The attendance may have been different if it had been a team other than the Boston Bruins but that’s why the Bruins were picked, they knew they would be a draw.  There was definitely more Bruins gear in the stands than Panthers but there was also an impressive amount of Panthers attire.

Just to also toss this out there, the last time the Sabres played a preseason game in Rochester there was only around 3,000 people at the game.  Close to 5,000 for a Panthers vs Bruins game.  Yea.  But, that’s another debate.

One of the biggest complaints about the game ahead of time was the ticket price but based on the reactions of people everyone seemed to get their moneys worth.

There was the Andrew Peters vs Lane MacDermid fight.. David Booth scoring two goals in the first period, both of them great goals.. Bryan Allen dropping Lane MacDermid along the boards.. Nathan McIver of the Bruins immediately went after Allen to trade a few punches before getting a game misconduct.. Keaton Ellerby dropped Milan Lucic on the blue line with a huge hit.. and then of course two amazing saves in the third period by Tyler Plante that stopped the Bruins comeback attempt.

Tyler Plante is heading into his fourth season in a Rochester Americans uniform and trying to make a name for himself.  All of the talk is on Jacob Markstrom but flying under the radar is Plante.  The two awesome saves he made on Thursday were enough to get people out of their seats and applaud the effort.  He’s battled injuries in previous seasons but knock on wood if he can stay injury free he’s going to give us a show.

The Panthers defense seemed pretty solid with Dennis Wideman, Gudbranson, Kulikov, Allen and McCabe.  Add Jason Garrison to that mix and it’s a defense that I’d be happy to watch build some chemistry.

Panthers head coach Pete DeBoer shared a number of comments after the game but one that sticks out is when he said it was an entertaining game but the coaches still have a lot of work to do.  I think that can be taken as a sign that it was a win but not a pretty win.

Here’s the post game interview with DeBoer courtesy of On Frozen Film:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fn9GjBWiq1U

And now for some more.. Keaton Ellerby.  Come on Keaton, what’s going on?  I want you to succeed but why make that drop pass which ended up in a giveaway allowing the Bruins to make it a 3-2 game?  Sure, your hit on Lucic was awesome but there’s some work to be done.  Also, late in the first period he was at the blue line and missed a pass and it left the Bruins zone.  Ellerby will be in an Amerks uniform on opening night.

Adrian Foster?  Who?  Yea, no thanks.  Did not do anything impressive.

It’ll be interesting to see what Bill Thomas will be capable of when he’s not on the fourth line playing with Andrew Peters.

Thanks to the Florida Panthers for providing Rochester with an excellent game to kick off the hockey season.  That is exactly the type of thing that needs to happen for people to appreciate the Panthers a little bit more and get fans behind them.  It’s an uphill battle for the Cats but for one night you owned Rochester.

The Amerks open training camp on Monday at Blue Cross Arena and it’s open to the public.  If the Amerks team being coached by Chuck Weber can give fans an entertaining product like Thursday night it will be a great season.

Panthers Game in Rochester was an Entertaining Success is a post from: Let's Go Amerks!. For discussion visit the forums at LetsGoAmerks.com/Forums.

I’ll have more as the day goes on, here’s just a couple of things..

After the morning skate David Booth  said that he’s excited to play again and in a building where he started his professional career.  While smiling he said, “I just need to keep my head up.”

Andrew Peters  knows his role and said that he does not plan his fights but is always ready to fight if needed.  He’s determined to prove that he’s a great 4th line player and is going to do everything he can to not be sent down to the Amerks.  Peters was asked about his fight with his brother in the AHL years ago and he laughed saying, “my moms an attorney and I had to sign a document saying I’d never talk about it.”

When asked about Keaton Ellerby, Pete DeBoer said that Ellerby put on 20 pounds of muscle over the summer and he needs to be more assertive.  He’s not going to be leading the power play but he needs to be someone who can lead with the puck down the ice.  Ellerby picked #4 for his jersey, which was the same number Jay Bouwmeester wore.  Ellerby had been compared to Bouwmeester but that’s not why he picked 4, he said that’s always been his favorite number and was excited when he found out it was available.

A Couple of Things on Ellerby, Peters and Booth is a post from: Let's Go Amerks!. For discussion visit the forums at LetsGoAmerks.com/Forums.

Read on and you’ll probably notice some similarities.

(Link to Full Story) Here’s an excerpt about the coach:

Pete DeBoer – Finally, the Panthers’ 2nd year coach has to be held accountable. When he was hired, I was all for new blood. He has an impressive junior hockey coaching resume and brought the excitement of the unknown to the NHL.  Unfortunately, as good as he was with the boys, he’s just as bad with the multi-million dollar salaried men.

The article goes on to say more, click the link above to read the rest.

And here’s something talking about players being called up:

Then comes the handling of the injuries and AHL call ups. Injuries were a part of the Panthers’ season, there’s no denying that. I’m just not sure that calling up a guy from AHL for a game at a time does anyone any good. Whether it was Michael Repik or Shawn Matthias early in the season, neither were really given a chance to get into any sort of rhythm with the big club. Up for a game, play 5 minutes a game, back to Rochester the next day. I understand that they probably weren’t NHL ready, but it’s an 82 game season. You just can’t lean on 2 and a half lines for weeks at a time when players get hurt. Why not let Matthias stay up for a couple weeks, get a couple practices in with the NHL team, and get his legs under him before packing him up on a plane again? Healthy scratch him if the injured guy in question ends up playing? Instead, it was Matthias for a game, Repik later in the week, Jeff Taffe for a couple after that. One of the nice surprises of the season came in Victor Oreskovich, who managed to stay up with the Panthers for 43 games before last playing in mid-February. He hasn’t been called up since, and I’m not sure I can explain why.

Again, the article states more.  No matter how the Amerks season ends, even with a Calder Cup, these are all issues that the Panthers need to address when it comes to them rebuilding as a franchise and players developing properly.

Article Talking About Panthers Woes Includes Amerks is a post from: Let's Go Amerks!. For discussion visit the forums at LetsGoAmerks.com/Forums.

The Panthers can dump all of the players they want for draft picks but when the current talent pool of prospects is underachieving, miserable, and not improving it paints a horrible outlook on the entire organization.  This season was supposed to be different for the Panthers and the Amerks.  This season they were going to make the playoffs, the prospects were going to get better.  None of that has happened for the Panthers.  The Amerks have stayed near the top of their division because of the money spent by Amerks owner Curt Styres.  If it wasn’t for him the Panthers affiliate in the AHL would again be one of the worst.

Randy Sexton has already said the trade deadline is just one step in getting rid of players and dumping salaries.  The next two steps will be the draft and free agency over the summer.  He has said that deals done on Wednesday will not paint an entire picture of what the team plans to do but it will certainly give everyone an idea.

I could write a lengthy post but will instead wait until after the trade deadline and see what happens.

I’ll be heading to Amerks practice in the morning to see if there’s any news but am not expecting much.  I’m going to do my best in posting any news about trades and moves, but here’s some other links you’re probably already aware of that will be updated quicker than directly on this site:

http://www.facebook.com/LetsGoAmerks

http://www.twitter.com/LetsGoAmerks

http://www.litterboxcats.com

http://php.democratandchronicle.com/blog/sports2/ – Hockey O-Zone

http://miamiherald.typepad.com/flapanthers/ – On Frozen Pond

http://www.twitter.com/OnFrozenPond

http://www.tsn.ca/tradecentre/

http://twitter.com/TSNBobMcKenzie

http://twitter.com/darrendreger

If you have any questions, comments, or hear anything please comment!!

Actions of Panthers Will Speak for Themselves on Deadline Day is a post from: Let's Go Amerks!. For discussion visit the forums at LetsGoAmerks.com/Forums.

The Rochester Americans have a great roster and Matthias makes it even better.

He was widely criticized by everyone for his poor performance last season but he’s not likely to go back in time.  Matthias lost 20 pounds over the summer and got himself into better shape.  He’s leaner, faster, stronger, and mentally prepared for the season ahead.

Here’s what Peter DeBoer told George Richards over at On Frozen Pond:

The Panthers returned Matthias to their minor league team on Wednesday, coach Pete DeBoer saying everyone within the organization is where they should be. DeBoer wants Matthias to dominate play in the AHL although my bet is he’ll be back soon enough.

He needs to earn his ice time and score some goals,” DeBoer said. “He had a good training camp but hasn’t had a good season in the [AHL] yet. He needs to do that.”

Matthias is well aware of the criticism he received and hoping to prove everyone he has improved.  It may seem hard to believe but he loves Rochester, enjoys playing here, and he’s ready to play hockey.

Shawn Matthias Assigned to Rochester is a post from: Let's Go Amerks!. For discussion visit the forums at LetsGoAmerks.com/Forums.

Oreskovich had retired from hockey in 2007 after he lost his passion for hockey due to a couple of injuries he had suffered.  After he graduated from Notre Dame he regained his passion for hockey and was looking for a chance to get back into the game.

His answer to getting back into the game?  Geting in touch with his former coach and current Panthers coach Pete DeBoer.  Oreskovich arrived at Panthers camp and proved he could play.  He obviously played well for the Panthers to offer him a two way contract.

I wrote an article last week about Oreskovich and his history, check it out:

Victor Oreskovich Fortunate to get a Second Chance

http://www.letsgoamerks.com/2009/10/02/victor-oreskovich-fortunate-to-get-a-second-chance/

Panthers Sign former Avalanche draft pick Victor Oreskovich is a post from: Let's Go Amerks!. For discussion visit the forums at LetsGoAmerks.com/Forums.

The Florida Panthers are currently talking with Victor Oreskovich about signing a contract, a player who could turn out to be a big surprise. I was going to wait until after I knew he was signed but it sounds like things are going well so hopefully I don’t jinx the process.

My guess is that he’s offered a two way NHL deal with the Florida Panthers. I have absolutely nothing to base that on except from what I’ve learned about the kid. The Panthers are still under the 50 player limit to NHL deals so there’s a chance for him.

Updated 10/8/2009 – On October 8th the Panthers officially signed Oreskovich to a two way NHL contract, an amazing opportunity for a player that took two years off.

Oreskovich signed a two way NHL contract with the Florida Panthers

Update 11/01/2009 – After only five regular season games Oreskovich earned his first NHL call up, a pretty amazing task for a kid who took two years off after losing passion for the game.  In five games with the Amerks Oreskovich has tallied one goal, four assists, and a number of big hits.

Victor Oreskovich playing for the Rochester Americans during a preseason game against the Syracuse Crunch on 9/29/09

The native of Oakville Ontario was drafted 55th overall in the second round of the 2004 NHL Entry Draft by the Colorado Avalanche.  In the 2004 draft the Florida Panthers had drafted David Booth 53rd overall, two spots ahead of Oreskovich.  History has proven that draft order does not always mean anything (Mike Funk was drafted 43rd in 2004) but it puts into perspective where he was in that draft year.

Alexander Ovechkin and Evgeni Malkin were drafted one and two that year.

He was invited to the Florida Panthers training camp where he played well in a couple of games for them and impressed the coaches.

“He’s a good skater, big body, brings a lot of energy.  We’re very pleased with him,” is what Benoit Groulx said about Oreskovich after the Amerks 4-2 preseason win over the Syracuse Crunch.

Victor started gaining the attention of professional scounts in 2002-03 when he played for the Milton Icehawks of the Ontario Provincial Junior Hockey League (OPJHL).  During that season he scored 28 goals with 47 assists for 75 points in just 49 games.  Following the 2002-03 season he received the B.J. Munro Award as the top NHL prospect.

The next season (2003/2004) he went on to play for the Green Bay Gamblers of the USHL where he played in 58 games scoring 11 goals with 26 assists.

Oreskovich attended Notre Dame in 2004 to earn a degree in finance as well as to play college hockey.  He played in 37 games his first season scoring one goal and getting two assists.  His second season he only played in nine games but had two goals and one assist.

Like a lot of kids in Canada he has loved hockey all of his life and things just weren’t working out well at Notre Dame.  “A lot of things at Notre Dame weren’t going that great.  I was a young guy and a little impatient, college hockey is tough for younger players,” he said.

Victor only stayed at Notre Dame for two years saying, “I jumped to juniors to jump start my pro career and it worked out.”

He played two seasons with the Kitchener Rangers, the second season being the most productive.  He scored 28 goals, had 32 assists, and played in 62 games during the 2006/2007 season.  He also played in five playoff games that season and registered two goals.

After that season he was looking to make the jump to the next level.  “I signed with Colorado after my last year in Kitchener but at that time i had a couple injuries and lost my passion along the way.  I went to my second training camp with Colorado and retired that fall (2007).”

On September 17, 2007 he was assigned to the Lake Erie Monsters but did not report and was suspended by the Avalanche at which point he retired from hockey.

After he retired he went back to Notre Dame to finish school and graduated with a degree in finance.  While Victor was at school he says, “That fire came back.  I just started really missing the game and I really wanted to try and make a comeback.”

With a renewed passion to play hockey again Victor had the perfect opportunity to try and get back into the game through Pete DeBoer, his coach when he played for the Kitchener Rangers and current coach of the Florida Panthers.

Victor understands how fortunate he is to get a second chance saying, “Pete was awesome.  Just to give me the opportunity to come back meant a lot to me.  I’m really fortunate to get another chance, a lot of guys wouldn’t be that lucky.”

From a young players perspective, I asked him what he thought of playing for someone who had previously coached in the juniors and is now coaching in the NHL.  He said, “I think Pete is a great coach, he really knows what hes doing and more than anything he’s a great motivator.  I really loved playing for Pete.  Sometimes pro coaches might not understand the younger guys coming into pro whereas Pete has that perspective of what younger guys can and cannot handle and just how you have to handle certain players differently.”

Oreskovich assisted on a short handed goal against the Syracuse Crunch on Tuesday night with a minute left in the second period.  Watching him play you would never think that he had taken two years off from playing professional hockey.

Victor may have lost the passion to play hockey a couple of years ago but he’s certainly fired up to play again and it’s shown on the ice.  What if a career playing hockey doesn’t work out?  He’s already graduated college and is armed with a finance degree from Notre Dame.  That’s not likely though, I expect he won’t spend too much time with the Amerks before getting some NHL playing time.

Victor Oreskovich Fortunate to get a Second Chance is a post from: Let's Go Amerks!. For discussion visit the forums at LetsGoAmerks.com/Forums.

Who were half those players out on the ice?  I have no idea and neither did a lot of other people.  They don’t have numbers or names on the practice jerseys and it’s the first time a lot of them have met.

After a brutal preseason travel schedule with the Florida Panthers the more recognizable players that we’ll be expecting the most from were given the morning off.  Those players were Graham Mink, Mike York, Kenndal McArdle, David Brine, Jamie Johnson, Jordan Henry, and Clay Wilson.  Rory Fitzpatrick was on the ice this morning prior to everyone else putting in some skating.  Assuming nothing crazy happens those players are all guaranteed roster spots for opening night.

Looking back at the start of 2008 training camp we were all hopeful that things were going to be different.  There was optimism in the air.  The teams advertising campaign to start the season was “A New Day for a Rochester Tradition.”  We had a new sole affiliation.  We had some young players that we hoped were going to light up the ice.  Once the season started that all crumbled to the ground.

As everyone moves on from last season the biggest thing I’ve noticed when talking to players and coaches is the confidence level.  It’s not a cocky confidence level either where everyone thinks they’re better than they are.  It’s the confidence level of having a better understanding of this level of hockey.  Understanding what they need to do every day to do their jobs.

A lot of the players have a full season of professional hockey completed.  The coaches are entering their second year together.  Everyone has learned a lot.  They’d rather not talk about last season anymore.

One player that does not want to remember anything about the 2008/2009 season is goaltender Chris Beckford-Tseu.  I talked to him for a minute and he easily admits last season was a failure.  He’s looking forward, hoping for a fresh start and said that he worked hard all summer.

Prior to the scrimmage starting head coach Benoit Groulx had let the players know this was about playing hockey, not showing off any of their other “attributes.”  He said they’ll have plenty of opportunities during the three preseason game.

Who was he talking about?  The tough guys.  Mike Sgroi, Trevor Gillies, Jimmy Bonneau, James DeLory, and Tom Harrison.  Those guys are all fighting for a position or two that is available on the roster.

Benoit Groulx wants a fighter that can also play hockey.  Those guys all know they can fight.  The coaching staff and management know they can all fight.  This is their time to show they can be relied upon to play a regular shift as well.

Mike Sgroi was a standout on the ice today with a consistent hustle finding the puck, going to the net, and making plays.  You also can’t miss the mutton chops on the side of his face so it’s easy to find him in a crowd.  I have a story on Mike Sgroi that I’ll try and get posted tonight.  Interesting player to talk to.

A few other notes:

• There was a larger than usual turnout of people to watch camp compared to the past two seasons.
• Keaton Ellerby is an excellent skater.  He has a future in the NHL and will be a valuable asset on defense this season.
• Andrew Sweetland appears to have grown.  He looks bigger and seemed more confident in his skating.
• Victor Oreskovich was invited to the Panthers training camp and also received an invite to the Amerks camp.  The former second round draft pick of the Colorado Avalanche retired after the 2007 season.  He’s a former player of Panthers head coach Pete DeBoer.  He scored one goal in the scrimmage.  He’s a player to keep an eye on.
• Evgeny Dadonov looks like every other Russian player that’s played hockey.  Looks great on the ice, gets a lot of compliments, now I can’t wait to see him play in a game.  If anyone knows someone who speaks Russian let me know, would love to do an interview with him.

I’ll have more later from Benoit Groulx and Mike Sgroi.  The Amerks are back on the ice at ESL on Friday morning at 10am.

Amerks Open Training Camp With A Scrimmage is a post from: Let's Go Amerks!. For discussion visit the forums at LetsGoAmerks.com/Forums.

One thing that’s exciting is the interest in the Amerks that a lot of Panther fans have taken.  These fans view the Rochester Americans as the Rochester Americans, not just the prospects of the Florida Panthers.  They recognize the history of this team and seem to understand the importance of the Amerks winning and how that can positively impact the big club.  These are the same thoughts that have been shared by Florida management as well.

With the Amerks front office getting back to making the Amerks relevant in Rochester again and the teams NHL parent recognizing the same thing it really does give a sense of optimism.

To bring ourselves back down to earth for a moment, I do agree with those that are saying it all sounds great in writing but we won’t know anything until the roster is assembled for opening night and the puck drops.

Training camp opens in nine days, maybe there will be more than 10 of us there to watch?

Here’s the article:

Sunday Coffee: Optimism In Rochester

Sunday, 09.06.2009 / 7:53 AM / Sunday Coffee

By Dave Joseph

There’s optimism building in Rochester.

The Americans, the Panthers affiliate in the American Hockey League (AHL), have gone from a team that finished last in the Western Conference last season to a Calder Cup favorite this upcoming season.

For the Panthers and Amerks, who have spent the off-season signing AHL veterans Chris Taylor, Jeff Taffe, Clay Wilson, Graham Mink and Mike York to go along with Panthers prospects Keaton Ellerby, Shawn Matthias and Michal Repik, the change didn’t occur overnight.

While watching a group of players go through an informal practice one recent morning at the incredible ICE training facility, Panthers director of player personnel Jack Birch said the resurgence began to take shape just weeks after the Amerks stumbled out of the gate last year to a 3-18-0-3 start.

“We realized early last year that we were too young in Rochester,” Birch said. “It was one of those freakish years when we had something like 11 freshmen players coming out, and that doesn’t happen very often.”

While the Amerks and rookie coach Benoit Groulx were in the process of slowly turning things around, Birch said he and Panthers assistant GM Randy Sexton and former GM Jacques Martin met with Amerks ownership to determine a course of action.

“We said we wanted to go back to the model that Rochester used to have,” Birch recalled. “That model was the ownership group would put in five or six veteran players and they would become the face of the franchise and, in a lot of cases, they would be support personnel for the parent club.”

Birch said a list of 60 players were identified as strong minor-league signings who would fill the veteran leadership role and potentially play games for the Panthers.

“Looking back, of the top seven on the list, we got five of them,” Birch said.

Those five were Taffe, a point-a-game produced for the Penguins affiliate last season, Wilson, of the AHL’s top offensive defensemen, right winger Mink, former NHL regular and U.S. Olympian York, and Taylor.

Taffe, Wilson, Mink and York (NHL tryout) will be in South Florida competing for jobs when the Panthers open training camp Sept. 12.

“Taffe was listed as our No. 1 center, and he’s more than capable of playing with the big club,” Birch said. “We identified Wilson as, if not the top defensemen, one of the top two or three, and he’s more than capable of playing with the big club. Looking at the right side, we identified Mink as being the No. 1 right winger and went after him. And we added guys like Chris Taylor, who played in Rochester before playing in Germany the past three years, and Mike York, who’s not far removed from being an Olympic player.

“So now you sit down and look at it, combined with the guys we have in their second year like Repik and Matthias and Ellerby, (Jason) Garrison, (Andrew) Sweetland and (Mike) Duco, and you’re looking at a pretty good lineup. It’s one that certainly should be able to compete at the highest level of the American Hockey League.”

The only question mark in Rochester could be in goal. Birch, however, said all reports on goalie Alexander Salak have been positive. The young goalie arrived in South Florida this weekend for rookie camp beginning Monday at incredible ICE.

Florida Panthers Article: Optimism In Rochester is a post from: Let's Go Amerks!. For discussion visit the forums at LetsGoAmerks.com/Forums.

We have reasons to be optimistic about the upcoming season along with reasons to not get our hopes up just yet.  We’ll know more when October arrives, the lineup is complete, and games have started being played.  Until that happens we’ll continue to read how great everyone looks and the potential they have.

From Litter Box Cats:

A few quick thoughts: Evgeny Dadonov appeared in game-ready condition; he’s a smaller guy, but quick and possessing a nice wrister. Dmitry Kulikov is similar in size, with a Keith Ballard-ish stature and a hint of what may be toughness. Certainly was not out of place among his brethren. A number of participants seemed to be a half-step behind the drills, but I had to continually remind myself that this is Day One; midseason form we ain’t gonna get. Michal Repik remains the speedster he was at last year’s camp. The current Amerks unquestionably were comfortable with each other, having a year (or more) behind them on the same bench. Shawn Matthias and James DeLory bearing down on the offensive zone will give goaltenders heart attacks: they are absolutely gigantic around the net. Ditto for Keaton Ellerby, Adam Comrie, and Colby Robak. These are big doods. Alexander Salak looked slick in an evil black-only mask, but seemed a bit out of place, and I can’t put my finger on why. Tyler Plante – still a hulking 6-3 before skates – put up the superior fight.

From FloridaPanthers.com:

“I thought (center Shawn) Matthias was in great shape and looked leaner and faster,” DeBoer said. “I thought (defenseman Keaton) Ellerby and (defenseman Jason) Garrison looked like they were in good shape and ready to grab a job.”

Garrison, who had 35 points in 75 games last year for the Panthers American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate in Rochester, N.Y., had been working out since the middle of June in preparation for camp.

“I really started hitting hard the middle of July,” Garrison said. “Obviously, it was a tough practice but it’s good to get in there and get a feel for everything. You couldn’t ask for anything different. We have a hard-working coach and he expects a lot out of you.”

Repik, who led Rochester in goals (19) last season and scored two with the Panthers, said; “We know how hard we practice from last year. We know what Pete wants from us so we expect it to be hard and we expect the hard drills.”

Picture courtesy of Litter Box Cats

Panthers Finish Day 1 of Rookie Camp is a post from: Let's Go Amerks!. For discussion visit the forums at LetsGoAmerks.com/Forums.