An eye on the Amerks with Don Stevens

Published by hockeybuzz.com, 11-7-2019

A dozen games into their 2019-20 season, the Rochester Americans are doing well. They're tied for third in the division right now with a 7-3-1-1 record with those 16 points placing them tied for fourth in the conference. Rochester is also fifth in the AHL with a .667 points percentage. 

But it hasn't been easy road to get there.

The Amerks started out the season with their head coach up in Buffalo serving as a Sabres assistant. Chris Taylor got the call to Buffalo after Sabres assistant coach Don Granato was hospitalized with a severe case of pneumonia, which his brother Tony described as a "scary" situation. Don Granato was hospitalized for an extended length and Taylor was picked to take his spot behind the bench while his assistant, long-time hockey-man Gord Dineen, became the interim bench boss in Rochester.

According to long-time Amerks broadcaster Don Stevens, whom I chatted with yesterday, things look as if they'll be returning to normal as Granato's "getting better" and they expect him back soon. 

An early look at the 2018-19 Rochester Americans with Don Stevens--Pt. 2

Published by hockeybuzz.com, 8-1-2018


This is the second part of an early look at the Rochester Americans with longtime Amerks broadcaster Don Stevens. (The first part can be found here.)



Over the last year, the Rochester Americans have added a lot quality players to their roster and have a lot of depth, something that hasn't been seen in years. Thanks to the work of Sabres GM Jason Botterill, his assistant GM Randy Sexton and some help from maturing draft picks and some savvy free agent signings, the Amerks said goodbye to three years in the bottom-five of the league with a playoff appearance.

Long time Amerks broadcaster Don Stevens talked about the depth Botterill and Sexton added to the club for the 2017-18 season. "The difference in depth between last year and the year before was tremendous," said Stevens, "and I think it's going to be even that much better this year.

"The depth is growing by leaps and bounds."

No more so than on defense. The Amerks have an extremely strong defense which is so deep that they could possibly make up "two strong AHL defense-corps," according Stevens. However he qualified that by sayin that the strong d-corps might be needed to help out the goaltending.

"Probably goaltending is the biggest suspect area right now," said Stevens who will be headed into his 33rd season as "The Voice of the Rochester Americans." And he didn't limit it to the Amerks either. "The [Sabres] organization had always been near the top, as far as goaltending is concerned where now they're not quite up to where they once were."

Since Ryan Miller was traded away in 2014 there have been a parade of goalies shuffling through Buffalo which includes rookies and journeymen and a season where they set an NHL record when dressing nine goaltenders. Former GM Tim Murray thought he had the answer in net when he traded for Robin Lehner but Botterill let him walk and they're going with a duo of 32 yr. old late-bloomer Carter Hutton (138 NHL games) and rookie Linus Ullmark who was drafted by Buffalo in the sixth round (163rd-overall) of the 2012 NHL Draft.

Ullmark was the team MVP the last two years and carried a heavy weight as he was bombarded with shots in both of his full seasons in Rochester. In 2016-17 Ullmark faced the most shots in the AHL (1678) and last season he was third with 1347 shots-against while finishing those two seasons with a combined 47-39-12 record with a .915 save percentage.

However, Botterill said at the Sabres' year-end presser that the 24 yr. old two-time AHL All-Star would be with the big club this coming season leaving a big void in net for an Amerks team that finished 18th in the league last year with 221 goals against.

Sexton and the Amerks were able to re-sign backup goaltender Adam Wilcox whom Stevens said was "outstanding" both on and off the ice for the Amerks. The 26 yr. old Wilcox will be entering his fourth full AHL season and will be sharing the net, perhaps as a backup again, with Scott Wedgewood, who was signed to a one-year, two way deal on July 1.

Wedgwood was drafted by the New Jersey Devils in 2010 (third round, 84th-overall) but has been well travelled since turning pro in 2012-13. The 25 yr. old Brampton, Ontario native played in Albany for the Devils, was traded to Arizona last October and played for the 'Yotes before being moved to the Los Angeles Kings in February. He finished out the 2017-18 campaign with their AHL affiliate, the Ontario Reign.

In all Wedgewood has played in 24 NHL games sporting a 7-10-5 record with a 3.05 GAA and .903 Sv% highlighted by a shutout streak of 159:34 in 2015-16 as a rookie. His AHL record is 53-37-10 (eight shutouts) with a 2.38 GAA and .908 Sv%.

Jonas Johansson (2014, 61st) has been less than spectacular and could end up being the starter in Cincinnati with the Cyclones of the ECHL.

Rochester used scoring by committee last season as they finished tied for ninth in the league with 234 goals. Defenseman Zach Redmond lead the team in points with 47 which was 53rd in the league while their top goal-scorer was Sahir Gill whose 18 tallies tied him for 71st in the league.

The team lost a big contributor in Colin Blackwell whose 17 goals and 45 points placed him second on the team in each category. Blackwell was signed away by the Nashville Predators and Stevens called it a "big loss" for the Amerks. The 25 yr. old Blackwell just completed his second full pro season and had a breakout campaign but maybe more importantly, "every time you needed something on the ice," said Stevens, "he was there."

However, the good news is that despite some losses, the Amerks do have some players moving up through the system. Coming over from Sweden in the forward ranks are rookies Victor Olofsson (2014, 181st) and Rasmus Asplund (2016,33rd.) Olofsson just completed a breakout season for Frolunda of the Swedish Hockey League scoring 26 goals while on his way to the Hakan Loob Trophy as the league's top scorer. The 23 yr. old winger has a wicked shot which he uncorked on the powerplay with regularity (league-leading 14 PP goals) which should make the AHL's fourth-best powerplay last season (21%) even better.

Asplund is that 200', all-around player that should help fill some of the void left when Blackwell signed with the Predators. The two-way center reads the game well, and has a high hockey IQ who has the speed to get up ice while adding offense to his game (28 points in 50 games last year.) Despite being somewhat small at 5'11" 176 lbs, Asplund is not afraid to go to the dirty areas of the ice and is solid on the dot.

Those two, along with fellow rookie Cliff Pu, (2016, 69th) will be joining a group of forwards lead by 32 yr. old captain Kevin Porter who finished fourth on the team in scoring last season with 42 points and was tied for second in goals with 17. Also amongst 17-goal club last season was rookie C.J. Smith.

Smith finished third on the Amerks with 44 points (17+27) and 10th in the league amongst rookies. The left-winger was signed out of UMass-Lowell in 2017 and displayed acute vision and abundant smarts to adapt to, and succeed at, the pro level last season. He's one of those players, said Stevens, "who seems to be in the right place at the right time."

The Amerks got swept out of the playoffs in their first post season appearance since 2014. Rochester went into the playoffs fairly strong but Stevens said that it was a case of "the whole team sort of leveling off" with a few players not stepping up when needed. "[They] were trying to step up I don't think [they] knew how to step up far enough," said Stevens of their playoffs struggles.

That leveling off included Ullmark, defenseman Brendan Guhle and winger Alexander Nylander.

Nylander's second pro season was defined by injuries as he missed the first month of the season with a lower body injury and had nagging injuries throughout most of the rest. After an incredibly slow start upon returning in November, Nylander went on a hot streak beginning in mid-February scoring 15 points (4+11) in 15 games. That, along with some pretty good play, eventually lead to a three-game callup to Buffalo in April.

Stevens called this upcoming season "huge" for Nylander and said he's got to come around. "When you think of Nylander he said, "the first thing I think about is that somehow he's got to stay healthy."

Nylander, along with four other players didn't skate at Sabres Development but he was there and looked physically bigger according to those at the rink. The former eighth-overall pick from 2016 has been very underwhelming in his first two pro seasaons for Rochester, but as Stevens pointed out, it's best to remember that he's only 20 yrs. old. "He's the same age at those coming out of Canadian Junior at that age.," Stevens reminded us.

Second year center Sean Malone also came on strong at seasons end and he could take control of a third-line center spot this season (or at least dominate in a fourth line role) with an outside shot at making the Sabres roster out of camp, should he have a good one. The West Seneca, NY native and 2013 sixth-round pick (159th) had a strong finish to the season in a bottom-six role for the Amerks and although he doesn't have the outright skill package he's got chutzpah and good size (6'0" 196 lbs) which he uses to impact on the game in that role. And, " he still has a lot of room to grow [in his game]," according to Stevens.

With training camp more than a month away it's still early in the process but when you look at the overall roster, save for goaltending, the Rochester Americans look to be well on their way to bigger an better things. The veteran core is solid and some of the young players from last year like Smith, Guhle and Malone looked poised to take the next step. Add in some young incoming talent like Olofsson, Asplund, and Pascal Aquin who had a strong development camp along with defensemen Lawrence Pilut and Brandon Hickey, and you have the makings of a team with an upgrade in overall talent and plenty of depth that should, hopefully, take them farther.

In talking with Stevens I got the impression that they overachieved somewhat last season but it got them into the playoffs for the first time in three years. Regardless of the fact that they got swept, those returning this season will have had that taste and should have a better understanding of what it takes to succeed both in the regular season and post season. "Maybe that's one of the things that happens when you haven't been to the playoffs for a while," said Stevens, "you don't know exactly what you need to do to step up."

With the added talent and depth and the experience they gained in the playoffs, that should change.

An early look at the 2018-19 Rochester Americans with Don Stevens

Published by hockeybuzz.com, July 30, 2018


This is the first of a two-part look at the 2018-19 Rochester Americans with broadcaster Don Stevens.



Don Stevens, 'The Voice of the Rochester Americans', will be entering his 33rd season broadcasting games for the club this Fall. In those 30+ years he's seen plenty of good, which includes calling seven Calder Cup Finals and two Calder Cup Championships, and not so good, such has been the last 13 years where the Amerks have not advanced past the first round of the playoffs and have completely missed the post season in seven of those years.

To say it's been rough and rocky travelling for the Amerks recently might be putting it mildly. They got sucked into the morass that was the bottom-dwelling Buffalo Sabres when the organization went with a full-on, scorched earth rebuild. During the 2014-15 season management traded away every ounce of talent on the team and as Buffalo called up Rochester's better players to fill the void, there wasn't much left for the Amerks to work with. In a three-year span beginning that season, trades by then Sabres GM Tim Murray took away some of the better prospects in an already thin system and when added to a decision to rebuild as such, it was a concoction that left the Amerks with a 96-120-13 record from 2014-2017 and a bottom-five AHL finish in three consecutive seasons.

When I talked to Stevens at season's end last year, he lamented the lack of depth in Rochester which was a result of those rebuilding years. "You could see what happened, when we'd lose a player or two players all of a sudden we'd go in the tank," he told me last May, and added that at one point, "nearly half the [Amerks] roster was first-year players or players on amateur tryout contracts." He said "one game they counted eight players on ATO's."

That changed last season. New Buffalo GM Jason Botterill took over in April, 2017 and he, along with his new AGM, Randy Sexton, cobbled together an Amerks club that included draft picks and free agents from previous regimes as well as free agent signings that filled the roster with quality players.

And nowhere is that depth more pronounced than on the blueline.

Buffalo will be icing a much deeper d-corps than they've had in recent memory. 2018 first-overall pick Rasmus Dahlin fits right into the top-four the Sabres top-four joining Rasmus Ristolainen, Marco Scandella and, probably, Zach Bogosian. Behind that group is Jake McCabe and one of Casey Nelson, Nathan Beaulieu or Matt Hunwick.

If no trades are made with players from that group, it means the Brendan Guhle (2015, 51st-overall) will more than likely at least start the season in Rochester. Guhle played big minutes for the Amerks last season and was impressive through most of it, including his short stints with the big club. However, the rookie "leveled off" in the playoffs, according to Stevens and he was quick to point out that the whole team did so as they got steamrolled by the Syracuse Crunch (TBL.)

With the situation the way it is, should Guhle need more time the Sabres have the option to send him to Rochester and let him develop properly without the feeling the need to rush him to the NHL. Then again, should he have a strong camp, he could push a player like Beaulieu or Hunwick down to Rochester fortifying the Amerks blueline.

With Guhle Rochester will be heading into the season with a very strong d-corps but even without him they'll have 2017 Rochester scoring leader Zach Redmond (66 games, 15 goals, 47 points) anchoring the defense along with a veteran group that includes Nathan Paetsch, Matt Tennyson, and Taylor Fedun, all of whom have combined to play in over 900 AHL games and over 450 NHL games. Andrew MacWilliam is another vet who brings over 300 games of AHL experience to the blueline.

Joining the vets this season will be Swedish free agent Lawrence "Larry" Pilut, whom the Sabres signed in May and Brandon Hickey, a Calgary Flames 2014 draft pick (64th) who just finished his college career in March, was acquired by Buffalo in June and signed with the club on July 1. In addition, rookie Will Borgen (2015, 92nd,) who got a taste of the pros in an eight-game stint with Rochester last season, will begin his first full pro season with the club.

Filling out the d-corps are a trio of defensemen who will be bouncing between Rochester an ECHL affiliate, the Cincinnati Cyclones--Arvin Atwal, Brycen Martin (2014, 74th,) and Devante Stephens (2015, 122nd.) Rochester also signed 21 yr. old Toby Paquette-Bisson from the Blainville-Boisbriand Armada of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey league.

Stevens was very optimistic about the d-corps saying, "defensively this could be an extremely strong group." However, he did throw in a qualifier when he said that they may need to help out the goaltending which will be transitioning away from two-time Amerks MVP, Linus Ullmark.

And that's where we'll pick up next.

Amerks in playoff action tonight with some insight from Don Stevens.

Published by hockeybuzz.com, 4-20-2018


Usually when I'm talking with Rochester Americans broadcaster Don Stevens at this time of the year, we're doing a recap on the season. Rochester hasn't made the playoffs since the 2013-14 when they dropped a five-game series to the Chicago Wolves (STL) with names like Phil Varone, Luke Adam, Chad Ruhwedel, Brayden McNabb, Joel Armia and Mike Zigomanis on the roster.

It's been all downhill for Rochester since that playoff loss as the parent-club Buffalo Sabres went through a scorched-earth rebuild that burned them as well. Since then they've finished in 28th place followed by consecutive 26th place finishes before they headed into this season with a new front office beginning this season.

"It's been a long dry spell," Stevens told me yesterday prior to joining the team on the bus ride to Syracuse where Rochester begins their five-game series with the Crunch (TBL) tonight. Stevens, "The Voice of the Rochester Americans" for over 30 yrs. called this season a "great turnaround" and a "fun year" as the new regime lead by Buffalo GM Jason Botterill and his assistant Randy Sexton iced a competitive team that "made the games exciting."

Amerks broadcaster Don Stevens talks of culture and confidence in Rochester

Published by hockeybuzz.com, 12-7-2017


If you noticed a difference in the way the Buffalo Sabres played on Tuesday night in Colorado, you weren't seeing things. Heading into the matchup the Sabres were in a serious 1-9-2 rut that included being shut out three times in a row (a franchise record for futility) and goal-less drought that lasted almost four full games in length.

Frustrated with the way his team was playing, GM Jason Botterill shook things up by waiving veteran forward Matt Moulson and his $5 million salary and trading for forward Scott Wilson, a player he was quite familiar from his time in Pittsburgh. In addition, center Evan Rodrigues got the call from Rochester to join Hudson Fasching who had been called up from the Amerks the prior game.

None of Wilson, Rodrigues or Fasching scored a point in the game, but they had an impact in how the team looked as a whole. Buffalo played a fast, north/south game up and down the lineup and were hard on the puck which eventually lead to a 4-2 victory. Two of the Sabres goals were scored at even strength, compared to zero for the Avalanche, one was scored short-handed and the last was into an empty net. It's the type of game that Botterill and coach Phil Housley had wanted to see their team play more often and it may have been their best 60-minute performance in a winning effort this season.

When Botterill took the job this past April, the Sabres organization was in need of a culture change. He had two problems, one in Buffalo and the other in Rochester. Both teams were flailing and on July 1, the first time GM went to work to stabilize Rochester. He signed five players ticketed for Rochester that day including Kevin Porter, who had spent the previous two seasons with him in the Pittsburgh Penguins organization.

When Botterill came to Buffalo, he brought in Randy Sexton as his assistant GM, and the general manager of Rochester, as well as Chris Taylor to be his head coach, both of whom came from the Penguins. Sexton followed Botterill's lead with Porter and signed more 'Baby Pens' to the Amerks in an effort to help stop a losing culture in Rochester using an influx of personnel that knew success and what it took to get there.

"[The Sabres] came in with Botterill and Randy Sexton and the rest of the group," long-time Amerks broadcaster Don Stevens told me, "and the number-one focus was to change the culture. As Sexton said," continued Stevens, "it's a lot easier to change the culture here (at the AHL-level) than it is up-top because of salaries and all the different things that go on up above. You can't do it as rapidly (in the NHL) as you can here.

"I think we've seen a pretty good change in culture here.

The results have been very good so far as the culture change is taking hold. The Amerks are 12-5-3-2 on the season and sit in second place in the North Division after finishing near the bottom of the league for the prior three seasons.

Porter, whom Botterill knew well from his time in Pittsburgh and whom he spoke very highly of, is the captain and leads the charge of 'Baby Pens'. Sexton, who was Pittsburgh's director of amateur scouting prior his role in the Sabres organization, continued by bringing in four more former Pens--centers Sahir Gill and Adam Krause, defensemen Stuart Percy and Barry Goers.

In addition, the Amerks brought in players like Kyle Criscuolo, Nathan Paetsch and Connor Allen, all of whom were on last year's Calder Cup Champion Grand Rapids Griffins (DET) team.

It's a good mix of players overall. And when you add in young players and rookies from the Sabres pipeline it creates something the team hasn't had in a while, depth, an aspect that's rather crucial to the success of an AHL team.

The Sabres went through a rash of injuries on the blueline earlier this season and have dressed 11 defensemen so far. Although injuries haven't hit the forward ranks as hard, the Sabres did call up a number of forwards from Rochester including Criscuolo for eight games and Justin Bailey for seven. Seth Griffith looked to be ticketed for Rochester out of camp but stayed in Buffalo and played in 18 games for the Sabres. It's the nature of the beast. "But the difference (for the Amerks,)" said Stevens, "is that there's enough depth here, which we haven't had in the past decade or so, to weather the storm.

The AHL is a tough business in that they're in it to win, but they also have a very important role in developing the youngins. The two aren't mutually exclusive and as we've seen, development without winning may not be development at all (Buffalo,) and that winning is the best form of development (Pittsburgh.)

Every time we've talked, Stevens has mentioned needing an environment that allows prospects and players to develop at their own pace and the need to keep them at the AHL-level until they're ready to make the jump. As our attention moved towards individual players, like 20 yr. old d-prospect Brendan Guhle, the word confidence, "which seems to be an overall theme for the team," according to Stevens, came to the fore.

Guhle is playing all-situations, top-pairing minutes as a rookie in his first full pro season. In 21 games he has 14 points (5+9) and is a plus-8. Those are just the numbers, but what Stevens has been seeing from the young player is "more confidence rushing the puck" and that he "is now one of those who is willing to take chances." However, Guhle's successes circle back to the depth in Rochester. "He's doing things he might have held back on," said Stevens, "and trying more things than he used to because he knows he's got somebody back there who's going to cover up for him."

Coach Taylor seems to have made a lot of good moves in his first stint as a head coach and he has the team in a good place. After Fasching got called up, he told the gathered media about the feel in Rochester. "Guys there are happy," he said. "We're excited to be there every day. There's a lot of energy at the rink. It's fun to be there, fun to play like that.

"We're almost playing more loose, more relaxed."

Earlier in the season it wasn't quite that way as the Amerks had lost three of their prior four games and were down 3-0 vs. the Laval Rocket (MTL) at Blue Cross Arena. They were being booed by the home crowd as they left the ice for the second intermission but came back to tie the score with three unanswered goals in the third and won the game in overtime.

Taylor told his team during the intermission to relax and just play their game. A reporter stated that with his team down 3-0, he had to have a lot of confidence in them. "For sure I have a lot of confidence," said Taylor. "I see them every day. I have confidence in everyone of those guys in the locker room and that's what it's all about. And they have to have the confidence in me. We're all in this together."

That was on October 27th, since then his team has gone 8-2-5 and have gotten points in 13 of their last 14 games (8-1-5.)

Rodrigues and Fasching both seem to have benefitted well from the change in culture, especially Fasching. The 6'3" 204 lb. winger was traded for by the former regime for his size and ability to work the front of the net. The issue with him, other than youthful inconsistencies, has been his skating. Fasching will never have blazing speed but the difference between last season and this year is that he's playing the game faster and it looks as if he's a faster player because of it. Although he still needs to produce at the NHL-level and will need to develop more consistency, which is typical of most young players, he looks like he took a big step forward.

Rodrigues had shown marked improvement last season and looked to be on the Sabres roster until an injury sidelined him in training camp. After being sent to Rochester to start his season and managing one assist through his first three games, Rodrigues used a four-point game and a three-point game to leave Rochester with 10 points (5+5) in eight games. "Again, it's that confidence-level," said Stevens.

Another player playing with a lot of confidence is goaltender Linus Ullmark.

Ullmark took the reigns of the starting goalie position last season and was the Amerks MVP. Back in October, Stevens said that the best thing for Ullmark was that the Sabres got back-up Chad Johnson in the off season which kept the 24 yr. old developing in Rochester.

That may change, however, as Buffalo's goalies are becoming a part of trade rumors. Should one of Robin Lehner or Johnson be moved and the Sabres receive no NHL goalie in return, Ullmark may end up in Buffalo. It's something Stevens doesn't want to see for Ullmark and the Amerks, but something that may happen.

When asked if he thought Ullmark was ready to make the jump, Stevens, who's always been an advocate of keeping young players in the AHL for as long as necessary, said, "yes," but qualified it by saying, "but I would like to have him [finish the year here] so that when he goes into next year, he's just brimming with confidence."

We need to keep in mind that despite the Sabres playing one of their best games of the season on the road and winning on Tuesday, they're still a 7-17-4 team, something that may not be conducive to proper development if they continue down that road.

"[Ullmark's] built up to where he's at now and I would hate to see him go into a situation on a team that's really struggling the way they are, and he plays well but doesn't get the wins and starts to lose that confidence."

Which happens all the time, especially with team trying to rush players.

But Botterill seems to have Rochester on the right track which benefits the Amerks right now and will eventually make it's way up to Buffalo. There are a lot of players who've played under Botterill and they're beginning to make their way onto the Sabres. Players like Wilson, and to an extent Rodrigues and Fasching, know what he and his staff are trying to do and know their roles are in this process.

Rochester is having success right now but by no means are they an AHL juggernaut at this time, as inconstancies still rule. It's something they "really need to develop," according to Stevens, but the foundation seems to be there which is a major step in the right direction.

The Amerks start anew with new faces abound and Don Stevens still at the mike

Published by hockeybuzz.com, 10-6-2017


The last time the Rochester Americans were significant in the AHL was in 2004-05 when the NHL was in a full-season lockout mode and a group dubbed "The Rochester Guys" were roaming the ice. A few years down the road Buffalo's Thomas Vanek, Derek Roy, Jason Pominville and Paul Gaustad along with goalie Ryan Miller would play lead roles for the Sabres, but for that one season together in Rochester they were all plying their trade as a group and learning a relatively new system that would serve them and the Sabres well up in Buffalo.

There was an excitement about that team as the NHL lockout allowed for some very talented players to not only all grow together at the AHL-level for a season but to also achieve a level of success as well. The Amerks were a premier AHL franchise at the time having been to the playoffs 16 consecutive years, winning the Calder Cup in 1995-96.

Also in that '04-05 group was veteran player Jason Botterill, the Sabres present general manager who was in the final season of an eight-year pro playing career.

When Botterill said goodbye to his playing days and hello to a front office position in Pittsburgh, he hooked up with a Penguins organization that had two very successful teams at both the NHL and AHL levels. And when he was hired by the Buffalo Sabres to be their general manager, he brought the same philosophy with him. “My goal is to strengthen the relationship between Rochester and Buffalo," he said at his introductory presser. "To develop an organization that is going to be successful year in and year out, you have to have that development system in place."

That was music to Rochester's ears as the franchise had been struggling ever since that '04-05 season. Their downward spiral began with the announcement that there would be a dual affiliation with the Florida Panthers beginning in '05-06. That would last for two seasons before the Sabres left Rochester and headed to Portland, Maine. When owner Terry Pegula bought the Sabres in 2011, he made it a priority to bring back the Americans which he did, beginning with the 2011-12 season. Change had been the order of the day since Pegula took over and when all was said and done, the Amerks had made the playoffs five times in those 12 seasons never making it out of the first round.

Don Stevens has been "The Voice of the Rochester Americans" for 31 seasons and he's been through good times and bad. He was very happy to hear Botterill talk about building a strong Amerks hockey club and is quite happy with how Botterill constructed the roster this season. "The veteran players he's brought in and the moves he's made are just outstanding," he told me via phone. "All the right things were said (by Botterill at the time) and so far they're proving to [be true].

Stevens also cautioned, "At this point everything looks good. It's always the case that the first week of the season, you're the best team in the league."

Botterill brought in some vets with championship pedigree to help guide the Amerks this season. Former Amerks captain Kevin Porter returns to the Amerks after spending three years away. He was with the Grand Rapids Griffins (DET) in 2014-15 and spent the last two seasons in the Pittsburgh organization with the Wilkes Barre-Scranton Penguins. Botterill is very familiar with Porter and signed him on July 1, the start of free agency.

Although he spent a majority of his time at the AHL-level while in the Penguins organization, Porter played well when called up by Pittsburgh and he also helped in the development of players. Jake Guentzel was one such player. He had a terrific 2017 post season while helping lead the Penguins to their second consecutive Stanley Cup.

"[Porter's] a player I'm very familiar with," said Botterill while recapping his July 1 signings. "[He] was a strong leader for Wilkes-Barre over the past couple of years, but also was a player, especially two years ago, that (Penguins head coach) Mike Sullivan really trusted at the National Hockey League level."

Also in the fold for Rochester is well-travelled veteran defenseman Nathan Paetsch who was also with the Amerks in '04-05. The 34 yr. old's last stop was in Grand Rapids as he helped the Griffins to the 2016-17 Calder Cup. On September 12, Rochester GM (and Buffalo AGM,) Randy Sexton brought Paetsch on board for more veteran leadership and to help develop a winning mentality. “We’re excited to welcome Nathan back to the organization as he brings a wealth of playing experience at the American Hockey League level,” said Sexton of the signing. “We’re very confident he will play a leading role in creating a successful, winning culture for our young prospects here in Rochester.”

Sexton himself was poached by Botterill from the Penguins organization and is also familiar with the Rochester Americans as he was with the Florida parent club from 2007-10 while the Amerks were the Panthers AHL affiliate. He moved to Pittsburgh in 2010 where he became the assistant director of amateur scouting for the team. "[Sexton] was the only good thing there was of that whole schlimazel with the Florida Panthers," Stevens said of the Panthers affiliation which stretched from 2005-11. "He was excellent, is a good man with great credentials and is very highly thought of."

It doesn't hurt that Sexton also has the same drive to make Rochester a winner that Botterill does. Back in July at Sabres Development Camp Sexton told the gathered media, “We are not going to rest until we restore the Americans to what I think is their rightful place among the elite teams in the American Hockey League. It will come one day at a time, it will come one person at a time. But we will be relentless in our pursuit of that success.”

The Amerks didn't stop at tapping into recent championship success as they signed another player from the '17 Calder Cup champion Griffins. Forward Kyle Criscuolo is 5'8" 165 lbs. and Botterill described him as one who"plays with a lot of pace, with a high compete [level] and can play the type of pace that Phil (Housley) wants to play."
That pace Botterill and Housley want to see has been seen in Rochester during their preseason thus far, according to Stevens. "The speed of the practices is vastly ahead of where it was last year," he said. "The pace is very good and (head coach Chris) Taylor's really got them moving." Perhaps the pace is a bit easier to pus as the Amerks, according to Stevens, are a little smaller this year and he points to a line featuring the aforementioned 5'8" Criscuolo with Steve Moses (5'9" 175 lbs.) and the biggest guy on that line, C.J. Smith who chimes in at 5'11" 185 lbs.

Rochester did add some heft on the blueline, however, as they tapped into the champion Griffins once again to land 6'1" 210 lb. Conor Allen and also added 6'2" 225 lb. defenseman Andrew MacWilliam who was with the Albany Devils (NJD) last season. Both are steady, solid rearguards who will balance the smaller, skilled puck-movers the Amerks will start with on defense.

Defenseman Taylor Fedun was waived by Buffalo and luckily for Rochester, cleared waivers. Fedun signed with Buffalo last season and re-upped with a two-year, one-way deal. Last season he and Justin Falk started out as the Amerks top-pairing but injuries soon had Falk up with the Sabres. Not long after Fedun got his call and made the most of it. He recorded four assists in his first three games with Buffalo and ended up playing 39 games for the club scoring two goals and totaling 16 points.

Stevens calls Fedun's return to the Amerks "huge" for the club, "especially offensively. He just brings a tremendous amount of skill [to the blueline]." Fedun played 29 games for the Amerks last season scoring five goals, adding 18 assists and was a plus-1. "If he does as well this year as he did last year," said Stevens, "he probably won't be here that long."

Defenseman Casey Nelson had an "impressive" preseason according to Stevens, especially in the first game where he tallied eight shots. His aggressiveness with the puck might be attributed to the new style of play that falls right into his wheel house as smart, puck-moving offensive-minded defenseman. "It's certainly one thing that the organization is trying to do as a whole [which is] trying to get the defense more involved in the offense," said Stevens, "and I think [Nelson] took that to heart."

The big name on defense for Sabres fans is that of Brendan Guhle. The 20 yr. old had two short, six-game stints with the Amerks after his junior seasons ended and he never looked out of place scoring a total of six points (2+4) in those 12 games. Guhle is athletic and very strong on his skates with seemingly effortless long strides to traverse the 200' rink.

Having him spend a full season in Rochester as a first-year pro is not a bad idea. It's the type of development Stevens has been pitching for the last three years I've been talking with him. "There's been a lot of talk that [Guhle] might make it to Buffalo this year," said Stevens, who's entering his 32nd season in the Amerks broadcast booth. "The thing is, for the organization, that process has to slow down. I think these guys need to develop more, have to see more time here (at the AHL-level) in order to get more confident so that when they make that next step they're really ready for it."

In keeping with that theme, Stevens calls the signing of Sabres back-up goalie Chad Johnson "one of the best off season moves for the organization." With the Johnson-signing the Linus Ullmark gets another season in Rochester playing top minutes and the opportunity to build on last year's Team MVP award.

That move, along with the signing of Adam Wilcox who finished the season with the Springfield Thunderbirds (FLA) with a 7-4-0 record, a 2.02 GAA and .932 Sv%, allows the entire goalie depth chart to fall in place. All No. 1's will get top minutes in their respective leagues. Robin Lehner with the Sabres, the 24 yr. old Ullmark in Rochester and 22 yr. old Jonas Johansson in Cincinnati with the Cyclones, Buffalo's new ECHL affiliate.

The Sabres have a group of prospects in Rochester, mostly in the forward group, who will also be spending valuable development time with the Amerks while getting up to speed with the new system. Justin Bailey and Nick Baptiste were thought to have the best shots of making the Sabres out of camp, but they're back with Rochester looking to continue to develop. Both showed great year-over-year improvement with the Amerks and the thought process is that proper guidance from vets like Porter, plus some time in the system at the lower level will eventually lead to success in the AHL and confidence to make an impact at the NHL-level.

We can place Hudson Fasching in that grouping as well. Fasching did make the Sabres out of camp last season but was injured early on. He was sent back to Rochester and it took a long time for him to get back to form. According to Stevens, the 6'2" 207 lb. Fasching had a great preseason.

Another player who'll need to come back from injury is Alexander Nylander. The winger was injured at Development Camp and suffered a setback at Sabres training camp. Nylander added some heft to his frame and many thought that he'd have a good shot at landing a left wing spot on the Sabres, but another year of development, especially coming off of an injury, looks to be in the cards for him.

When all's said and done, however, it will be up to head coach Chris Taylor to bring Housley's philosophy to Rochester while also taking on the binary task of icing a winning team and developing the players.

Taylor was also on that 2004-05 Amerks squad along with Botterill, Paetsch and "The Rochester Guys." He spent nine seasons in Rochester, was a captain for the Amerks, a three-time team MVP and is in the Amerks Hall of Fame. He spent five seasons as an assistant in Rochester, the last season with Wilkes Barre as an assistant and now takes over behind the bench for his first-ever coaching job in his hometown.

Botterill and Taylor go way back with the GM saying this about his new coach the day after Taylor was hired, "He was a player who was a high-end offensive player at the American Hockey League level that found a way to contribute in the National Hockey League and play National Hockey League games as a defensive player.

“Goes to show you the hockey sense he has and sort of the hockey mind.”

He also noted that he thinks Taylor is a good fit for what they're trying to do. “I felt there was a good fit there with Chris,” continued Botterill. “I think it’s going to be a scenario where he comes in, he’s extremely well organized. He’s very familiar with Rochester and will have that presence to be able to interact with the players."

"Very few players come into professional hockey and get to the NHL and play the same role that they played in junior or college," said Sexton of the Taylor hire. "Chris was living proof of that. He was a prolific scorer in junior, he was a great offensive player in the American League, but in order to get NHL games he had to play good defense. I think that in itself is a great signal to our players. Young players who recognize that quickly in their careers ascend to the NHL much quicker than the ones who fight it or don't."

"The players like him and the players have always respected him," said Stevens, "which is huge." Yet he also cautioned that the juries still out as Taylor's still a first-time head coach.

Tonight the Rochester Americans begin their 62nd AHL season against the Syracuse Crunch at Blue Cross Arena. In moving forward the team tapped into the past with Botterill, Taylor and Paetsch, they dipped into the winning culture of the Pittsburgh Penguins organization (which includes Botterill and Sexton) and also snagged a few players from the Grand Rapids Calder Cup team. It's been a rough 12 seasons for the Amerks and their glory years look to be even farther away but the mindset is there and there's a strong commitment to resuscitate the franchise with the best people they can find. If successful it will represent a major step towards bringing the entire organization closer to playoff streaks and successes instead of playoff droughts and first round failures.



Of note:  Porter will wear the 'C' for the Amerks while Paetsch and Fedun will wear the 'A'.

Broadcaster Don Stevens talks of Amerks, Sabres management, and prospects

Published by hockeybuzz.com, 5-5-2017



The Rochester Americans still felt the effects of the 2013-15 Buffalo Sabres talent purge as much of the talent and depth they expected to have last October was soon whisked away to Buffalo when Sabres' players succumbed to injury.

Such is the existence of an AHL team, when something happens to the big club, they reach down to the affiliate to fill their needs.

It was a rough year for the Sabres and one of the nails in the coffin of their 2016-17 season was lack of depth and/or a failure by management to bolster the roster with an outside transaction while stricken with a rash of injuries. Buffalo was rocked by injuries to key players up-front while at the same time injuries to the defense-corps were either depleting the lineup or inhibiting defensemen from doing their job properly. There was a point in time back in November when the Sabres started six players either scheduled to start the season in Rochester or had been recent call-ups from the Amerks, for three consecutive games bookended by another handful of games where five of those players started for the Sabres.

"Rochester West," was how long-time Amerks broadcaster Don Stevens described it. The Voice of the Rochester Americans chatted with me a couple weeks ago acknowledging that the job of the AHL club was as an NHL feeder and developer of talent but lamented the lack of depth in Rochester.

Stevens and I were in the midst of an interview on April 20 the day it was announced that the Sabres had just fired their GM and head coach. Looking from an Amerks perspective, Stevens saw it a s positive move in the right direction for the franchise. "They weren't building properly from this stage (the AHL) up," he told me, "or even below this stage (in the ECHL with the Elmira Jackals.) We need to have depth in the organization below this stage.

"You could see what happened when we'd lose a player or two players all of a sudden we'd go in the tank."

Such was the handiwork of former GM Tim Murray and what both I and Stevens couldn't understand is why the Sabres didn't bring in any outside help when they really needed it. The Sabres were running with around 45 of the allowable 50 pro contracts all season long and it was a head scratcher as to why those slots weren't used bolster depth. Stevens said at one point "nearly half the roster was first-year players or players on amateur tryout contracts." He said "one game they counted eight players on ATO's" and it's something that stuck in his craw.

Without delving into specifics Stevens said "there are certain reasons why [the firings] was a good move for the organization" and that the contract thing, along with the lack of depth, were parts of it.

All's not gloom and doom in the Saberland, however. There was continuity from Buffalo to Rochester on the ice as the players called up from Rochester fit seamlessly into the Sabres style of play. Many looked as if they belonged even if they couldn't maintain that higher level of play and contribute, beyond a handful of games. However, they did show why they were drafted and that they could at least hold their own at the NHL-level.

Here's some of those players who look to be the future of the Sabres and what Stevens had to say about them:


G, Linus Ullmark--The second-year pro was thrown into the fire early in the 2015-16 season when Sabres' starting goalie Robin Lehner went down in the first game of the season. This past season he was the undisputed No. 1 goalie for Rochester. His stat-line isn't great, but neither was the team in front of him as he faced a league-high 1,678 shots against. "He was just fantastic," said Stevens of Ullmark. "He kept us in 75-80% of the games while being drastically outshout all season long. He was just outstanding. He was hung out to dry many nights and he'd just keep us in the games."

Ullmark, said Stevens, "had a tremendous attitude this year. Win or lose he was cheerful, very supportive, friendly and worked well with the guys. They loved him and voted him the team MVP."

RW, Alex Nylander--At 18 yrs. old, Nylander was the youngest player in the AHL who Stevens said needs to grow physically. "He's not terribly short and he's not small," said Stevens, "but physically he's got to get stronger and bigger. I think he lacks confidence and part of it is because he's still somewhat of a boy playing against men."

When Nylander came up for a short end-of-season stint with Buffalo I told Stevens he looked like a waif compared to those he was playing against but that eventually he started to figure out how to maneuver himself around the NHL'ers without getting killed. "That's what I'm talking about," replied Stevens, "confidence. He's so worried about not getting killed, sometimes he's not doing the things he needs to do and stays away from the physical contact." Stevens said Nylander has the skills saying "he looks like he'll be a good one," but that bulking up is the first step on the way to more confidence which will bring out his skills.

D, Brady Austin--It was the second time Stevens used the word confidence when talking specifically about a player. When Austin came up to the Sabres late in the season it looked like a token call-up based upon the numbers he put up in Rochester. But he turned some heads while in Buffalo.

Austin skates extremely well for a stay-at-home d-man clocking in a 6'3" and 227 lbs. "He's not so flashy in that he makes himself standout," said Stevens, "he just plays the game solid, is there game-in, game-out. The thing is he has the ability to do the flash. You'll see him on occasion take a rush and you're sitting there with your mouth open and you can't believe he just did that. He has that ability but I don't think he has the confidence yet."

RW, Nick Baptiste and Justin Bailey--Baptiste, a second-year pro has the size (6'1", 206 lbs) and the speed to have an impact at the NHL-level and has developed well through 121 games at the AHL-level. Last season he made great strides scoring 25 goals in 59 games for the Amerks, which Stevens acknowledged but he also pointed out that both he and fellow RW Justin Bailey, who's also fast and skilled and has an NHL frame, are having certain problems in one area.

Both are very fast skaters but on occasion their skill can't keep up with their skating. "They overskate their game," said Stevens, "and they have a little bit of trouble with puck control and puck movement. They both were getting better at it, but they still need to work on that."

D, Casey Nelson--Sometimes you just can't mince words. Nelson was terrible for Buffalo in his first eight games with the club this season and it took him a while to regain his footing in Rochester. But he finished strong to the point where Stevens thought Nelson should have been acknowledged as the most improved player on the Amerks. "The last four or five weeks of the season he came on strong," said Stevens. "I think he needs another year here. He's not all that big and he's got to gain some strength, but he looks like he could be a good prospect."

LW, Evan Rodrigues--Rodrigues, like Nelson, is an undrafted college free agent signed by Buffalo. He struggled in his first pro season, made an impression in two games played for the Sabres and was back at it this past season in Rochester. Although the numbers weren't there early in the season, Rodrigues, according to Stevens, "played very well. He finished strong his first season and picked up right where he left off this year. He got the call to Buffalo and played even better.

"Overall," continued Stevens, "I think he had an outstanding year and certainly has made a case for him to win a full-time job [in Buffalo.]"

One thing about Stevens is that he's a firm believer in having players play in the AHL for their proper development. There are exceptions like the Jack Eichel's of the hockey world, but most of the others stand to benefit from playing at the lower levels where there's more room to make mistakes and the spotlight is much dimmer. Stevens said that about all the prospects including defenseman Brendan Guhle, who looks to be in a strong position to be a part of the defense-corps for the Sabres.

Stevens will have another group of Amerks players to watch next season as change is sure to come, at least from a player standpoint, but he is hoping that Amerks players like Cole Schneider, who's already voiced his readiness to come back, Tim Kennedy and Justin Vaive will return as cornerstones for next year's team. He also mentioned that he'd like to see head coach Dan Lambert return saying, "I'd love to see him back. I thought he and his coaches did an excellent job with what they put up with." But it's the AHL, and you're at the mercy of the parent club and things rarely work out the way you planned them.

Catching up with Don Stevens and the Rochester Americans

Reprinted with permission from hockeybuzz.com


After fits and starts to the season, the Rochester Americans finally got things rolling. Unfortunately for them the Christmas break came along. The Amerks head into the hiatus having won four of five games while outscoring their opponents by a combined 19-10 and their eight team points moved them up to 9th in the Eastern Conference.

"It's too bad that there is a break because the team has been playing very well the last two games," said long-time Amerks broadcaster, Don Stevens. "It's the kind of situation where you're winning and playing that well and you want to keep playing."

As with any team featuring a lot of new faces, plus a new coaching staff with a new system, there were plenty of struggles as the Amerks adjusted to the up-tempo pace favored in the organization. Head coach Randy Cunneyworth, who Stevens said always wanted a speed game, has them skating hard and fast while playing a 200' game. "They've learned to use their speed," said Stevens. "It seems like they're playing a whole lot faster now. Whereas before they were trying to get a little too fancy, now it's hard-nosed, go for the net and do the best you can to get there. It really starting to pay off."

Stevens pointed to the return of third year pro Tim Schaller as a spark.

Schaller was with the Sabres for a long stint before the team sent him to down to Rochester on December 3. After working out some kinks in his first two games, both of them Amerks losses, Schaller sat out the next game, a 4-3 SOL at home vs. the Utica Comets "due to an ailment that has yet to be diagnosed," as reported by the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle's Kevin Oklobzija at the time. Oklobzija wrote that Schaller "apparently has been bothered by the problem for an unspecified period of time" with Cunneyworth saying that he'd been "playing through it."

"Exactly what it is," said the coach, "that's unclear."

Schaller came back the next game and according to Stevens was really "starting to light things up." In the five games before the Christmas break he totaled five goals and one assist and was a plus-4. His last goal against Albany was a real doozy as he went in on the Devils goalie with a d-man draped all over him. Schaller managed to get a good shot off with one knee on the ice as he was being hauled down. It was the first of four 1st period goals for the Amerks as they cruised to a 4-1 victory heading into the break.

Another contributor to the success of the Amerks as of late is veteran Patrick Kaleta, who had been out since the first game of the preseason with Buffalo. He last skated in a meaningful game back in April with the parent club. He had an inauspicious season debut on November 27 in front of the home crowd at the Blue Cross Arena and told the media of his return to the ice, "Getting into a game was fun; other than that, horrible."

Kaleta has been eased back into the lineup playing in only six of 10 games, but according to Stevens, he's had a big impact. "His presence is known," said Stevens said of Kaleta. "He's hitting like a Mack truck out there and the opposition needs to keep their heads up when he's on the ice.

"The whole team feels like it's bigger, playing like they're a taller and heavier when he's on the ice."

One player that doesn't need to be too much taller and heavier is 6'3" 210 lb. powerforward, Justin Bailey. Stevens said that Bailey has probably come the furthest this year as he's starting to learn how to use his size and strength as well as his speed. "For a guy his size," said Stevens, "he's got outstanding speed. Now he's going hard to the net and he's getting in front and mixing it up. He's a big boy, that's the way he's got to play, and now he's figuring out how to play that way."

Kris Baker of sabresprospects.com told me the "figuring out" part of the equation involves the winger using the middle of the ice when it's given to him. "He has the power and the wheels," said Baker, "so he has to become more aggressive when given that space. That will come with more experience."

The team itself needs more experience with the new systems in place. They're beginning to really work the fast pace that Cunneyworth wants and it's starting to show up on the scoreboard and in the standings.

More on ironing out inconsistencies and some focus on the defense and goaltending tomorrow. Until then, Happy Christmas Eve.

Catching up with long-time Amerks broadcaster, Don Stevens

Reprinted with permission from hockeybuzz.com


When you bring three top-six players into the forward ranks for an organization like the Buffalo Sabres did from February to June this year, lost in the immediacy of the affect it will have on the big club is the benefits trickle right on down to the farm club.

 

Evander Kane (acquired via a trade with the Winnipeg Jets,) Jack Eichel (drafted 2^nd overall, 2015) and Ryan O’Reilly (acquired from the Colorado Avalanche the day of the 2015 NHL Draft) immediately added legitimacy to the top-six forward ranks for Buffalo. And with those three joining Tyler Ennis, Zemgus Girgensons and Matt Moulson in the top-six mix, the rest of the forwards dropped down into place to the point where solid bottom-six players were squeezed out and ended up in the AHL playing for the Rochester Americans. It’s something not lost on long-time Amerks broadcaster Don Stevens.

 

When asked by phone if there was a totally different feel for the Americans this year as opposed to last year, Stevens pointed out that the 2014-15 Amerks started out very well and that there was a good feeling about the team. He said if there's a at this stage of the season it's “not necessarily with the team, it’s with the organization,” and how they added depth.

 

“The depth is so much better than before,” said Stevens, “[Last year] you knew you were going to be losing some players [to call-ups and injuries] and that you would be having trouble replacing the talent-level of those players.

 

“This year [Buffalo’s] talent-level increased with so many more quality-type players to pick from here in Rochester now, and then Rochester has some players that could play [for the Amerks] that have been sent to Elmira (Buffalo’s ECHL affiliation.) There’s a lot more depth, a lot more positive aspect to the [situation] should there be injuries."

Don Stevens talks Rochester Americans, Pt.2

Reprinted with permission from hockeybuzz.com.

This is the second in a two part series on the present state of the Rochester Americans this off-season. Part 1, looked at the growth of Pegula Sports and Entertainment, which has become a huge organization.

"It feels like, at times, we're falling further down the totem pole," said long-time Rochester Americans broadcaster Don Stevens, "especially since the addition of the Buffalo Bills. A whole lot more concentration goes to them at this point, but of course they're coming up on their season very soon."

As mentioned in the previous piece, in the beginning there was a man, Terry Pegula, who wanted to buy a hockey team, the Buffalo Sabres, and in just over four years that beginning grew into a huge organization. Pegula Sports and Enterainment, the umbrella company, now has in the fold, the Sabres, Buffalo Bills, HARBORCENTER, the Buffalo Bandits lacrosse team, Black Rock Entertainment a music company based in Nashville and has a number of satellite business associated with them. The recently purchased Bills sits atop the organization as the behemoth while the Sabres and the USA Hockey-centric HARBORCENTER represent Terry Pegula's love for the sport and hist desire to make downtown Buffalo the center of USA hockey.

And then there's the Rochester Americans, the minnow in the big pond.

Don Stevens talks Rochester Americans, Pt. 1

Reprinted with permission from hockeybuzz.com



Don Stevens has been around the Rochester Americans for a long time and he's seen a multitude of changes not only with the Amerks, but for the league itself. He started doing broadcasting for the Amerks during the 1986-87 season when the American Hockey League had 13 teams. A couple of names you might know who skated in the AHL that season were Hall of Famer Brett Hull, who was with the Moncton Wild Cats and Anaheim head coach Bruce Boudreau, a center for the Nova Scotia Oilers that year.

During his first season the Amerks won the Calder Cup, their second of the decade, fifth of six since their inception. "Since [that first game]," reads No. 2 on his bio-list of most memorable moments, "there have been lots of memorable moments. One of the best was going to the championship in my first year and winning it at Sherbrooke, and coming home to the thousands of people at the airport at 4:00 in the morning.”

He also mentions in the bio that going to the Calder Cup Finals in seven of his first 14 years behind the mic "is just an incredible statistic."

Individual player development in Rochsester and were to go from here

Reprinted with permission from hockeybuzz.com


This is the second of a two-part series reviewing the Rochester Americans season

In deciding Rochester Americans head coach Chadd Cassidy's fate, the black and white of an AHL won/loss record isn't the only factor to be taken into consideration. Buffalo GM Tim Murray will be looking at how the young players developed in Rochester, from stars down to rookie free agents.

With a 27th place finish by the Amerks and the opportunity for Murray to have a fresh start in Rochester, the odds looked to be stacked against Cassidy at this point. Yet the Amerks bench boss, who was in his second full season as head coach, had his share success stories in player development. "If development is what matters most to Sabres general manager Tim Murray," wrote Amerks beat writer Kevin Oklobzija of the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle, "then Cassidy and his staff seemingly will be back. The kids got better. They grew, they didn't repeat mistakes and they were, in most cases, effective when called up to the NHL."

Forward Johan Larsson is a prime example.

Larsson finally broke through at the NHL-level last month after strong year over year development in Rochester. He took his pesky two-way game from top-six to top-line for the Amerks and was able to up his production as well. After fits and starts to his NHL career, and despite a tinge of self-pity after being sent down back in January, Larsson, with the help of the coaching staff, worked through some deficiencies (mostly mental) and he was finally able to take his game to, and succeed at, the NHL level

Flux, player movement and lack of sandpaper undermines Amerks season

Reprinted with permission from hockeybuzz.com


This is the first in a two-part series reviewing the Rochester Americans season.

While the majority in Sabreland was obsessing over the NHL lottery last Saturday night, hoping that the gold logo would come up Buffalo, the Rochester Americans were in the midst of a three-game-in-three-night season finale' that featured two road games in a row to end the season. When the ping-pong balls came up Edmonton, Rochester was in Binghamton in the second to last game of a long, trying season.

In contrast to the supreme focus of Buffalo hockey fans and media on the circus that was "McEichel" all season, those in Rochester, a mere 60 miles east, were of the casual, detached variety, even when it came to the climax that was the NHL lottery. "We were in the middle of a game," said long time Amerks broadcaster Don Stevens of the lottery draw. "I don't think there was a lot said about it."

Amerks in the balance. Don Stevens talks Rochester Americans

Reprinted with permission from hockeybuzz.com


The Rochester Americans are a few games into the second half of their season and are still trying to pull themselves out of a muddy first half. They were the highest scoring team in the league and were rolling along to begin the season but since that strong 6-2 start they've gone 11-21-1-0. The Amerks went from the top of the conference all the way to the bottom now sit second to last with 35 points, seven points out of a playoff spot.

"It was a huge surprise," said long time Amerks broadcaster, Don Stevens. "In looking at the roster at the start of the season and with the way they started, I thought it was going to be an outstanding year.

"But the wheels fell off."

Particularly troublesome was that they played a good chunk of their home games already and have managed only four wins on the road thus far, two of them coming last week. Before that three-game trip, the Amerks were on a 10-game road losing streak. But, ironically, the road may be where things began to turn around.

Catching up with Don Stevens and the Rochester Americans

Reprinted with permission from hockeybuzz.com


Plenty on the docket tonight for Sabres fans to watch as three contests are of relevance to the organization.

The Sabres are at home for their fifth back-to-back of the season as the Edmonton Oilers come to town. Edmonton is one point ahead of the Sabres in the league standings thus far and may be the most disappointing team in the league.

The Oilers are a team that had three consecutive first overall picks (2010-12) including claiming victory in the "Fail For Nail" campaign of 2012, yet it looks as if they're gunning for this year's prize prospect, Connor McDavid. If the Oilers continue to plummet to the bottom of the league (which wouldn't be tanking, would it?) they'll have a good shot at McDavid or the next two top-prospects, C, Jack Eichel and D, Noah Hanifin. Both are considered top-notch prospects who would be at or near the top of any draft year.

And for those interested in seeing them in action, the collegians face off against each other tonight as Eichel's Boston University Terriers face off against Hanifin and his Boston College Eagles in a battle of #5 vs. #3 in the college ranks. Game time is 8pm on NBCSN.

The Amerks Don Stevens chats about building a winning organization

Reprinted with permission from hockeybuzz.com


Don Stevens has been "The Voice of the Rochester Americans" for 28 years. He has seen the Amerks win eight division championships (none since 2005, though) three conference championships (1996, 1999, 2000) and two Calder Cups (1987, 1996) since his career began in 1986.

Yesterday the veteran broadcaster was kind enough to take a moment to chat about the future of the Buffalo Sabres and the Rochester Americans.