WNY and Buffalo NY Hockey Coverage
October Edition
Jiri Kulich recently returned to Rochester. ©2025, Micheline Veluvolu, Rochester Americans
ROCHESTER – It felt like only a matter of time before Jiri Kulich put his mark on the Americans’ hotly contested second-round series against the Laval Rocket. The center, after all, is now an NHL player, having spent nearly all season with the Buffalo Sabres.
Kulich, however, has returned to the AHL for one final run with the Amerks during the Calder Cup Playoffs. Having just about outgrown the minors, he’s expected to be a ... Read the full article
Brendan Warren talks to teammate Michael Houser on March 30. ©2025, Micheline Veluvolu, Rochester Americans
ROCHESTER – Brendan Warren had nothing going on in his hockey career. The Americans winger couldn’t even find a place to skate.
Two NHL teams that had held his rights passed on signing him. After finishing an underwhelming tenure at the University of Michigan, he briefly latched on with the Indy Fuel, an ECHL team.
At the end of training camp in 2019, the Fuel cut him.
So Warren, a third-round pick by the Arizona ... Read the full article
Rochester’s Noah Ostlund tries to bring the puck in front of Laval goalie Cayden Primeau on Wednesday. ©2025, Micheline Veluvolu, Rochester Americans
ROCHESTER – The Laval Rocket has won seven of its nine meetings with the Americans this season, including Wednesday’s opener in the AHL North Division final.
The Amerks, of course, have ranked among the AHL’s heavyweights all season, boasting a deep and skilled lineup. However, Laval, having finished first overall, is the class of the AHL, which it proved again in Game 1 of the best-of-five series in the Calder Cup Playoffs.
The Rocket erased ... Read the full article
Devon Levi posted back-to-back shutouts to help Rochester advance in the Calder Cup Playoffs. ©2025, Micheline Veluvolu, Rochester Americans
ROCHESTER – Buffalo Sabres prospect Devon Levi can’t tell you how many shutouts he has recorded this season or the gaudy save percentage he registered during the Americans’ first-round sweep that leads the Calder Cup Playoffs.
“I don’t know my shutouts,” Levi told the Times Herald following Friday’s practice in Blue Cross Arena. “I don’t know my save percentage, either.”
For the record, the goalie has compiled nine shutouts, including an AHL-best seven during the ... Read the full article
Konsta Helenius registered three points in Rochester’s first-round playoff series. ©2025, Micheline Veluvolu
ROCHESTER – In the not-so-distant past, Buffalo Sabres prospect Konsta Helenius would’ve been anywhere but in front of the net battling an opponent.
“First half of the year … he would be somewhere in the corner, hiding in the second or third row, hiding in the weeds, you know?” Americans assistant coach Vinny Prospal told the Times Herald following Friday’s practice in Blue Cross Arena.
But Helenius, who turns 19 on Sunday, has matured throughout ... Read the full article
James Reimer got hot down the stretch. ©2025, Micheline Veluvolu
BUFFALO – James Reimer’s superb goaltending down the stretch for the Sabres showed he possesses the talent to return for his 16th season.
Even at 37, an advanced age, he ranked among the NHL’s hottest netminders, compiling a gaudy 8-2-0 record from March 23 until the season ended, including a career-long seven-game winning streak. His win total during that torrid stretch was tied for first in the league with Los Angeles Kings goalie Darcy Kuemper, ... Read the full article
Kale Clague’s four points are tied for the lead in the Calder Cup Playoffs. ©2025, Micheline Veluvolu, Rochester Americans
ROCHESTER – Technically, Americans defensemen Kale Clague had played a playoff game in pro hockey before last weekend.
In 2021, when the COVID-19 pandemic forced the AHL to play a truncated schedule, it did not hold the Calder Cup Playoffs. However, some Pacific Division teams held a small postseason tournament at the Anaheim Ducks’ practice facility with no fans in attendance.
Clague, 26, played one game for the Ontario Reign after the Los Angeles Kings ... Read the full article
Rochester’s Isak Rosen (left) congratulates Devon Levi on Sunday afternoon. ©2025, Rochester Americans
ROCHESTER – Don’t let the 4-0 final fool you. For much of Sunday afternoon, the Americans held a tenuous grip on a one-goal lead against the Syracuse Crunch.
After rookie winger Konsta Helenius put them up early, the Amerks could’ve unraveled in the second period of Game 2 of their AHL North Division semifinal series.
The Crunch buzzed around goalie Devon Levi, outshooting the home team 15-6 and also hitting the post during a late ... Read the full article
Brendan Warren is in his fifth season with Rochester. ©2025, Rochester Americans
ROCHESTER – Mike Leone played at three colleges and grinded in the minors and Europe for three seasons before beginning the next phase of his hockey life. So the Americans coach has a soft spot for his depth players who have battled and waited for their opportunities.
Leone knows their buy-in and contributions are vital to a team’s success, especially in the Calder Cup Playoffs.
To wit: in Friday’s 3-2 win over the Syracuse Crunch ... Read the full article
Tyson Kozak played 21 games with Buffalo this season. ©2025, Micheline Veluvolu, Rochester Americans
ROCHESTER – Center Tyson Kozak’s latest stint with the Americans could be his last one. Having recently impressed the Sabres during a 21-game look, he appears ready to graduate to Buffalo next season and earn full-time duty.
His gritty, mature style might entrench him on the Sabres’ third or fourth line for years.
Of course, the oft-injured Kozak, who on Friday played in Game 1 of the AHL North Division semifinal against the Syracuse Crunch, ... Read the full article