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Posts tagged 'Ted Nolan'

Posts Tagged ‘Ted Nolan’

Free Agency Impact on the Amerks, This Year, Last Year, Current Players

July 1, 2010 - By Keith Wozniak

The 2010 edition of free agency is set to begin at Noon EST today and we may not see immediate moves by the Florida Panthers and Rochester Americans but there definitely will be.  A lot of people still consider the Panthers a “bad parent club” but they did a very good job partnered with the Amerks in building a successful AHL team last season.  A few minor upgrades (defense and coach) and the team is already better.

One move that seems to have been overlooked is that the Panthers acquired Michael Grabner in a trade with the Vancouver Canucks.  The Panthers sent Keith Ballard and Victor Oreskovich to the Canucks in exchange.  Grabner has spent the majority of the past four seasons (180 games) with the Manitoba Moose and is good for 20 goals and 20 assists.  He’s not a veteran player based on games, but he’s a fast skater and team him up with a speedy center and we’ll have a reliable scoring line.

Jamie Johnson has already said that he’s been in contact with the Panthers and would be willing to come back.  Johnson was a leader on the ice and led the team in scoring.  He [...]Read More

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Audio from 2010 Amerks Locker Cleanout, Vets, Nolan and Staats

April 30, 2010 - By Keith Wozniak

The Amerks season is over and a few of the players spoke after their exit meetings and they cleaned out their lockers.  Uploading audio is a new feature and this one took me a little while longer as I’m uploading them to YouTube.  This way the audio is easier for people to share outside of this site.

Jamie Johnson was the most outspoken player because he does not plan to come back here next season.  Some people have criticized him for his words but if others were leaving they probably would have shared the same thoughts.  Everything said are valid points about the way he felt he was treated.  Johnson was the team leader in points with 27 goals and 44 assists.  He was also one of only two players that played in all 80 games.  Sure he had a rough stretch but so did everyone else, in the end he was there every day working hard.

Lewis Staats and Ted Nolan talked about hearing the fans loud and clear and said that it’s something that will be brought up during meetings.  The decisions are all made by the Florida Panthers but in meetings everything is brought up and thoughts [...]Read More

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Confidence is Key for the Amerks, They May Have it Back

April 13, 2010 - By Keith Wozniak

The Rochester Americans team that played in October and November was a much different team than the one that played down the stretch.  The team that played early in the season had a sort of swagger to them, some excitement and even appeared to be having fun.  The team did not lose their fourth game of the season until November 28th, the 20th game of the season.  At some point after that game the swagger slowly faded away.

After talking to a number of different players over the past week and watching practice on Tuesday morning I get the feeling that the swagger and confidence that has been talked about and also disappeared is back.  It’s pretty simple, you’re happy when you’re winning and you’re miserable when you’re losing.

I’ve watched a lot of practices in the mornings and the team that practiced on Tuesday morning looked to be a different team than the one I watched a few weeks ago.  The execution of drills, the passes, the shots and even the saves by Alexander Salak and Tyler Plante looked better.

It may have also helped that the coaches were more interactive and also giving a lot more specific directions.

Speaking [...]Read More

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Nolan Says Panthers are Aware of Amerks Slump

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February 22, 2010 - By Keith Wozniak

There is no denying the Rochester Americans have been in a long slump and have barely been holding on to second place in the North Division for some time now.  Fans have read about and witnessed the poor play for themselves, heard excuses comments from the coaches and players, but have questioned whether or not anyone is going to do anything about it.

We know that Curt Styres, Lewis Staats, Ted Nolan, Jody Gage and everyone else in the office cares about the success of this franchise but what can they really do on their own?  Not all that much, which brings up the question was recently raised by Kevin Oklobzija, If the parent team doesn’t care, why should the players?

I asked Ted Nolan on Sunday afternoon if they have talked to the Florida Panthers about what has been going on (the slump and possible reasons for it) in Rochester and he gave a quick answer of yes.  He said they’ve been on the phone and talked a lot of what’s been going on.  He didn’t provide any other details about whether or not any changes or help will be provided, but [...]Read More

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Gameday: Amerks Host Monsters; Playoff Panic Button?

February 13, 2010 - By Keith Wozniak

After another disappointing loss on a Friday night the Amerks are back in action tonight at home versus the Lake Erie Monsters.  I’m not sure there’s any way to hype the Amerks in this game.  The Monsters have won five of six games between the two teams.  The only Amerks win was the second game of the season.  The Monsters have also outscored the Amerks 22-13.

Based on the comments after Fridays game the only thing I can think to say is that the team needs to work hard like they say and they’ll start winning again.  Hopefully they are on to something.

The stats do not paint a pretty picture for the game but I’ll be walking through the doors of Blue Cross Arena excited and hoping for the best like I always do.  The puck drops at 7:35pm, not the usual 7:05 start time.

With only 27 games remaining in the season and letters going out to season ticket holders about renewing and playoff tickets, is it time to hover our hands over the panic button?

Take a look at these stats that Kevin posted on Hockey O-Zone:

The Amerks have a 17-1 [...]Read More

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Gameday: Big Crowd and Big Game Expected for Amerks vs Penguins Tonight

November 27, 2009 - By Keith Wozniak

The Rochester Americans game tonight could be something special if everything goes as planned.  The team has had a major focus on ticket sales for the game tonight against the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins and it could be the biggest in recent memory.

About a year ago at this time I had wrote that it was, “up to ownership and management to improve the product on the ice,” and I think it’s safe to say they answered the call and have done everything needed.  Curt Styres opened his wallet, put an awesome team on the ice, now it’s time to the fans to continue proving the theory that winning improves attendance.  If everything goes as planned it’s going to be a packed house.

If you don’t have tickets or know anyone who does not make sure they call the Amerks office at (585) 454-5335.  Some fans who stood in line last Friday for tickets did not get to their seats until the first period was almost over.

It has to be easier to sell tickets when the team is one of the best in the American Hockey League and has been since the start of the season.  [...]Read More

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Amerks Release Bonneau; Limited Roster Spots

October 8, 2009 - By Keith Wozniak

The Amerks announced on Wednesday that they released forward Jimmy Bonneau from his PTO contract after only one regular season game.  It’s probably safe to assume that management was unhappy with his performance during the home opener against the Lake Erie Monsters.

There were a number of players who did not perform well during that game but Bonneau must not have been the “enforcer” the team was looking for.

The surprising part about Bonneau being released is that the team had started training camp with three experienced enforcers and now they’re down to none.

I could be the jinx in this situation.  I wrote an article about Mike Sgroi, he was released.  Last week I was about to post one about Trevor Gillies and then he signed with Bridgeport.  This week I was going to post something about Bonneau and now he’s gone.

Ted Nolan had talked over the summer about creating a “safe working environment,” but as of right now it seems far from it.  I put in a call to Ted Nolan to get more information about why and what they’re looking for but as of writing this have not received a call back.  [...]Read More

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Amerks Season has High Expectations

October 3, 2009 - By Keith Wozniak

The Rochester Americans open their 54th season in the American Hockey League tonight against the Lake Erie Monsters at Blue Cross Arena.  The past is the past.  It’s a clean slate.  It’s a new season.  It’s time for the actions of the dream team to finally pay off.

What is the dream team you ask?  It’s Curt Styres, Ted Nolan, Jody Gage, and Kerry Atkinson.  Four individuals that have proven with actions over the summer that they want to win and bring back some pride to the City of Rochester.

Ted Nolan has talked all summer about how he loves to win.  Kerry Atkinson has talked about the Amerks being the best organization in any league that provides the best entertainment for fans.  Jody Gage has been busy making sure the roster is one that believes in Amerks pride and tradition.  Curt Styres opened his wallet and invested a lot of cash to make everything happen.

“We’ve lost our identity as a city, it’s not just the Rochester Americans that lost their identity,” Jody Gage said at a media luncheon this summer.  “How do we get the Amerks back to the headlines?”  That’s a question that [...]Read More

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Amerks Coach Benoit Groulx Answers a Few Questions

September 25, 2009 - By Keith Wozniak

Benoit Groulx was off the ice at the first day of training camp to observe the players taking part in the first scrimmage.  He was there to observe and see what players had to offer.  He was observing with Jack Birch, Jody Gage, and Ted Nolan.  How’s that for a jury deciding your future?  Players have a very short period of time to show what they can offer to a team with a limited number of available roster spots.

Here’s a few questions I asked Benoit after practice on Thursday morning.

Scrimmage instead of a typical practice?

– We already have a good idea of what our lines are going to be.  This weekend it’s important for many of them to show us what they can bring to this team.  Training camp is about knowing them (the players) better, many guys here we didn’t know before this morning.  The first two games, especially Saturday, it’s going to be an important game for guys to prove themselves.  It’ll be the team we don’t know too much of.

What’s different about this year?  What was learned from last year?

– It’s not about what we have learned from last year, it’s about [...]Read More

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