Derek Grant vs Syracuse Crunch 11/24/2017 (Grade B+)

Friday night the Amerks suffered their most demoralizing game of the year, devastating playoff chances. Even in the face of what might have been a season defining loss, there were plenty of positives.  Hudson Fasching continued his hot streak scoring two goals. Brady Austin continued make progress offensively, adding a tally of his own on a picturesque slapper off the far post. And the Rochester faithful finally got their first look at Derek Grant in an Amerks sweater.

 

After the long wait he did not disappoint. He notched two assists and went 15 for 25 in the face off circle. Grant even took the place of Cal O’Reilly as Coach Lambert’s go to face off specialist in the third period. His physicality and playmaking ability between Fasching and Nylander turned the line into the most productive unit of the night. I am going to rate his performance a B+.

 

Offensively, Grant was a near perfect fit for the Amerks. His work in the face off circle allowed them to enjoy the majority of puck possession with him on the ice. His play on the breakout allowed the team to make the most of those opportunities. Grant got into great positions in neutral ice allowing him to comfortably skate the zone or dump the puck. He used his physicality to become extremely effective on the boards. He was able to dig pucks out on consistent basis. Unfortunately, none of his centering passes found a teammates stick. However, Grant was most effective on the rush where he made two exceptional passes. The first he played to Mullen off the boards, allowing him to slide a centering pass to a wide-open Fasching who slammed it into the yawning net. The other was a picture perfect saucer pass just over the stick of a defender; Nylander was not able to finish though.

 

Grant was less consistent on the defensive side of the puck. His night got off to a rocky start when he took a bad penalty when the team was already shorthanded. Syracuse scored their opening goal only 10 seconds later. Outside of that his time on the kill was much better. He won several key draws in the defensive zone creating an easy clear. Grant also applied good pressure to the point and was even able to block a couple shots. At full strength he was also able to apply enough pressure to cause a few turnovers in the fore-checking game. However, I would have liked to see him use his big frame to finish more checks.

 

I think Derek Grant is a fantastic addition to the Amerks. The combination of speed and size he possesses is unlike any other player on the roster. The struggles he has had in Buffalo this year mean he will probably stay in Rochester for the remainder of the year. Sadly, I’m not sure he has a future with the organization beyond that. And although Grant seems to be a great fit for the Amerks it might be too little too late for the struggling franchise.

 

Tim Kennedy vs Utica Comets 2/23/2017

Even though the Amerks put forth their best line up of the year Wednesday night in Buffalo, fans were still left wanting more. The return of Bailey, Baptiste, and Rodrigues was tarnished by a lack of effort and an All Star game feel. Thankfully the backbone of the Amerks this year (Linus Ullmark) stood strong with 37 saves. Karabacek also played well extending his goal scoring streak.

Another player making a notable return was Buffalo native Tim Kennedy. Though effort was not an issue, Kennedy struggled to make an impact. With a man advantage, at even strength, and on the kill, every part of Kennedy's game was average. Fittingly, I will rate his performance a C.

On the power play Kennedy played a very minor role. He contributed nothing to zone entry, just waiting at the blue line for a dump. After the Amerks were set up, he assumed his position in the slot waiting for a deflection. Surrounded by Comets, the puck very rarely found his stick. He was able to redirect a shass from Fedun on the point; unfortunately, it ricocheted harmlessly into the chest of the waiting netminder. Kennedy was no doubt limited by the role he was called upon to play, but I would have liked to see him a bit more active on the boards. Personally I don't think he is the player most suited to a front-man role.

He was definitely much more comfortable on the kill. His strong work ethic and active stick make him a perfect fit. He worked tirelessly in the forechecking game making zone entry difficult. He also did a great job down cutting down shooting lanes and deflecting shots from the point. As a result the Comets went 0-4 on the power play.

At full strength Kennedy was much more underwhelming. While centering Dupuy and Karabacek he went 6 for 14 in the face off circle. Utica's first goal came on a draw he lost clean to the point. A shot was whipped in right away and caught a deflection to beat Ullmark. Even though the dump and chase style of hockey the Amerks play is a good fit for him, he wasn't able to dig picks out consistently. I think Lambert expected his line to ugly up the game rather than produce offensively. Had the top lines performed better, it would have been an effective strategy.

Overall Kennedy is a solid two way veteran presence. His strong work ethic sets the tone for the rest of the players in the organization. Most importantly, I feel he is proud to wear the Amerks crest. Hopefully his attitude can trickle into some of the young prospects within the organization.

Taylor Fedun vs Bridgeport Senators 2/20/2017 (Grade B+)

The presence of Taylor Fedun kick started the Amerks back to winning ways of Sunday night. The team is now 12-9 in the twenty-one games he has put on an Amerks sweater, and 9-21 without him.  In addition to a great overall game he registered an assist bringing him to 18 points on the year and 0.86 points a game. He trails only Cal O’Reilly and Cole Schneider (.93 and .94). I am going to rate his performance a B+.

Offensive production is without question the most important aspect of Fedun’s game. His ability to skate the puck has been a difference maker since he arrived in Rochester. Sunday night was more of the same. Fedun led the breakout with patience under pressure and executed a few of his trademark two line stretch passes. His ability to find the sticks of his teammates is unrivaled by anyone on the roster. The area the Amerks missed his talents the most was on the power play. 

However, in his return they were 0-4 with a man advantage. His ability to skate the puck made zone entry a breeze, his passing on the point opened countless shooting lanes, but Fedun’s shooting was awful. During a 5 on 3 he earned himself four open shots; three missed the net and the other slammed into the crest of a fellow Amerk. He had several other chances to find the net and continuously failed to hit the target. It was the one flaw in an otherwise perfect offensive game.

Defensively, he was equally up to the task for fifty-five minuets.  Even in the absence of a physical presence Fedun played a huge role. On the rush, he was able to use his speed to stay in front of players and poke the puck away consistently. He also made a couple aggressive moves to step in front of forwards to intercept the puck and create a chance the other way. Unfortunately with five minuets remaining the wheels started to fall off when he took a bad hooking penalty. On a night when all of Bridgeport’s goals came on the power play it could have proved costly. When he got back on the ice he was like a deer in the headlights. With a sixth man on the ice, and the Senators were pumping rubber Fedun was unable to handle the physicality of the forwards in front of the net. Fortunately, Ullmark was able to freeze the puck and then Cal was able to see out the game with back-to-back clutch face off wins.

It’s clear that Fedun has earned his place among Rochester’s best players this year. I think he has definitely proved that he can contribute to an NHL roster as well. What isn’t clear is how 29 other teams allowed him to clear waivers on Saturday. Playmaking defenseman like Fedun are a hot commodity in todays game; I think it is imperative that the organization make resigning him a huge priority in the offseason.

Alexander Nylander vs Bridgeport Sound Tigers 2/17/2017 (Grade C-)

The play of Nylander Friday was a microcosm of his time with the Amerks. Throughout the night he showed flashes of the first round talent he possesses. But, ultimately was defined by the glaring weaknesses in his game. I am going to rate his performance a C-. After comparing his style of play with Sweden to the effort he has put forth in Rochester, I am beginning to question his organizational fit.

There are two main differences between Nylander’s usage in Rochester and Sweden; his role on the power play, and on the rush. With a man advantage at the World Juniors, Nylander was extremely effective on the left point. He has strong body control and a right-handed shot giving a quick trigger. He picked out a few great cross-ice passes that led to assists, and was also in position to skate the puck. Against the Sound Tigers he spent all his time on the wing waiting for his teammates to dump the puck in. Nylander is painfully ineffective digging the puck out from the boards. His lack of desire to play physical hockey was on display as the Amerks had a difficult time getting set up. With Sweden this year Nylander had several assists on the rush and a very nice goal in the slot created by a give and go. Friday he spent most of the night static on the blue line waiting for Kennedy to dump the puck. He had a couple chances to crash the net and get a rebound, but was too far behind the play to capitalize. His only real opportunity came when he was able to skate the puck. He danced around a Bridgeport defenseman and brought Halak to his knees. Unfortunately, he was unable to lift the puck over his pad while being slashed. He made a couple more attempts to stickhandle past defenders on the boards but his lack of a physical game made him one-dimensional and he had no success. Nylander had much more space to operate at the World Juniors allowing him to maximize his creativity. The dump and chase style of blue-collar hockey being played in Rochester has been one of the biggest reasons he has failed to make an impact on the offensive end.

Defensively Nylander played a decent game. He made a couple nice fore-checking plays poking the puck away from defenders. However, the ability to finish checks would make him much more effective. He also could have turned the puck over back checking, but didn’t put forth enough effort. Most of the time he slowly trailed his man while entering the zone, hoping someone else would make a play to start the breakout.

If one thing is clear, it’s that Nylander has a long way to go before he is ready for the NHL. His physical limitations make it very difficult to succeed playing the Amerk’s style of hockey. Lambert has also had a difficult time finding line mates for the young prospect. He has moved back and forth between the first three lines and played both wing and center. The drastic drop off in Nylander’s success since returning from the World Juniors makes me question if he will ever find a role within this organization.

Patrick Mullen vs Albany Devils 2/10/17 (Grade B-)

Friday night the Amerks suffered a debilitating 3-2 loss to the Devils. Their third period collapse is only the latest example of the team’s inability to put together 60 minutes of good hockey.  Captain Cal was by far the best player of the night for Rochester. He was a team best 19 of 26 in the face-off circle and assisted on the second goal. The defensive pairing of Burgdoerfer and Mullen also played very well. Burgdoerfer is unquestionably the best defenseman on the roster, and it shows every time he steps out on the ice. 

Patrick Mullen played a very steady mistake free game. I am going to rate his performance a B-. The Devils weren’t able to give Mullen much work; but he performed admirably when called upon.  Late in the third the newest Amerk made what looked to be a game saving stop from his knees when Ullmark was pulled out of the crease.

Offensively, Mullen showed bright spots, but ultimately wasn’t able to do enough to be impactful. He was very conservative passing the puck to start the breakout. Most times he was unable to find the stick of a forward and left the task of starting the breakout to Burgdoerfer. When #7 got adventurous he actually made a few really nice stretch passes. One of which was a long distance lob that Dupuy was able to skate onto in the offensive zone. The biggest flaw of Mullen’s game was his shooting. Of his six attempts, three were blocked and one sailed over the net missing by a country mile. Of the two that required a save, only one of them forced a rebound. As a power play point-man, that is just not good enough. Considering he has limited ability to skate the puck through the neutral zone, I’m not sure he was the best fit for that role.

Defensively, Mullen played a much better game and was at his best around the Amerks net. He did a fantastic job stick lifting forwards in front of Ullmark. During a scramble he kept a cool head making a nice kick save with Linus out of the net. Mullen also played very well on the point, making a couple strong poke checks on the enemy blue line. He picked the right moments to pinch and did a good job supporting Burgdoerfer when he decided to push up.  However, he was not as consistent on the rush. When in good position, Mullen did a great job separating his man from the puck and eliminating him from the play. But when caught on his heels, he was unable to cut down the angle well enough to prevent a shot. 

Overall Mullen definitely benefited from playing with Burgdoerfer. If they can continue to shut down good teams the two have potential to become a very strong top defensive pairing. Going forward, I would like him to be more courageous passing the puck and get more of his shots to the net cleanly. He has already proved to be a worthwhile addition to a particularly anemic defensive unit.

Justin Bailey vs Anaheim Ducks 2/10/2017 (Grade B+)

Thursday night the Sabres were dominated by a much better Anaheim Ducks team. A late rally when the game was out of reach narrowly kept them from being doubled up in shots. They were unable to contain Corey Perry who finished with two goals and an assist in this one-sided affair. Strength vs. strength, the Sabres top line just wasn’t able to measure up. However, I was very impressed with what I saw from the Bailey-Reinhart-Gionta line.  They enjoyed most of the possession when on the ice, and created some really good chances. 

After watching Bailey during the 10 minuets of ice time he received, I am certain that he belongs at the NHL level. I am going to rate his performance a B+. He wasn’t able find the net, but he did register his first NHL assist.  He was able to leave his mark on the game even with limited ice time. 

Offensively, Bailey was the same lightning rod that he has been in Rochester. It very quickly became clear that his speed will still be a factor at the NHL level. On two separate occasions Bailey skated the puck all the way through the neutral zone stick-handling through and around Ducks with ease. After busting out of the zone he almost split the defense to earn a break away; but the puck was just barely poked away. He also used his blazing speed to create chances on the rush for his line mates. After drawing the defense to him, he slid passes to both Reinhart and Gionta to set up quality shots in the slot. However, the best chance he created came from behind the net. He slipped past the defense and made a great centering pass to Gionta out in front. Unfortunately the puck got caught in Brian’s skates and he wasn’t able to finish.

 

Defensively Bailey played a very strong game as well. He did a great job of pressing in the fore-checking game to try and win the puck. And that effort was rewarded as he finished tied for the team lead in takeaways. Bailey spent very little time in the defensive zone, but did get caught puck watching a few times. Fortunately, he was so good on the puck that it covered up his weakness. If 56 can do a better job of man-marking going forward it might help him to earn a spot on the Buffalo penalty-killing unit. He definitely has the physical tools to become a part of that group. I think that will be a key factor determining where he plays the majority of his hockey next year.

 

Personally, I feel the Sabres should take advantage of every opportunity to get Bailey on the ice. A game like this shows that he is good enough to be in the NHL.  I would like to see him get more ice time going forward. It is definitely beneficial for him to be paired with players like Reinhart and Gionta; but If the goal is to develop him into a top 6 player that’s where he should be. If that opportunity doesn’t exist in Buffalo, then he is better served playing the rest of the season in Rochester.