Rochester will open against the Syracuse Crunch in the playoffs.
SYRACUSE, N.Y. — The Rochester Americans will face the Syracuse Crunch in the first-round of the 2018 Calder Cup Playoffs. The Amerks will begin the postseason on the road before hosting Games 3 and 4 of the best-of-five opening round series on Wednesday, April 25 and Friday, April 27 at the Blue Cross Arena. Both games will start at 7:05 pm.
The Amerks secured the No. 3 seed in the North Division with a 4-2 victory the Crunch on Saturday night in the Salt City.
Justin Bailey tallied his third goal in the last 2 games to open the scoring.
Until last Saturday, Bailey had gone 7 games with out a goal for the Amerks, despite 22 shots on net.
“When you’re getting opportunities and you’re not scoring, it’s frustrating,” he said.
“He’s a big part of our team,” said captain Kevin Porter. “With his speed and his shot, he can be a difference-maker.”
Perhaps one reason Porter is on his line is that “He can settle him down,” said Amerks coach Chris Taylor. “He’s a game-changer. He can change the game and that’s what we need.”
Alex Nylander, Garret Ross, and Sean Malone accounted for the other Amerks goals.
Rochester secured its first playoff berth since 2014 with a 4-2 win over the Springfield Thunderbirds on March 24. The opening round series will mark the first meeting in the postseason between the two teams since the Amerks defeated the Crunch four games to three in the first round of the 2004 Calder Cup Playoffs.
Below is the full first-round schedule for the best-of-five North Division Semifinals between the third-place Amerks and second-place Crunch. The series will shift back to Syracuse for a decisive Game 5, if necessary, on Saturday, April 28.
Game 1 – Friday, April 20 – Rochester at Syracuse, 7:00 p.m. at the War Memorial Arena
Game 2 – Saturday, April 21 – Rochester at Syracuse, 7:00 p.m. at the War Memorial Arena
Game 3 – Wednesday, April 25 – Syracuse at Rochester, 7:05 p.m. at The Blue Cross Arena
*Game 4 – Friday, April 27 – Syracuse at Rochester, 7:05 p.m. at The Blue Cross Arena
*Game 5 – Saturday, April 28 – Rochester at Syracuse, 7:00 p.m. at the War Memorial Arena
*if necessary
The team is giving away 5,000 rally towels for the first-round, courtesy of Seneca Niagara Resorts & Casino and Genesee Brewing Company.
Individual game tickets for Round One of the 2018 Calder Cup Playoffs start as low as just $14 and range in price up to $28 depending on seat location. All tickets purchased on the day of the game will increase by $2. Tickets are available for purchase either in person at The Blue Cross Arena Box Office, online at WWW.AMERKS.COM or by calling 1-855-GO-AMERKS
Amerks Calder Cup Playoff tickets are available at WWW.AMERKS.COM, by calling 1-855-GO-AMERKS or at The Blue Cross Arena Box Office.