The Amerks opened the month of March with a 5-2 road win over the Phantoms, four of those goals were scored in the third period.  David Laliberte tied the game 2-2 at 9:55 of the third period off of a horrible defensive zone giveaway by Rory Fitzpatrick.  The most impressive part of the game was that after that goal was scored to tie it up the team did not appear to lose confidence but instead took control and scored three more goals to win the game.

Evgeny Dadonov and Michal Repik each scored two goals and Chris Taylor had three assists.

I did not have time to write a complete postgame report so the press release about the game is below.

For Immediate Release
March 5, 2010

AMERKS OPEN MARCH WITH 5-2 WIN OVER PHANTOMS

(Rochester, NY)… Michal Repik and Evgeny Dadonov each scored two goals and added an assist as the Rochester Americans skated past the Adirondack Phantoms for a 5-2 win tonight at the Glens Falls Civic Center. With the win, Rochester (37-26-2-0, 72 points) has now won two straight and four of its last five to remain in a second-place tie in the North Division with the Abbotsford Heat.

Veteran forward Chris Taylor also recorded three assists and finished with a plus-three on-ice rating, while rookie goaltender Alexander Salak turned away 24 saves to notch his 27th win of the season. Adirondack’s Johan Backlund made 16 saves in the losing effort.

Patrick Maroon gave the hometown Phantoms a 1-0 lead midway through the opening period with his 10th goal of the season. Forwards Matt Clackson and 2010 AHL All-Star Jon Matsumoto each picked up assists on the goal at 10:12.

Rochester responded just over three minutes later off a goal from veteran forward Mike York at 13:24 that made it a 1-1 game. The goal was York’s fifth point in the last two games since registering a four-assist night last Sunday against Binghamton. Jamie Johnson recorded his team-leading 61st point with an assist, while Amerks captain Rory Fitzpatrick also assisted on York’s eighth tally of the season.

After a scoreless second stanza, Taylor and Repik combined with Dadonov just 54 seconds into the final frame to put the Amerks on top 2-1. The goal was Dadonov’s 12th of the season.

Adirondack battled back, again midway through the period, as David Laliberte’s marker at 9:55 evened things up a 2-2. Jared Ross and Logan Stephenson tabbed the assists on play.

The game would remain tied only for minutes as the Amerks scored three straight within a four-minute span en route to a 5-2 vistory. Dadonov potted his second of the night at 15:01, the eventual game-winner, before Repik netted back-to-back tallies, including an empty-netter with 26 seconds remaining in regulation.

With the goals, Repik became the third Amerks player this season to reach the 20-goal plateau. Taylor assisted on Dadonov’s game-winner and Repik’s first goal to record his three helpers, while defenseman Clay Wilson extended his point streak to four games (1+4) with an assist on Dadonov’s first tally of the night.

Rochester heads north of the border on Saturday, March 6th for a North Division showdown with the Toronto Marlies at Ricoh Coliseum. The 4:00 p.m. matinee will be the fifth of eight get-togethers between the two teams this season and will be carried live on SportsRadio 1280 WHTK and FM 107.3, Rochester’s Sports Talk. The Amerks have an unblemished 4-0-0-0 record against the Marlies this season, outscoring their opponent 15-6 through the previous four gatherings. Rochester, however, is 16-21-1 lifetime against the Baby Maple Leafs.

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Rochester Americans 5 At Adirondack Phantoms 2 – Status: Final
Mar 5, 2010 – Glens Falls Civic Center

Rochester 1 0 4 – 5
Adirondack 1 0 1 – 2

1st Period-1, Adirondack, Maroon 10 (Clackson, Matsumoto), 10:12. 2, Rochester, York 8 (Johnson, Fitzpatrick), 13:24. Penalties-Taylor Rch (interference), 13:51.

2nd Period- No Scoring.Penalties-Dingle Adk (hooking), 6:43; Wilson Rch (interference), 7:50; Kalinski Adk (elbowing), 8:17; Brine Rch (roughing), 14:17; Kalinski Adk (roughing), 14:17; Laliberte Adk (slashing), 15:41.

3rd Period-3, Rochester, Dadonov 12 (Repik, Taylor), 0:54. 4, Adirondack, Laliberte 15 (Ross, Stephenson), 9:55. 5, Rochester, Dadonov 13 (Wilson, Taylor), 15:01. 6, Rochester, Repik 20 (Dadonov, Taylor), 16:51. 7, Rochester, Repik 21 (Salak), 19:31 (sh en). Penalties-Gratchev Rch (charging), 4:45; Duco Rch (slashing), 18:23.

Shots on Goal-Rochester 9-6-6-21. Adirondack 7-13-6-26.
Power Play Opportunities-Rochester 0 of 3; Adirondack 0 of 4.
Goalies-Rochester, Salak 27-12-0 (26 shots-24 saves). Adirondack, Backlund 20-15-2 (20 shots-16 saves).
A-4,906
Referees-Ghislain Hebert (49).
Linesmen-Steeve Lemay (64), Mike Emanatian (69).