The Amerks rallied from a 3-1 deficit in their playoff opener Thursday night, but a late goal by Toronto's Jerry D'Amigo dealt Rochester a 4-3 setback in Game One. All 11 games played by the teams this season have been decided by one goal.
“You look at our lineup and we’ve got a team that can win this series if we play the right way for 60 minutes,” Amerks coach Ron Rolston told reporters in Toronto.
The Amerks opened the scoring on a goal by Phil Varone but needed third-period goals by Marcus Foligno and T.J. Brennan to catch the Marlies. D'Amigo's second of the game with 4:16 to play rendered the comeback moot.
Game Two of the best-of-five series is Saturday afternoon in Toronto. The Amerks host Game Three on Monday and, if necessary, Game Four on Wednesday.
---John Vogl
