A New Chapter in Rochester
After a 15‑year journey that took him from the NHL to the AHL and across Europe, former defenseman Philip Samuelsson is swapping his skates for a clipboard in Rochester.
Samuelsson’s professional résumé reads like a travel log of hockey’s global reach. Over nearly nine hundred games he logged 151 points, reached the Calder Cup playoffs on fifty‑one occasions and earned a plus‑76 rating while grinding in the AHL.
Selected in the second round of the 2009 draft by the Pittsburgh Penguins, he would later appear in thirteen NHL contests for both Pittsburgh and Arizona, experiences that gave him a taste of the league’s highest stage.
The last seven seasons saw him honing his craft in the Czech Extraliga, Swedish Hockey League, German DEL and Austrian EBEL, where he continued to mentor younger players and adapt to different styles of play.
His arrival coincides with a staff reshuffle that sees head coach Michael Leone retaining his post while veteran assistant Scott Moser joins Samuelsson, forming a trio of seasoned minds eager to shape the Amerks’ future.
Leaders in the organization say his blend of durability, international perspective and playoff pedigree will be invaluable as the team looks to build on recent successes and push for deeper postseason runs.