GAME PREVIEW: AMERKS SAIL TO BRIDGEPORT FOR FACE-OFF WITH ISLANDERS – Rochester People

5 issues to know as Rochester closes out Connecticut weekend
The Rochester People (9-6-0-0) cease in Bridgeport for the center recreation of their three-leg street journey with a Saturday night matchup towards the Islanders (5-7-1-1) at Whole Mortgage Area.
 
Listed below are 5 issues to know earlier than the Amerks play their second and closing recreation in Connecticut this season.
 
 
Regardless of going through 2-0 and 3-1 deficits, the Amerks discovered a strategy to overcome the Hartford Wolf Pack by a 4-3 closing in extra time Friday evening at PeoplesBank Area.
 
Trevor Kuntar made his presence felt with a three-point efficiency (2+1), however the heroic end belongs to the tandem of Amerks’ goaltender Topias Leinonen and ahead Riley Fiddler-Schultz.
 
A minute into three-on-three extra time, Hartford swept the puck out of its personal finish, racing down the ice for a two-on-one. A net-front go was made, adopted by a shot that Leinonen sprawled throughout his crease to lunge out and cease, dropping his stick within the course of. The puck discovered its manner off the Amerks’ netminder, was scooped up by workforce captain Zach Metsa and onto the tape of Fiddler-Schultz, who skated away in a three-on-one that culminated with the ahead getting into the right-wing circle, then firing a wrist shot that went five-hole for the game-winning conversion 1:05 into the additional session.
 
The Amerks bought to extra time because of a late power-play strike from Kuntar, who scored his second aim of the evening. Kuntar tipped a shot taken atop the zone from Jack Rathbone with 2:56 remaining in regulation to even the rating, 3-3.
 
Leinonen emerged victorious with a 19-save efficiency, bettering to 2-2-0 on the season. Olivier Nadeau additionally returned to the lineup after lacking 4 video games on account of harm, then went on to attain his first AHL aim in over two years.
 
The win moved Rochester right into a tie for first place within the North Division getting into Saturday.
 
 
Elsewhere Friday, the Islanders paid a go to to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton to tackle a Penguins workforce that sits atop the Atlantic Division. Issues had been wanting good for the New York Islanders’ AHL affiliate, who yielded a 2-0 lead getting into the third earlier than the script flipped.
 
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton put 5 at the back of the online, together with the game-winner with 5:47 left to stun Bridgeport and hand the Islanders a heartbreaking 5-3 defeat.
 
Parker Gahagen took the loss in aim. After making 16 saves by way of two intervals, the previous Lehigh Valley goaltender coughed up 5 targets on the ultimate 10 pictures he confronted. The Islanders have given up extra third-period targets (22) than some other Jap Convention workforce.
 
 
All indicators level to Devon Levi drawing the beginning in Saturday’s recreation. The third-year professional has had a story of two seasons within the early goings of the 2025-26 marketing campaign. At first, Levi started the yr 5-0-0, marking the most effective begin to an expert season the younger Sabres prospect has had. Since then, nonetheless, the 23-year-old has dropped two of three begins, surrendering 14 targets over that span.
 
It has been an atypical efficiency for the AHL All-Star, who appears to make his ninth begin of the season. Levi has loved ample success in an Amerks jersey, boasting a 47-21-8 all-time file with Rochester. That features eight shutouts and one earlier this season when going through Laval.
 
Levi has confronted Bridgeport as soon as prior and that was additionally a shutout victory, because the Dollard-des Ormeaux, Quebec, native pitched a 28-save whitewash towards the Isles at Blue Cross Area final season on March 28.
 
 
In Friday’s win over Hartford, Amerks captain Zach Metsa logged an help on Fiddler-Schultz’ extra time winner, extending his level streak to 5 video games, with the third-year Amerk posting seven factors (2+5) within the present stretch. The streak ties Metsa’s career-best set from final season from Dec. 22-Jan. 4, when he amassed eight factors (1+7).
 
Metsa’s eight whole factors (2+6) are ninth-best amongst AHL defensemen. The previous NCAA champion completed fourth in assists throughout the league’s blueline with 39 final season, and has 16 targets and 78 factors for his AHL profession that spans 133 video games.
 
Towards Bridgeport, Metsa has scored a aim and 4 assists for 5 factors in three video games towards the Isles. His lone aim towards the membership served because the game-winner final season at Blue Cross Area. Metsa has seven profession game-winning targets.
 
 
Tonight is barely the 25^th all-time assembly between the Amerks and Islanders and the fifth since opening evening in Rochester to open the 2023-24 season.
 
The Amerks have earned factors in 15 of the final 16 conferences towards Bridgeport, relationship again to the 2017-18 marketing campaign. Over that span, the Amerks present a 5-1-1-0 mark when taking part in in Bridgeport.
 
In 18 of the final 20 conferences, the successful workforce has scored three or extra targets, which incorporates at the least one power-play tally in 13 contests over that stretch. Eleven of the earlier 20 video games between the 2 golf equipment have been determined past regulation, together with seven of the final 10.
 
Rochester took each video games final season by a 6-3 win on Jan. 4 in Bridgeport earlier than Levi’s 6-0 shutout victory in March.
 
This yr’s season sequence towards the Isles begins and ends inside a six-day span, as Bridgeport will chart a course for Rochester in a rematch at Blue Cross Area subsequent Friday.
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