Can the Buffalo Sabres affiliate make a deep playoff run?

Buffalo Sabres AHL affiliate, the Rochester Americans, are seeking to make a deep playoff run. First up are the mighty Belleville Senators.

The Buffalo Sabres recently sent some key players to Rochester in hopes of helping the team snag the Calder Cup. Mattias Samuelsson, Casey Fitzgerald, and Peyton Krebs all made phenomenal contributions to the Sabres this season. But since they were still AHL-eligible, the Sabres did not hesitate to assign them to the Amerks.

This is by no means a demotion for any of the aforementioned players. Instead, it is an opportunity to gain playoff experience and to play for a championship. So expect Krebs, Samuelsson, and Fitzgerald to play their best hockey.

The Buffalo Sabres AHL affiliate will start their playoff run against the Belleville Senators

Who are the Belleville Senators? If there is ever an “easy” playoff opponent for the Americans, it is the Senators. Like Rochester, they finished the season with 84 points. However, the Amerks finished with a 3-5 record against their North Division rival, which makes the arrival of Samuelsson, Krebs, and Fitzgerald all the more valuable.

If the Amerks win the three-game series, then they were face the Utica Comets in the North Division Semifinals. Utica won the division with 95 points, and they played them rather well, finishing 6-6 in the season series.

So once again, the addition of some of the Sabres youngest contributors will work wonders for the Amerks if they can sneak past Belleville and go head-to-head with Utica. The other North Division Semifinal is already set between the Laval Rocket and the Syracuse Crunch.

If the Amerks can defeat both Belleville and Utica, they will face either Laval or Syracuse in the North Division Final. So can they get there?

Throughout this article, I stressed the importance of Krebs, Samuelsson, and Fitzgerald being present for this one. But, the real question is: Can Aaron Dell regain his old form and become a force at goaltender?

The Amerks played both Belleville and Utica well in the regular season, with a combined record of 9-11 against both teams. If Dell holds his own in the net with all the NHL-caliber talent he has surrounding him, look for the Amerks to wade through the first two rounds of the playoffs for a date with either Laval or Syracuse.

If not, then at least Samuelsson, Fitzgerald, and Krebs got a few more reps. Ditto for Jack Quinn and J.J. Peterka.