Sabres top prospects picking up right where they left off in season opener
By Sion Fawkes
The Rochester Americans may have lost their season opener to the Bridgeport Islanders, but the Sabres top prospects shined in this one.
The Rochester Americans lost in heartbreaking fashion in their season-opening game vs. the Bridgeport Islanders, but the Sabres top prospects were on fire throughout the contest. Rochester just didn’t click well enough, and throughout much of the first period, they looked every bit like the Blue and Gold looked last night – out of sync.
But the likes of Ryan Johnson, Brandon Biro, and Isak Rosen, among others, weren’t having it, and they put on some incredible performances. In the third period, Ryan Johnson set up a phenomenal sequence and found Brett Murray, who passed to Brandon Biro on the right wing. Biro did the rest and scored the go-ahead goal for the Amerks.
Cheers-y for Beersy 😁
— Rochester Americans (@AmerksHockey) October 14, 2023
Brandon Biro puts us ahead and it's a 3-2 hockey game in favor of the good guys! pic.twitter.com/8gXBjsIQ5f
Unfortunately for Rochester, the goal wasn’t the game-winner. But it was a great heads-up play from Johnson, and it’s something you will see a lot this year from the blueliner.
Sabres top prospects shined despite loss in season-opener
Earlier in the contest, Isak Rosen showed us why you play every second of those 20-minute frames. He positioned himself perfectly in front of the net as Ethan Prow shot the puck. With just seconds remaining in the second period, Rosen tipped the puck just enough to help the Amerks tie the game at two.
Will you accept this Rose(y goal)? 🌹
— Rochester Americans (@AmerksHockey) October 14, 2023
All tied up with seconds to play in the second period, courtesy of Isak Rosén! pic.twitter.com/8nR44nkCwC
No, the game didn’t end the way we’d have liked it to, but it’s good to see the Sabres top prospects showing up big in their first game in the Flower City, despite some anticipated early season miscues. Other top prospects to record points in the contest include Nikita Novikov and Jiri Kulich, who were credited with helpers on Linus Weissbach’s goal to open the scoring for Rochester.
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The Amerks won’t have much time between games to redeem themselves, as they’re heading north of the border tomorrow to face the Toronto Marlies. Let’s see if they can snag a W in their road opener before the Sabres take the ice later that night on Long Island.
(Statistics provided by theAHL.com)