Roadrunners Recap: Chicago 3 Tucson 0: 10/30/2019

Game #9: Chicago (3) at Tucson (0)

SOG: CHI (30) – TUC (32)

PP: CHI (1/4) – TUC (0/2)

CHI SCORING: Elvenes (4pp), Duke (2en), McGinn (3en)

TUC SCORING: — 

Big Bad Wolves

Just 24 hours after Ivan Prosvetov and Oscar Dansk combined to go 55/58 en route to a 2-1 Wolves win, Erik Kallgren and Garret Sparks took their turn in a duo of strongly goaltended games Wednesday night at Tucson Arena.

The first 39+ minutes of action provided each club with a set of power play opportunities but it came clear by that point that both netminders were up to the tests faced at both even strength play and on the man advantage.

However, with just 12 seconds to play in the second period, league-leading point scorer Lucas Elvenes crept behind a shorthanded Roadrunners crew and took a feed on the blocker side of Kallgren from Curtis McKenzie to go ahead 1-0.  For Elvenes, he now paces the league with 15 points in Chicago’s ten games.

The mark was the only goal of the night that would get by Kallgren, who was making his first American Hockey League start in Southern Arizona.

The Wolves added a pair of empty net goals inside the final two minutes and that was the entirety of the night’s scoring, paving the way to a 32-save 3-0 shutout win for Sparks.

THEY SAID IT

“I didn’t like the way we attacked tonight.  I thought we spent way too much time along the perimeter and we don’t generate enough offense five-on-five.”

– Roadrunners Head Coach Jay Varady

DON’T OVERLOOK IT

Tucson’s offense has gone missing in action over the course of the last two games but it won’t stay that way forever.

Tucson has a practice day to regroup and then a travel day Friday to get back on track before another weekend of tests in California.

GOTTA SEE IT

Erik Kallgren was impressive throughout, making several timely saves to keep the game at zero’s or Tucson only down by one.  Check out his stop on a big time stop on Nicolas Roy.

PHOTO OF THE GAME

Roadrunners forward Beau Bennett looks on from the bench after coming off the ice from a shift.