SPORTS

Amerks rip Syracuse in front of big crowd

Kevin Oklobzija

ROC

Rookie center Tim Schaller has produced 5 goals and 2 assists in the past six games
The Amerks head into the regular-season finale on a 7-0-1 hot streak
Winger Nick Deslauriers scored his first goal since joining the Amerks

The arrival of Tim Schaller as an effective, contributing member of the Rochester Americans has been a work in progress, to be sure.

When the Buffalo Sabres organization signed him out of Providence College to a free agent contract last spring, they believed he could grow into a solid power forward.

They envisioned a him using his 6-foot-2, 213-pound frame and good skating to bowl over opponents, to kill penalties, to be a hounding forechecker, to lean on more skilled players in the defensive zone and, at times, to create a few goals.

As the American Hockey League regular season comes to a close Saturday, Schaller is now that player for the Amerks, as he showed again in Friday's 5-1 victory over the Syracuse Crunch.

Schaller scored the game's first goal to trigger a three-goal first period outburst as the Amerks closed out their home season in front of 9,518 fans at Blue Cross Arena at the Rochester Community War Memorial.

"He's come a long way," said Amerks coach Chadd Cassidy, whose team finishes the regular season with a 3 p.m. matinee on Saturday in Toronto. "Every time he touches the puck, you notice it."

That maturation in pro hockey didn't happen overnight, nor was it noticable all that often over the first three months. But little by little, week by week, the 23-year-old Merrimack, N.H., native has grown into a very effective center on the Amerks' shut-down/energy line.

He's also become a goal scorer. In his first 65 games, Schaller produced 4 goals, 5 assists and 9 points. Over the past six, he has 5-2-7.

"I want the puck on my stick now," he said. "I'm not afraid to hold it a second longer and I feel really good with it.

"When you play so many games, you get to learn what kind of player you are."

He has become the perfect center on a very important line. Along with wingers Colton Gillies and Brayden Irwin, they use their size and skating to pound bodies on the forecheck while also limiting time and space for opponents.

Schaller scored three third-period goals in a 4-3 victory at Toronto on April 5, when the Amerks erased a 3-0 second-period deficit. The line produced two goals in the playoff-clinching 4-1 victory at Utica on Wednesday. And Friday they continued their steam-rolling method of attacking for the Amerks, who are 7-0-1 in the past eight.

"If we keep playing like we are, we should do a lot of good things for the team," Schaller said.

His goal off a Gillies' pass at 7:44 of the first period put the Amerks ahead and then Luke Adam and Irwin scored 1:38 apart to stretch the lead to 3-0.

When Nick Deslauriers scored 2:49 into the second period — his first goal as an Amerk after 18 for the Manchester Monarchs and then one after his trade to the Sabres — the lead was 4-0 and it was then mostly a race to run out the clock.

There was nothing on the line in the game for either team; the Amerks (37-27-6-5) are locked into seventh place in the Western Conference and Syracuse (30-32-4-9) was long-ago out of playoff contention in the East.

"We already secured a spot, I think the boys just wanted to build our confidence," Deslauriers said. "It's not always easy to play these games but the boys worked hard."

Deslauriers admitted he was anxious to show his new teammates that he could score.

"I've been struggling lately to score goals here," he said, then joked, "I'm trying to keep those for the playoffs."

KEVINO@DemocratandChronicle.com

Twitter.com/@kevinoDandC

Kevin's 3 stars

1. Nick Deslauriers, RW, Amerks

... 1 goal, was physical, and had 6 of team's 24 shots.

2. Tim Schaller, C, Amerks

... Scored first goal and line set the tempo again.

3. Brayden Irwin, RW, Amerks

... One goal, one assist.

Amerks awards

MVP:

Center Phil Varone.

Rookie of the year:

Goalie Nathan Lieuwen.

Unsung hero:

Left winger Colton Gillies.

Sportsmanship:

Center Kevin Porter.

Most improved:

Center Tim Schaller.

Community service:

Defenseman Matt MacKenzie.