Coming off their deepest playoff run in two decades, the Rochester Americans will enter the 2023-24 American Hockey League season looking to keep their winning ways going. They announced their training camp roster on Monday, and it appears that the cast of characters will largely be the same, which bodes well for head coach Seth Apert.
However, the Amerks could once again find themselves without a number of key players throughout the year due to potential call-ups to their parent Buffalo Sabres. Every time they’ve lost a big name over the past few years, someone else has stepped up to fill the void, and the team hasn’t missed a beat. Can they keep that trend going?
The Boys Are Back in Town
Despite losing their top scorers of 2021-22, Jack Quinn and JJ Peterka, to Buffalo last season, Rochester actually improved thanks to career years from numerous players. Brandon Biro easily stood out the most with 51 points in 49 games despite injury, while Lukas Rousek led the team with 56 points in 70 games. Captain Michael Mersch’s production regressed slightly, but he still contributed 45 points in 61 games. Eighteen-year-old Jiri Kulich posted 24 goals and 46 points in his first professional season and turned the heads of just about everyone in the process.
Thanks to the all-around efforts, the Amerks finished third in the Eastern Conference’s North Division with 81 points and earned a bye for the first round of the playoffs. They immediately fell behind two games to none in their matchup against the archrival Syracuse Crunch but pulled off an impressive rally and came back to win the series. They then swept the Toronto Marlies in the North Division Final before sputtering in the Conference Final and falling to the eventual Calder Cup champion Hershey Bears in six games.
Entering the new season, it appears that the team’s roster will largely be intact, including core pieces Mersch, Ethan Prow and Jeremy Davies. Rousek signed a two-year deal in June to return, while Linus Weissbach (20 goals and 27 assists in 69 games) did as well for one year. Fan-favorite Michael Houser re-signed with the organization for the fourth consecutive year and should continue to be an important piece in net. Defenseman and Youngstown, NY native Joseph Cecconi, acquired via trade last December, returns as well.
There were a few notable additions and subtractions as well, particularly in goal. Malcolm Subban signed with the St. Louis Blues to have a better chance at returning to the NHL. The Sabres brought back Dustin Tokarski, who went to the Pittsburgh Penguins after two seasons in Buffalo, to replace him. Twenty-six-year-old Devin Cooley was added to the mix and will compete for the starting role after putting up solid numbers for the Milwaukee Admirals last season.
Two notable upgrades were made behind the bench as well. Former Amerk and Sabre Nathan Paestch joins Apert’s staff as an assistant, as does Vaclav Prospal, who played over 1,100 NHL games across 17 seasons.
Can More Key Departures Be Made Up For?
Though the ending was a major letdown, 2022-23 was nevertheless a terrific season for the Amerks and the first time they made the Final Four in 19 years. However, their chances of reaching those same heights again are up in the air due to the status of their parent club. After years of cultivating a treasure trove of strong young talent, the Sabres appear ready to begin incorporating them at the NHL level, and that could take even more pieces away from Rochester.
Kulich, entering the second year of his entry-level contract, is all but guaranteed to receive his first career call-up at some point this season, especially with Quinn potentially out until December with an Achilles injury. Rousek was brought up for two games in March and impressed with a goal and assist and could find himself in Buffalo again as well. Isak Rosen appears to have become something of an afterthought, but the Sabres could see fit to give him a test run at some point to see what he’s capable of.
Further complicating things for the Amerks is that they’re not likely to be bolstered by additional prospects this time. Kulich helped make up for the departures of Quinn and Peterka, but there doesn’t appear to be anyone behind him to do the same should he leave. The two players atop the Sabres pipeline, Matthew Savoie and Zach Benson, are currently ineligible due to the NHL’s agreement with the Canadian Hockey League (CHL) that no junior player can move to the AHL ranks before age 20 (from ‘Sabres prospect Matt Savoie ‘just scratching the surface’ as he finds another gear,’ The Athletic, 2/21/23).
Both can join the Sabres to start the season but will otherwise have to return to Wenatchee of the Western Hockey League (WHL). The Amerks do have the reliable Biro and Linus Weissbach to continue to lead the way, but they may not get as much help this time around. Both could be call-up candidates as well, but Buffalo has shown little interest in them to this point despite their success (though Biro is still on the Sabres’ preseason roster as of Oct. 5). If the Amerks do lose yet another big contributor, will a new player step up once again to make up for it?
Amerks Will Be Put to the Test This Season
After improving in each of the last two seasons, the Amerks will set out to continue their upward trend and reach the postseason for a fifth straight year, something the team hasn’t done since its stretch of 15 appearances in a row from 1990 to 2005. After getting eliminated in the Eastern Conference Final, the Calder Cup could be within their reach; it would be the franchise’s first since 1996.
Related: Buffalo Sabres’ 5 Best-Case Scenarios for 2023-24
For that to happen, they’ll have to continue doing what they’ve done for the past two seasons. The team’s hallmark throughout that time has been its resiliency and ability to roll with the punches and overcome setbacks. They’ll need even more of that this season if more players are destined to depart to the NHL. The Amerks open their season on Friday, Oct. 13, against the Bridgeport Islanders at Blue Cross Arena.
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