Introduction
It was a superb season for the Utica Comets. It came in the first season of the 10-year agreement with the New Jersey Devils’ organization to serve as the team’s AHL affiliate. The Comets, led by head coach Kevin Dineen, posted a tremendous 43-20-8-1 record.
This season was good enough for a North Division crown as well as the fourth-best point percentage in the league. This was the first Devils’ AHL affiliate to win a division title since the 1997-98 season. It is also the first time the Devils’ AHL affiliate has made the AHL playoffs since the 2015-16 season.
Format and Schedule
The AHL playoff format is a little different this year. However, it is confirmed that Utica will start their playoff run against the Rochester Americans. The Americans – Buffalo Sabres’ affiliate – defeated the Belleville Senators 2-0 in a best-of-three series. Utica is 6-5-1-0 against Rochester this season.
The division semifinals series with be a best-of-five set with games one, two, and five (if necessary) in Utica. The full schedule is below:
- Game 1 – Tuesday, May 10th: Rochester at Utica, 7:00 PM ET
- Game 2 – Saturday, May 14th: Rochester at Utica, 7:00 PM ET
- Game 3 – Sunday, May 15th: Utica at Rochester, 5:00 PM ET
- Game 4* – Tuesday, May 17th: Utica at Rochester, 7:05 PM ET
- Game 5* – Thursday, May 19th: Rochester at Utica, 7:00 PM ET
You can watch the AHL playoff games via a paid subscription though AHL TV. The cost for the playoff package is $29.99. We will also have updates and coverage of every Utica game on each of our social media pages.
Team Overviews
Utica Comets
The Comets were led by an offensive quartet of Chase De Leo, Fabian Zetterlund, A.J. Greer, and Alexander Holtz. Each were, or were very close to being a point-per-game player. In doing so, they helped propel Utica to a top-eight offense. The team’s power play also ranked sixth in the AHL. Other offensive options that should not be overlooked are forwards Ryan Schmelzer (18 goals), Nolan Foote, Graeme Clarke, and veterans Joe Gambardella and Brian Flynn. Frederik Gauthier, who is currently injured and being listed as “a few days away,” per Ben Birnell of the Daily Sentinel, also did a lot of strong work for the Comets, especially defensively.
Defensively, the Comets were led by a pair of veterans and a pair of young guns. Robbie Russo and Tyler Wotherspoon severed as a strong veteran presence for a very young team. Meanwhile, Reilly Walsh (43 points in 70 games) and Kevin Bahl were relied on quite a bit. Nikita Okhotiuk and Michael Vukojevic also played a majority of the season. The Comets had the ninth ranked penalty kill in the league.
By far the Comets largest strength was in net. Akira Schmid and Nico Daws led the way with Schmid carrying the load with Daws’ spending a majority of the season in the NHL. Schmid had a 0.911 save percentage and compiled a 22-8-5 record. Daws played in 21 games throughout the year and had a 0.916 save percentage and 14-4-2 record. It will be extremely interesting to see who gets the game one nod.
Notes:
Colton White played in six games for the Comets. According to the AHL transactions page, he was not sent down when New Jersey purged their roster for the AHL Playoffs. So, as of now, it seems unlikely White will participate.
Chase Stillman was assigned to Utica on May 1st after the conclusion of his OHL season. He played in 59 games this junior season totaling 19 goals, 30 assists, and 49 points with Sudbury and Peterborough. The 2021 first round selection certainly had an underwhelming final year in the OHL. It also appears that we will not be seeing Stillman for at least the first series. As Ben Birnell of the Daily Sentinel reports he is not going to be available for the Comets during the first series.
Lastly, Shakhir Mukhamadullin was added to the Comets’ roster on Monday morning. Per the press release from the Devils, it does seem like a guarantee that he will play in the playoffs. However, per Ben Birnell of the Daily Sentinel, it appears head coach Kevin Dineen hinted that Mukhamadullin my get at least a game.
Rochester Americans
Rochester edged out the Toronto Marlies to sneak into the playoffs with a 37-29-7-3 record. To do so, they relied heavily on Sabres’ 2020 first and second round selections Jack Quinn and JJ Peterka.
Peterka led the team in scoring with 68 points in 70 games, while Quinn, the former eighth overall selection, exploded for 61 points in only 45 games. Arttu Ruotsalainen (five points in two first round games versus Belleville), Sean Malone (37 points in 39 games played), and Mark Jankowski (27 points in 32 games played) also did strong work. Lastly, former 17th overall pick Peyton Krebs had 15 points in 18 games with Rochester this season. He also had three assists in the two-game series with Belleville. The Americans’ main strength was definitely offense as they ranked in the top-ten in goal-scoring. Their power play also clicked at a 23.5% rate which was third-best in the league.
Defensively, and in between the pipes, they were a bit of a mess. Rochester gave up 270 goals which was the second-most in the AHL this season. On defense Ethan Prow (49 points in 70 games played), Casey Fitzgerald, and Josh Teves led the way.
Former Devil Aaron Dell got both of the starts for the Americans against Belleville in the first round. He made 58 saves against 64 shots faced (0.906 save percentage). During the regular season he posted a 0.909 save percentage in 22 games for Rochester and a 0.893 save percentage in 12 games for the Buffalo Sabres.
Notes:
Defenseman Mattias Samuelsson (22 games played) played a large role for the Americans this past season. He was one of their top defenseman. He did not play in either game one or two against Belleville. His status is something to monitor.
Besides Aaron Dell, the other Rochester goaltending options are Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen (0.900 save percentage in 36 games played) and Michael Houser (0.900 save percentage in 11 games played).
Matchups to Watch
Jack Quinn Versus Utica Defense
Jack Quinn turned in an absurd year for Rochester. His 26 goals and 35 assists in 61 games played was good for a point-per-game average of 1.36. This number ranked third in the AHL among skaters with at least 15 games played. His game score per games played of 1.22 ranked fourth among 491 qualified forwards in the AHL.
Belleville was able to hold Quinn pointless in the two-game first round series. He did register six shots though. Regardless, whenever Quinn is on the ice the Comets must be aware of where he is at all times.
Comets’ Goaltenders Versus High-Powered Rochester Offense
As the above described, the Americans’ offense is their main strength and can be lethal at times. Their core of Peyton Krebs, Arttu Ruotsalainen, JJ Peterka, and Quinn is terrific. Whoever gets the nod for the Comets in between the pipes will need to be strong. Given Rochester’s defensive and goaltending deficiencies, the Comets should be able to score. But, will they be able to stop the high-powered Rochester offense?
Both Akira Schmid and Nico Daws were strong for large parts of the season. However, when Utica started losing some firepower to New Jersey, the goalie play and the play in front of them began to falter. With the team back at full strength, expect the goalies also to look more like they did in the beginning of the season when the Comets were dominating.
Finishing Against Aaron Dell
The Americans gave up 270 goals this season. They also bled a lot of chances as they gave up an average of 32-plus shots a game. For comparisons sake, the Comets only gave up roughly 29.8 shots per game this season. Combined this with a team save percentage of 0.891 this season, it does not appear to be a recipe for sustained success.
Now, Dell should be an improvement over what Rochester saw for a majority of the season. So, Utica must burry the chances that they create against the veteran goaltender. Goal scorers such as Fabian Zetterlund and Alexander Holtz should be salivating at what could be this series.
Wrap-Up
It was a real joy to watch what head coach Kevin Dineen was able to do with this group. It has been a long time since the Devils’ organization had an AHL affiliate that had the season like the Comets did. Hopefully, this results in a long run in the playoffs.
As mentioned above, you can watch these playoff games via a paid subscription with AHL TV. Also, you can follow along to our social media pages where we will provide coverage and games updates.
Note, another great resource for all things Utica Comets is Ben Birnell of the Daily Sentinel.