Rochester faces Binghamton and Springfield on Friday and Satruday nights, respectively at the BCA.
ROCHESTER, N.Y. — Despite going winless over their three-game trek through New England, the Amerks potentially can lock up a playoff spot as early as this weekend.
Coming into the week, Rochester maintains a 20-point lead on the fifth-place Laval Rocket in the North Division standings and need just three points to secure a postseason berth for the first time since 2014.
The top four teams in the Division are guaranteed a playoff spot with the Toronto Marlies and Syracuse Crunch the only two teams to have clinched.
Scoring leaders
1. C.J. Smith: 17G – 25A – 42 PTS
2. Zach Redmond: 13G – 27A – 40 PTS
3. Kevin Porter: 16G – 22A – 38 PTS
4. Sahir Gill: 15G – 20A – 35 PTS
5. Kyle Criscuolo: 15G – 19A – 34 PTS
Seth Griffith: 13G – 21A – 34 PTS
Goaltending leaders
1. Linus Ullmark: 20-11-4; 2 SO; 2.44 GAA; .923 SV%
2. Adam Wilcox: 10-6-2; 2.80 GAA; .905 SV%
3. Jonas Johansson: 0-2-0; 4.87 GAA; .842 SV%
News and notes
The Amerks, who have earned at least one point in 20 of their last 30 games dating back to Jan. 1, enter the week having appeared in 13 games that went beyond regulation since Jan. 1. Overall on the season, Rochester leads the AHL in games decided after the third period with 26, showing a 7-10 mark in overtime while going 3-6 in shootouts.
Rookie forward C.J. Smith returned to the lineup this past weekend after missing 12 games due to injury. After being held without a point in the first two games of the New England trip, Smith made up for lost time in a big way, recording his first-career hat trick to regain the team lead in both goals (17) and points (42) in 53 games this season.
With his three-goal outing in Hartford, he became the first Amerks rookie to score a hat trick since Tim Schaller at Toronto on Apr. 5, 2014. The Des, Moines, Iowa native is currently tied for seventh in scoring among all AHL rookies while his 25 assists are tied for fifth-most between all first-year skaters.