Reprinted with permission from hockeybuzz.com
The Rochester Americans are hosting the St. Johns Sea Dogs (MTL) tonight at First Niagara Center and two local players will be hitting the ice.
For the first time ever in a pro game situation, Justin Bailey, son of former Buffalo Bills linebacker Carlton Bailey will make his debut in downtown Buffalo for the Amerks. The former 2013 second-round pick (52nd-overall) has 10 points (3+7) in 30 games for Rochester this season, but the big (6'4", 206 lb.) powerforward has been making real solid progress in his first pro season.
While on Sabres Hockey Hotline this morning he told co-host Andrew Peters that he was tentative early on in his rookie season but in the last 10 games or so he said his game has "changed a lot" and that he's been able to play his game. "I think the way I've been playing," said Bailey on the Hotline, "is the way I want to play. For me, when I'm skating and using my speed that's when I'm playing my best hockey."
That was something that wasn't lost on long-time Amerks broadcaster, Don Stevens. "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."
Also skating on the First Niagara Ice tonight is old friend Patrick Kaleta.
Thursday, December 31, 2015
Wednesday, December 30, 2015
Buffalo not quite ready for primetime. Caps blank Sabres
Reprinted with permission from hockeybuzz.com
I found it rather interesting that Fox Sports Live tapped into the Washington Capitals/Buffalo Sabres game with a lead-in of Alexander Ovechkin vs. Jack Eichel. "The present and the future" is how they presented it.
I'm sure Pittsburgh's Sidney Crosby and Edmonton's Connor McDavid would have something to say about it. That is if Crosby and his Penguins were playing at the extremely high level the Capitals are right now and McDavid was off of the injured list and on the ice with Oilers teammates.
Washington rolled into First Niagara Center last night on a 14-1-1 streak with head coach Barry Trotz having his club dialed in. You remember Trotz, a fine coach who was tabbed as the Nashville Predators first head coach and proceeded to spend the next 15 seasons there. His teams in Nashville were noted for lock-down defense and mediocre offense which lead to seven playoff appearances but no advances past the second round.
After a mutual agreement to part ways in 2014, Trotz and his highly structured systems came to a Washington Capitals team that was floundering. Trotz was the third coach hired by the Caps since Bruce Boudreau was fired in November of 2011 and nobody knew how to get a team to play up to it's skill-level. Washington boasted the most prolific goal-scorer of the 2000's lockout-era and had loads of talented skaters, not to mention an up-and-coming stud in net in Braden Holtby, yet couldn't put it all together.
After one-and-a-half seasons under Trotz, they seemed to have gotten it together nicely.
I found it rather interesting that Fox Sports Live tapped into the Washington Capitals/Buffalo Sabres game with a lead-in of Alexander Ovechkin vs. Jack Eichel. "The present and the future" is how they presented it.
I'm sure Pittsburgh's Sidney Crosby and Edmonton's Connor McDavid would have something to say about it. That is if Crosby and his Penguins were playing at the extremely high level the Capitals are right now and McDavid was off of the injured list and on the ice with Oilers teammates.
Washington rolled into First Niagara Center last night on a 14-1-1 streak with head coach Barry Trotz having his club dialed in. You remember Trotz, a fine coach who was tabbed as the Nashville Predators first head coach and proceeded to spend the next 15 seasons there. His teams in Nashville were noted for lock-down defense and mediocre offense which lead to seven playoff appearances but no advances past the second round.
After a mutual agreement to part ways in 2014, Trotz and his highly structured systems came to a Washington Capitals team that was floundering. Trotz was the third coach hired by the Caps since Bruce Boudreau was fired in November of 2011 and nobody knew how to get a team to play up to it's skill-level. Washington boasted the most prolific goal-scorer of the 2000's lockout-era and had loads of talented skaters, not to mention an up-and-coming stud in net in Braden Holtby, yet couldn't put it all together.
After one-and-a-half seasons under Trotz, they seemed to have gotten it together nicely.
Tuesday, December 29, 2015
Evander Kane addresses allegations. Sabres prepare for Caps.
Reprinted with permission from hockeybuzz.com
In case you haven't heard, Buffalo Sabres forward Evander Kane is the subject of a sex offense investigation as reported by Lou Michel and Tim Graham of the Buffalo News.
Michel and Graham reported that three police sources said the Buffalo Sex Offense Squad were investigating an incident that occurred early Sunday morning at a downtown hotel near the First Niagara Center. From their article, a Buffalo police source said, “We have an investigation ongoing. We are not naming the suspect, and we do not expect it to be resolved in the very near future.”
Kane missed practice Sunday morning for "personal reasons," the club said, but he was front and center today to address the allegations in front of the gathered media.
Jon Vogl, who was there for the media scrum reported that Kane addressed the media briefly saying, "Obviously, you guys are all aware of the situation that occurred or that’s going on right now," the Sabres forward said in First Niagara Center. "There’s not a whole lot I can say. I just want to say I’ve done nothing wrong. I look forward to clearing my name.
"I respect the legal process and unfortunately at this time there’s not much more I can talk about it."
In case you haven't heard, Buffalo Sabres forward Evander Kane is the subject of a sex offense investigation as reported by Lou Michel and Tim Graham of the Buffalo News.
Michel and Graham reported that three police sources said the Buffalo Sex Offense Squad were investigating an incident that occurred early Sunday morning at a downtown hotel near the First Niagara Center. From their article, a Buffalo police source said, “We have an investigation ongoing. We are not naming the suspect, and we do not expect it to be resolved in the very near future.”
Kane missed practice Sunday morning for "personal reasons," the club said, but he was front and center today to address the allegations in front of the gathered media.
Jon Vogl, who was there for the media scrum reported that Kane addressed the media briefly saying, "Obviously, you guys are all aware of the situation that occurred or that’s going on right now," the Sabres forward said in First Niagara Center. "There’s not a whole lot I can say. I just want to say I’ve done nothing wrong. I look forward to clearing my name.
"I respect the legal process and unfortunately at this time there’s not much more I can talk about it."
Monday, December 28, 2015
Jack Eichel rocks Beantown in big team-win for Buffalo
Reprinted with permission from hockeybuzz.com
Might as well get this out of the way first--Jack Eichel was a beast last night.
There were plenty of contributors to Buffalo's 6-3 win over Boston, most notably Ryan O'Reilly, as the Buffalo Sabres stunned TD Garden with five unanswered goals in the third period. But for the 19 yr. old kid from North Chelmsford, MA this night belonged to him.
As mentioned in the previous blog, Eichel looked tired before the Christmas break and probably left more than a few casual observers wondering what all the fuss was about. You could see his speed and could tell that he had loads of talent, but there hadn't been any mind-blowing plays from him since earlier in the season. What was missing from Eichel as he wallowed away still adjusting to the rigors of a full NHL schedule were his breakaway moves. When he's on his game he goes from 0-60 in a few strides and when necessary he hits the nitrous tanks as he goes from overdrive to turbo. That's how he creates space for himself an his linemates.
What's often forgotten is his hockey sense and on-ice awareness. He processes the game at an elite level to the point where his linemates can't keep up with him either physically or mentally. It's something NESN play-by-play man/ultimate Boston homer Jack Edwards gushed about when he put Eichel loosely on the same level as Pele.
"Eichel's vision," began Edwards on the broadcast before qualifying the next part by acknowledging an exaggeration was coming, "sort of reminded me of when Pele came to North American soccer and his teammates would trip over the ball because they weren't expecting the pass. Eichel's vision and his ability to execute is at such an extraordinary level for such a young player."
Might as well get this out of the way first--Jack Eichel was a beast last night.
There were plenty of contributors to Buffalo's 6-3 win over Boston, most notably Ryan O'Reilly, as the Buffalo Sabres stunned TD Garden with five unanswered goals in the third period. But for the 19 yr. old kid from North Chelmsford, MA this night belonged to him.
As mentioned in the previous blog, Eichel looked tired before the Christmas break and probably left more than a few casual observers wondering what all the fuss was about. You could see his speed and could tell that he had loads of talent, but there hadn't been any mind-blowing plays from him since earlier in the season. What was missing from Eichel as he wallowed away still adjusting to the rigors of a full NHL schedule were his breakaway moves. When he's on his game he goes from 0-60 in a few strides and when necessary he hits the nitrous tanks as he goes from overdrive to turbo. That's how he creates space for himself an his linemates.
What's often forgotten is his hockey sense and on-ice awareness. He processes the game at an elite level to the point where his linemates can't keep up with him either physically or mentally. It's something NESN play-by-play man/ultimate Boston homer Jack Edwards gushed about when he put Eichel loosely on the same level as Pele.
"Eichel's vision," began Edwards on the broadcast before qualifying the next part by acknowledging an exaggeration was coming, "sort of reminded me of when Pele came to North American soccer and his teammates would trip over the ball because they weren't expecting the pass. Eichel's vision and his ability to execute is at such an extraordinary level for such a young player."
Sunday, December 27, 2015
Jack Eichel returns to Boston in Blue and Gold
Reprinted with permission from hockeybuzz.com
The last time Sabres rookie Jack Eichel took to the ice in Boston was April 11, 2015 when his Boston Terriers dropped a 4-3 decision to the Providence Friars in the NCAA National Men's Hockey Championship at TD Garden. Since then he's been on a whirlwind tour that included a trip to the Czech Republic for the 2015 IIHF World Championships where team USA surprisingly brought home the bronze medal in May plus a pre-NHL Draft media blitz before heading to Sunrise, Florida for the 2015 NHL Draft.
With Connor McDavid and Eichel joined at the hip, "McEichel"-mania stretched well into July leading up to Buffalo Sabres Development Camp. The week-long event brought all the youngins--from draft picks to invitees--to the ice for workouts and development and featured the annual Blue and Gold Scrimmage which was held in front of 17,115 fans at the First Niagara Center. Development Camp closed with a 3-on-3 tourney and things calmed down a bit as Eichel settled into off-season workouts.
You could see Eichel was a tired soul at the time of the scrimmage and many fans who'd not seen him play were wondering what all the fuss was. But after watching him during preseason and into the early part of the regular season, a refreshed Eichel displayed his skills.
The last time Sabres rookie Jack Eichel took to the ice in Boston was April 11, 2015 when his Boston Terriers dropped a 4-3 decision to the Providence Friars in the NCAA National Men's Hockey Championship at TD Garden. Since then he's been on a whirlwind tour that included a trip to the Czech Republic for the 2015 IIHF World Championships where team USA surprisingly brought home the bronze medal in May plus a pre-NHL Draft media blitz before heading to Sunrise, Florida for the 2015 NHL Draft.
With Connor McDavid and Eichel joined at the hip, "McEichel"-mania stretched well into July leading up to Buffalo Sabres Development Camp. The week-long event brought all the youngins--from draft picks to invitees--to the ice for workouts and development and featured the annual Blue and Gold Scrimmage which was held in front of 17,115 fans at the First Niagara Center. Development Camp closed with a 3-on-3 tourney and things calmed down a bit as Eichel settled into off-season workouts.
You could see Eichel was a tired soul at the time of the scrimmage and many fans who'd not seen him play were wondering what all the fuss was. But after watching him during preseason and into the early part of the regular season, a refreshed Eichel displayed his skills.
Saturday, December 26, 2015
Catching up with Don Stevens and the Rochester Americans Pt. 2
Reprinted with permission from hockeybuzz.com
With plenty of new players and new systems in place, it's not surprising the whole Rochester Americans team is trying to figure out things out. Nor is it surprising that they're somewhat streaky. In a piece penned by Kevin Oklobzija who covers the Amerks for the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle, he called the team the"ultimate in consistent inconsistency."
"The pattern of wins and losses on the Amerks schedule since Halloween," wrote Oklobzija, "is win three, lose four, win one, lose one, win three, lose three, win two, and now going into Friday's home game against the Hartford Wolf Pack it's lose one."
Rochester smoked the Wolf Pack that night 7-1 with seven different Amerks scoring goals. Four of the goals came from defensemen as Matt Donovan, Bobby Sanguinetti, Chad Ruhwedel, and Jerome Leduc scored consecutively to put the Amerks up 4-0. Justin Bailey, Jason Akeson and Jean Dupuy skated the team to a 7-0 lead with all but Dupuy scoring either their second or third goals of the season.
No Amerks player has really stood out in the goals-scoring department as scoring has been by committee to this point in the season. Veteran Phil Varone leads the team with nine goals and the next closest is Jason Akeson with six.
Akeson, who was signed by GM Tim Murray in the off season, is having a solid campaign. He's a former Philadelphia Flyers free agent signee (2011) who had been with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms of the AHL and scored at least 50 points in every season for the team before coming to Rochester. The 25 yr. old native of Orleans, Ontario brings speed and playmaking ability to the team. "He's also pretty good at sticking his nose in," said long-time Amerks broadcaster Don Stevens. "He's not the biggest guy, but he plays over his size."
With the offense starting to perk up a sketchy defense may just be beginning to solidify as well. Overall their numbers are pretty weak as Rochester has given up 94 goals through 28 games or 3.35 goals allowed per game. But in another case of the Christmas break coming at the wrong time, they've only given up two goals in their last two games. Take out the poor performance against Utica where they allowed five goals and in the other four surrounding it they've allowed five goals in four games (1.25 gaa.)
Stevens looks upon the defense and sees a very good one comprised of solid pairings. There's a mix of veteran players featuring Sanguinetti, Donovan and Colby Robak coupled with some younger players like Ruhwedel and Leduc plus 22 yr. old Brady Austin who's coming along nicely in his second pro season.
Austin is a big, powerful d-man chiming in at 6'4" and 225 lbs. A seventh round pick (193rd) in 2012, Austin spent time skating with former Sabres defenseman Nikita Zadorov when they were a pair with the London Knights of the OHL. "He's probably our only stay-at-home defenseman, which seems to be his game," said Stevens of Austin. "Although, when he wants to, there will be times when he'll surprise you and just blow right through the defense, bust in on goal and have great scoring opportunities."
After an extremely slow start, the defense is starting to come together, especially on the penalty kill. Stevens pointed out that they haven't allowed a powerplay goal in the last five games. That in-turn has helped the goaltending stabilize as well.
Whether it's the defense learning new systems or the forwards missing their assignments or the goaltenders letting in a softie or two at the wrong time, there's been plenty of inconsistency in net. It was a big reason for the aforementioned "consistent inconsistency."
"We're getting outstanding games from both (goalies) [Nathan] Lieuwen and [Andrey] Makarov," said Stevens, "and then there's nights when it just isn't working very well. We'll go two or three games maybe giving up a goal (or so) a game and then all of a sudden we're giving up four or five goals a game. The biggest thing is that the goaltending has been inconsistent."
It should be noted that before he left for the Buffalo Sabres as a call-up, goaltender Linus Ullmark was 1-2 with a 2.72 goals against average and a .932 save percentage. In two of the three games he was simply outstanding in net even though he came out with a 1-1 record. The time Ullmark has spent with Buffalo while Robin Lehner recovers is invaluable and should serve him and the Amerks well when he's returned to Rochester.
Markarov is 6-5-1 to this point in the season with a 2.95 gaa and a .911 sv % while Lieuwen is 7-5-0 with a 3.31 gaa and a .902 sv %.
The big thing for the Amerks right now is continuing to play at a fast pace. Speed is the name of the game and that's what the organization wants as a platform for success at both the AHL and NHL levels.
With 30 years invested in the broadcast booth for the Amerks, Stevens has seen styles of play come and go and although he's still old-school and somewhat misses the hard, physical game, he see's the speed game as pretty exciting. "That's what the game is now," he said. "For a while it was finesse, and then it was defense and [the trap], then it was size, then smaller players with speed. But I think it's coming down the game right now being all about speed."
GM Murray brought in fast players for a speed game and Rochester head coach Randy Cunneyworth wants his team to play that way and now the Amerks, according to Stevens, "learned to use their speed," said Stevens. "It seems like they're playing a whole lot faster now. It's really starting to pay off."
Merry Christmas everybody.
With plenty of new players and new systems in place, it's not surprising the whole Rochester Americans team is trying to figure out things out. Nor is it surprising that they're somewhat streaky. In a piece penned by Kevin Oklobzija who covers the Amerks for the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle, he called the team the"ultimate in consistent inconsistency."
"The pattern of wins and losses on the Amerks schedule since Halloween," wrote Oklobzija, "is win three, lose four, win one, lose one, win three, lose three, win two, and now going into Friday's home game against the Hartford Wolf Pack it's lose one."
Rochester smoked the Wolf Pack that night 7-1 with seven different Amerks scoring goals. Four of the goals came from defensemen as Matt Donovan, Bobby Sanguinetti, Chad Ruhwedel, and Jerome Leduc scored consecutively to put the Amerks up 4-0. Justin Bailey, Jason Akeson and Jean Dupuy skated the team to a 7-0 lead with all but Dupuy scoring either their second or third goals of the season.
No Amerks player has really stood out in the goals-scoring department as scoring has been by committee to this point in the season. Veteran Phil Varone leads the team with nine goals and the next closest is Jason Akeson with six.
Akeson, who was signed by GM Tim Murray in the off season, is having a solid campaign. He's a former Philadelphia Flyers free agent signee (2011) who had been with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms of the AHL and scored at least 50 points in every season for the team before coming to Rochester. The 25 yr. old native of Orleans, Ontario brings speed and playmaking ability to the team. "He's also pretty good at sticking his nose in," said long-time Amerks broadcaster Don Stevens. "He's not the biggest guy, but he plays over his size."
With the offense starting to perk up a sketchy defense may just be beginning to solidify as well. Overall their numbers are pretty weak as Rochester has given up 94 goals through 28 games or 3.35 goals allowed per game. But in another case of the Christmas break coming at the wrong time, they've only given up two goals in their last two games. Take out the poor performance against Utica where they allowed five goals and in the other four surrounding it they've allowed five goals in four games (1.25 gaa.)
Stevens looks upon the defense and sees a very good one comprised of solid pairings. There's a mix of veteran players featuring Sanguinetti, Donovan and Colby Robak coupled with some younger players like Ruhwedel and Leduc plus 22 yr. old Brady Austin who's coming along nicely in his second pro season.
Austin is a big, powerful d-man chiming in at 6'4" and 225 lbs. A seventh round pick (193rd) in 2012, Austin spent time skating with former Sabres defenseman Nikita Zadorov when they were a pair with the London Knights of the OHL. "He's probably our only stay-at-home defenseman, which seems to be his game," said Stevens of Austin. "Although, when he wants to, there will be times when he'll surprise you and just blow right through the defense, bust in on goal and have great scoring opportunities."
After an extremely slow start, the defense is starting to come together, especially on the penalty kill. Stevens pointed out that they haven't allowed a powerplay goal in the last five games. That in-turn has helped the goaltending stabilize as well.
Whether it's the defense learning new systems or the forwards missing their assignments or the goaltenders letting in a softie or two at the wrong time, there's been plenty of inconsistency in net. It was a big reason for the aforementioned "consistent inconsistency."
"We're getting outstanding games from both (goalies) [Nathan] Lieuwen and [Andrey] Makarov," said Stevens, "and then there's nights when it just isn't working very well. We'll go two or three games maybe giving up a goal (or so) a game and then all of a sudden we're giving up four or five goals a game. The biggest thing is that the goaltending has been inconsistent."
It should be noted that before he left for the Buffalo Sabres as a call-up, goaltender Linus Ullmark was 1-2 with a 2.72 goals against average and a .932 save percentage. In two of the three games he was simply outstanding in net even though he came out with a 1-1 record. The time Ullmark has spent with Buffalo while Robin Lehner recovers is invaluable and should serve him and the Amerks well when he's returned to Rochester.
Markarov is 6-5-1 to this point in the season with a 2.95 gaa and a .911 sv % while Lieuwen is 7-5-0 with a 3.31 gaa and a .902 sv %.
The big thing for the Amerks right now is continuing to play at a fast pace. Speed is the name of the game and that's what the organization wants as a platform for success at both the AHL and NHL levels.
With 30 years invested in the broadcast booth for the Amerks, Stevens has seen styles of play come and go and although he's still old-school and somewhat misses the hard, physical game, he see's the speed game as pretty exciting. "That's what the game is now," he said. "For a while it was finesse, and then it was defense and [the trap], then it was size, then smaller players with speed. But I think it's coming down the game right now being all about speed."
GM Murray brought in fast players for a speed game and Rochester head coach Randy Cunneyworth wants his team to play that way and now the Amerks, according to Stevens, "learned to use their speed," said Stevens. "It seems like they're playing a whole lot faster now. It's really starting to pay off."
Merry Christmas everybody.
Friday, December 25, 2015
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.
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.
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