Devon Levi's 34-save, 100th Game Propels Amerks to 5-1 Win in Utica

Devon Levi stood tall in his 100th appearance for the Rochester Americans, turning aside 34 shots as Rochester posted a 5-1 win over the Utica Comets at the Adirondack Bank Center. The victory capped a dominant weekend for the Amerks and sent them into the AHL All-Star break off back-to-back wins.

Rochester jumped to a 3-0 lead by midsecond period and never trailed. Carson Meyer opened the scoring spree with a goal at the 10:11 mark of the second period after Leschyshyn stripped a Comets skater at the right faceoff circle and centered a pass atop the crease. Trevor Kuntar and Joshua each had shots that rang off the post as the Amerks pressed for more before intermission. Despite being outshot 17-9 through two periods, Rochester carried a three-goal edge into the third.

An early delay-of-game penalty by Rochester in the third proved costly when Utica converted on the man advantage. Former Amerk Kyle Criscuolo fed Topias Vilen, who scored at 4:05 of the period to spoil Levi's bid for a shutout. Seven minutes later Rochester answered; Isak Rosén and Zac Jones set up Konsta Helenius at the left circle for Helenius' 10th goal of the season with nine minutes remaining. Rosén added an empty-netter later in the frame, his 24th goal of the season and fourth of the weekend, from Wahlberg and Helenius to seal the 5-1 final.

The box score reflected a discrepancy between possession and result: Utica outshot Rochester 35-25 for the game, underscoring how Levi's performance and timely finishing tilted the outcome. Rochester also took an early delay-of-game penalty in the first period, a sequence the Amerks later repeated in the third. Nico Daws was identified in photos as the Comets' goaltender during the loss.

Individual milestones highlighted Rochester's depth. Isak Rosén now has 24 goals in 30 games, tying him for third in the AHL in goals and capping a four-goal weekend that began with a natural hat trick against Springfield. Carson Meyer scored his ninth goal and reached 20 points, becoming the seventh Amerk this season to hit that mark and marking his sixth straight season with 20 or more points. Zac Jones recorded his team-leading 12th multi-point game and has five goals in his last eight AHL contests. Olivier Nadeau collected two points and reached double digits in AHL scoring for the first time, totaling 11 points on the year.

Utica coach Ryan Parent acknowledged his club's chances and where they fell short. "We liked how we were playing," Parent said. "We had enough decent looks and pucks were laying around in front of their net. I don't think we did a good enough job getting to them." He added praise for Levi while calling for cleaner net-front play: "Levi did a good job. I think he saw a lot of the pucks, and he was really aggressive on the shooters. He didn't give them a lot to shoot at." Parent summarized the defensive lapse on Rochester's early goals: "We were just too soft at the net front for those goals."

The result pushed Rochester to 23-16-4-2 and continued a stretch in which the Amerks have earned points in 19 of 27 games dating to Nov. 22, 2025. They outscored Springfield and Utica 9-1 over the weekend and have now won their last two meetings with the Comets by a combined 8-1. As the league pauses for the All-Star break, Rochester carries momentum and clear offensive leaders in Rosén, Jones, Helenius and Meyer, while Utica heads to the midseason pause with questions about traffic in front of the net and finishing on the attack.