Chops Down Amerks 4-1

Thanks to 34 saves from JP Levasseur and early scoring, the Iowa Chops continued their winning ways on Friday night with a 4-1 road win over the Rochester Americans. The Chops started the 4th game of the seven-game road swing on the right note as just :28 seconds in some good forechecking by Andrew Ebbett got the puck to the point for Brian Salcido, who's slapshot was stopped by Amerks goaltender David Shantz, but the loose rebound was picked up by Drew Miller and smashed home for his team-leading 10th goal of the season. The Chops wasted no time making it 2-0, this time taking advantage of their power play as Troy Bodie smashed home a loose rebound in front after a drive from the point from John de Gray and more help from Adrian Veideman. The rest of the 1st period belonged to Chops goaltender JP Levasseur and the rest of the penalty kill, who killed off three straight power plays including a 5 on 3 and kept the Amerks off the scoreboard in the 1st period w ith 11 Amerks shots vs. the Chops 12 shots on goal. The 2nd period began with some pressure from the Amerks who continued to pepper JP Levasseur, but the goaltender from Victoriaville, Quebec held strong to maintain the 2-0 Chops lead. The Chops made it 3-0 thanks to a rush down the side by Ryan Donally, who sent a shot from a sharp angle in on Shantz, who made the save, but let the rebound loose for newcomer Matt Caruana to poke home for his first-ever goal in the AHL and as an Iowa Chops. Brian Salcido picked up his second assist of the game on the play. Rochester finally took advantage of their fifth straight power play as a shot from the point was deflected in front and shot home from the side by Janis Sprukts to give the Amerks their first goal of the night. Rochester outshot Iowa 15-7 in the period, but the lead remained at two. The 3rd period was all Chops, again backboned by Levasseur who may have played his best game in a Chops uniform ultimately ending up with 34 saves on the night. The Chops made the Amerks pay again on the power play late in the final stanza with a goal from TJ Trevelyan, who one-timed a drive from the slot after some great give-and-go passes from Miller and Veideman. The Chops won 4-1 and remain pefect when scoring first and leading after the 1st and 2nd periods. The Chops face the Lake Erie Monsters on Saturday at 7:30pm (6:30pm central)


AND FOR ANOTHER POINT OF VIEW

Does Stickum work with goalie equipment?

After a 4-1 loss to the Iowa Chops on Friday night, Rochester Americans coach Benoit Groulx may want to know.

David Shantz allowed two rebound goals and a third goal came on a sharp-angle shot that hit him and caromed into the net.

As a result, the Amerks ended up in a 3-0 hole in the first 27 minutes and couldn't recover, falling to 3-18-0-2 while the Chops improved to 13-7-1-1.

"We didn't start playing until it was 3-0," center Drew Larman said.

The poor start troubled Groulx. He wasn't blaming Shantz for the first goal but he did on the second.

"The first shift we're down 1-0, then a bad goal and it's 2-zip after seven minutes," Groulx said. "To me, it's a lack of preparation. We didn't get involved. Why is that? I don't know."

He wants his older players to provide the answer.

"I expect some guys to show the way; obviously they're not," Groulx said.

Iowa's Drew Miller, the brother of former Amerk goalie Ryan Miller, and Troy Bodie scored in the first period, Ryan Donally scored in the second, and T. J. Trevelyan steered in a perfect pass in the third.

Janis Sprukts scored the Amerks' goal in the second period on a power play.

There would be no comeback, however. The poor start doomed the Amerks, who thought they could build on their strong play of last weekend.

"We have to start to play when the referee drops the puck on the first shift," winger Michal Repik said. "They played better than us, that's why they won."

Miller's goal came just 28 seconds after the first puck dropped. Shantz stopped Brian Salcido's point shot, but it dropped behind him and Miller swatted it in.

"We recognized how well Rochester has played the last little while and that they were feeling good about themselves," Iowa coach Gord Dineen said. "When you get scored on in the first minute ... it takes the wind out of your sails."

The Chops used the power play to extend their lead to 2-0 at 7:13. Shantz stopped a shot from the center point by John de Gray but couldn't find the rebound and Troy Bodie swatted it in.

As the puck dropped on the ensuing faceoff, Amerks tough-guy winger Riley Emmerson dropped the gloves with Donally. The heavyweight bout ended when Emmerson connected with a punishing right hand that cut Donally near the left eye.

Donally came back just fine, though, scoring seven minutes into the second period for a 3-0 lead. Donally, from a sharp angle on the right-wing boards, threw a shot on goal and the puck hit Shantz and somehow went into the net.