Gionta to play for Amerks on Friday in tune-up for Olympics

Rochester Americans General Manager Randy Sexton announced on Monday that the team has signed Brian Gionta to a one-game Professional Tryout. Gionta is expected to be in the lineup on Friday, Feb. 2 when the Amerks resume their 2017-18 regular season schedule following the AHL All-Star break against the Toronto Marlies at The Blue Cross Arena.

"Brian has been practicing with us on a regular basis since early in the season," said Sexton. "These practices were part of his preparation for the Olympics and, given the Olympics are just around the corner, a game was the final tune-up for him to get ready to captain the U.S. Olympic team. The entire Buffalo Sabres organization wishes Brian all the very best in his pursuit of a gold medal."
The 39-year-old Rochester native has practiced with the Amerks since October in preparation for the upcoming 2018 Winter Olympic Games, which are set to begin Friday, Feb. 9 in Pyeongchang, South Korea.
Gionta, who will serve as captain of the U.S. national team, has appeared in 1,006 National Hockey League games with the Buffalo Sabres, Montreal Canadiens and New Jersey Devils over a 16-year professional career in which he has recorded 588 points (289+299) and 375 penalty minutes. Gionta has also compiled 68 points (32+36) over 112 career playoff appearances and was a member of the 2003 Stanley Cup-winning Devils.
Gionta has served as team captain in each of his last seven seasons, including the previous three in Buffalo. He totaled 103 points (40+63) in 230 career games with the Sabres from 2014-17, appearing in his 1,000th NHL game during the 2016-17 campaign.

Smith named AHL All-Star MVP

Rochester Americans rookie C.J. Smith scored the only goal of the championship game as the North Division captured the 2018 AHL All-Star Challenge title with a 1-0 win over the Pacific Division at the Adirondack Bank Center at the Utica Memorial Auditorium on Monday night.
The AHL All-Star Challenge is a round-robin tournament among the league's four divisions, played at 3-on-3. The first six games are 10 minutes in length, followed by the six-minute championship final.
Down by three goals with less than three minutes remaining in the final preliminary contest, the North Division rallied for a 4-3 victory over the Atlantic Division to earn a berth in the championship. Smith scored the game-tying goal with 29 seconds left in the second half of the contest.
Smith finished the night with three goals and two assists, earning 2018 AHL All-Star Challenge Most Valuable Player honors. Syracuse Crunch rookie Mitchell Stephens chipped in two goals and three assists and Belleville Senators forward Gabriel Gagne tallied a goal and four assists on the night for the North Division, which was also led by Amerks goaltender Linus Ullmark and the Utica Comets' Thatcher Demko.
The Pacific Division was paced offensively by Tucson Roadrunners rookies Kyle Capobianco and Nick Merkley, who finished the evening with six points each. Hershey's Chris Bourque and Charlotte teammates Warren Foegele and Valentin Zykov had four points apiece for the Atlantic Division, and Grand Rapids' Matt Lorito and Chicago's T.J. Tynan tallied three points each for the Central Division.

Hometown Heroes Night is Friday

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The Amerks are hosting "Hometown Heroes Night," presented by Advantage Federal Credit Union, on Friday. The team will honor all first responders such as police officers, fire fighters, and emergency medical technicians, as well as military members and veterans.
Prior to the Amerks-Marlies matchup that night, the Rochester Police Department will face-off against members of the Monroe County Sheriff's Office Jail Bureau in an exhibition hockey game starting at 4 p.m.
As part of the night, the Amerks are offering all Hometown Heroes and military personnel one complimentary ticket to their game against the Marlies with additional tickets for family and friends available for as low as just $12. Those interested in taking advantage of the offer can do so by visiting www.amerks.com/heroes.
The Amerks will donate $2 for every ticket sold through www.amerks.com/heroes to the Monroe County Sheriff's Office Association of Retirees (SOAR), courtesy of Advantage Federal Credit Union.

Jan. 26: RCH 0 - TOR 2

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After shutting out the Toronto Marlies at Ricoh Coliseum 2-0 nearly a month ago, the Rochester Americans returned north of the border in the fourth game of a five-game road-swing. The Amerks however, were unable to solve Marlies goaltender Garret Sparks as they dropped a 2-0 contest Friday night in the third of eight meetings between the North Division rivals this season.
With the loss in regulation, Rochester becomes the last team in the AHL to reach double digits (10) while suffering just its the third away from The Blue Cross Arena as the Amerks carry a 13-3-5-3 record in 24 road games this season.
Amerks captain Kevin Porter led the team with four shots while 15 of the 18 Rochester skaters registered a shot on goal over the course of the tilt as goaltender Linus Ullmark made 37 of 38 saves on the night.
Colin Greening opened the scoring for the Marlies in the first period before former Amerk Jean Dupuy sealed the 2-0 win as he tacked on an empty-netter late in the final stanza.

Jan. 27: RCH 4 - BEL 3 (OT)

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For the 19th time through 45 games this season, the Rochester Americans (25-10-5-5) played in a game that went beyond regulation to determine an outcome.
Saturday night's contest at Yardmen Arena against the Belleville Senators (18-24-1-3) needed only 22 seconds of extra hockey before Kyle Criscuolo sealed the Amerks' 4-3 come-from-behind victory to conclude a season-long five-game road swing going into the league's All-Star break.
With the win, Rochester notched its 25th victory of the campaign through 45 games this season. The Amerks also improved to 14-3-5-3 in 25 games away from The Blue Cross Arena and have earned points in 31 of their last 37 games dating back to Nov. 1.
Criscuolo bagged his seventh multi-point effort of the campaign as he scored a pair of goals and had a game-high eight shots for the Amerks while Taylor Fedun and Eric Cornel rounded out the scoring. Adam Wilcox made 21 saves to improve to 8-3-4 on the season and shows a 7-1-2 mark in his last 10 contests.
Gabriel Gagne scored his team-leading 15th of season and picked up an assist while Ben Harper recorded a pair of helpers for Belleville, which suffered its first loss in overtime on home ice. Nick Paul and Jim O'Brien capped off the scoring while Danny Taylor dropped his third straight decision against the Amerks this season.

Ticket info

Individual game tickets for the 2017-18 season start at just $14. Amerks Season Ticket Memberships, which start as low as just $12 per game, are on-sale now. The Amerks are also offering a variety of partial plans, including Half-Season Memberships and Flex Season Memberships with vouchers good for best available seating to any home game. All memberships are up to 40-percent off Box Office day of game pricing. For more information, visit www.amerks.com or call 1-855-GO-AMERKS.