one that worked out.  One of the many scenarios included a game against Syracuse but that fell through.  The Mustangs last season were the 5th ranked mens hockey team in Canadian Interuniversity Sports.  What does that mean?  They’re not just some small college team expecting to be rolled over.

Amerks Coach Ron Rolston said that the game is expected to be competitive which is what they want.  ”We still have some guys that we need to get a better look at in game situations,” he said.  ”This will give them an opportunity to really show what they can do and where they fit in within the organization.”

When [...]Read More

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Kotalik and Morrisonn Sent Down, Amerks Training Camp Roster

September 26, 2011 - By
Kotalik and Morrisonn Sent Down, Amerks Training Camp Roster

This big news of the afternoon is that Ales Kotalik and Shaone Morrisonn have both cleared waivers earlier today and have been assigned to the Rochester Americans. Now, the question comes up, will both show up?  Will the explore options oversea’s?  We’ll find out soon enough.  Opinions on both are varried, most thinking that Kotalik is a waste.  He did play well with the Abbotsford Heat last season so assuming he accepts his fate he could be a benefit here as well.

The Amerks opened training camp this morning with the following 20 player roster on the ice:

Forwards: Kyle Bochek, Riley, Boychuk, Jacob Lagace, Maxime Legault, Jonathan Parker, Paul Szczechura, Shawn Szydlowski, Travis Turnbull, Phil Varone, Mark Voakes, and Derek Whitmore

Defense: Alex Biega, TJ Brennan, Nick Crawford, Corey Fienhage, Joe Finley, Matt MacKenzie, and Brayden McNabb

Goalies: Jeff Jakaitis and Dan Ramirez

Dan who??  He’s a local that was brought in to practice due to David Leggio is on the roster as well but is sitting out after getting knocked in the noggen by a puck in a Sabres practice.  Hopefully it’s not a concussion, that’d put a damper on the start of the season in net.

As for [...]Read More

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