Amerks suffer third period collapse to Islanders

Ryan Oleksyn / Sports Writer

ROCHESTER, N.Y. - The Rochester Americans Lost 5-4 to the Bridgeport Islanders Friday evening. The Amerks held leads of 2-0 and 4-2 but were not able to seal the deal.

Rochester Americans vs Bridgeport Islanders on Friday, November. 21st, 2025. (@AmerksHockey on X)

"We had the lead, maybe sat on it a little." Said Rochester's assistant coach Nathan Paetsch. "Gave them too much ozone time and it kind of bit us."

With only four minutes and 29 seconds into the game, Rochester struck first thanks to a wrister out in front by right winger Carson Meyer. It was Meyers third goal of the season and assists were credited to Konsta Helenius and Nikita Novikov.

Carson Meyers scores on Friday, November. 21st, 2025 (@AmerksHockey on X)

The Amerks would once again set the tone early by jumping out to a 2-0 advantage. Right wing Olivier Nadeau tipped the puck right Infront and earned his second goal of the season, as assists went to Vsevolod Komarov and Zac Jones.

Oliver Nadeau scores on Friday, November. 21st, 2025 (@AmerksHockey on X)

After one period of play Rochester lead Bridgeport in shots on goal 7-6 and lead on the scoreboard by a score of 2-0.

To begin the second period, the trend would continue for Rochester as they found the back of the net once again. Left winger Riley Fiddler-Shultz would bury his fourth goal of the season as he was assisted by Nikita Novikov and Noah Laaouan. The Amerks now took a commanding lead 3-0 with 15:17 remaining in the second period.

But less than a minute later, Bridgeport forward Joey Larson would notch his eight goal of the season on the powerplay and get the Islanders on the board to cut the deficient to two. The Assist was credited to Cole McWard.

The momentum shifted quickly as the Islanders would hit paydirt once again thanks to a goal from forward Marc Gatcomb. He was assisted by Matthew Highmore, and it was Gatcomb's fourth goal of the season as Bridgeport now only trailed by one with 9:42 remaining in the second period.

After two periods of play, shots on goal were even and Rochester still led on the scoreboard 3-2.

After sacrificing two goals in the second period, Rochester wasted no time turning the tide, as left winger Graham Slaggert found the back of the net on a two on one rush down the ice. It was Slaggert's first goal of the season and he was assisted by Jagger Joshua. Rochester now led 4-2 with 18:10 remaining in the third period.

"A huge weight lifted off the back." Said Slaggert. "Probably the longest I have gone without scoring, so it's nice to finally get one. I feel like I have been playing pretty good hockey the last couple weeks and I knew it was just a matter of time."

But just when Rochester could sense an edge, Bridgeport struck back fiercely as left winger Adam Beckman slapped one off the post and in. For Beckman, it was his sixth goal on the season, and he was assisted by Matthew Maggio and Joey Larson. The Islanders were right back in it, only down one with 15:59 remaining in the third.

Bridgeport would continue to miss opportunities on the powerplay but with 8:06 remaining in the third, Islander forward Matthew Maggio would five-hole Rochester's Goaltender Topias Leinonen and notch the game even at four a piece. Assists were credited to Chris Terry and Matthew Highmore.

With one minute remaining in regulation and the scored tied four a piece, Bridgeport pushed into the Rochester zone and broke through as they found the back of the net with 37 seconds remaining. Forward Chris Taylor scored his third goal of the season, as he was assisted by Luke Rowe. The Islanders finally had their first lead of the night, and it would end up being the game winner for Bridgeport.

The Islanders cap off the comeback by putting up three unanswered goals in the third period and shock the home crowd. They faced deficits of 2-0 and 4-2 but in the end, they pull off the victory on the road.

"Just gotta be more disciplined and find a way to win those games." Said Paetsch "It's a tough one to swallow right now, there's circumstances of why we lost its just maturity level of not giving them that time and space."

The Amerks next contest is tomorrow evening as they travel to Utica, to take on the Comets at 6 p.m. With the loss, Rochester is currently 10-8-0-0 and is now tied in second place with Syracuse in the North division.