Tucson Roadrunners Road Ahead: All-Star Break, Then Abbotsford 

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Upcoming Games (All times MST) 

Friday, February 10: Tucson at Abbotsford, 8:00 p.m. 

Saturday, February 11: Tucson at Abbotsford, 8:00 p.m. 

Tuesday, February 14: Tucson at San Diego, 8:00 p.m. 

Wednesday, February 15: Tucson at Coachella Valley, 8:00 p.m. 

Who’s On The Schedule 

Coming out of the AHL All-Star Break, the Roadrunners will head to the next stop on their Gem Show Road Trip: a two-game weekend set with the Canucks in Abbotsford Friday, February 10 and Saturday, February 11. The Roadrunners recently hosted the AHL affiliate of the Vancouver Canucks at the Tucson Arena January 28 and 29 for their first two meetings of the season. Tucson took both contests by multiple goals as part of an overall four-game winning streak, as they outscored Abbotsford 11 to five over the weekend series with final scores of 6-3 and 5-2. The Roadrunners notched four multiple-goal periods in the series, while forward J.S. Dea recorded his first professional hat trick in the series opener and has since been recalled to the Arizona Coyotes.  Tucson net-minders Tyler Parks and Ivan Prosvetov combined for a .932 save percentage in the Roadrunners second-straight series sweep of the Canucks at home. Following the pair of games in Abbotsford, Tucson will wrap up the road trip in California with midweek matchups against the San Diego Gulls and Coachella Valley Firebirds Tuesday and Wednesday. 

Carcone’s All-Star Weekend 

LAVAL, CANADA – FEBRUARY 6: The 2023 AHL All-Star Classic Game at the Place Bell on February 6, 2023 in Laval, QC, Canada. (Photo by Vitor Munhoz / Arena du Rocket Inc.)

Tucson forward Mike Carcone represented the Roadrunners and the AHL’s Pacific Division at the 2023 AHL All-Star Classic over the weekend in Laval, QC. The selection marked Carcone’s first time being named an AHL All-Star, as the 26-year-old participated in three events on Sunday in the All-Star Skills Competition and skated for the Pacific Division squad in the All-Star Classic on Monday. Carcone impressed in the CCM Fastest Skater Competition, finishing in second place with a recorded time of 13.282 that would have taken first place in five of the last six NHL. Fastest Skater events. Carcone trailed only Hershey’s Ethen Frank, whose time of 12.915 set a new AHL Fastest Skater record. In Monday’s AHL All-Star Classic, Carcone tallied four assists over four three-on-three matchups, as the Pacific Division earned their first ever All-Star victory with a 1-0 win over the Atlantic Division in the final. Carcone’s four assists led the event, while his four total points were tied for fourth in the event behind three of his Pacific Division teammates. 

Weekend With The Reign 

The Roadrunners spent the weekend before the AHL All-Star Break in Ontario for a pair of games against the Reign. Tucson took the series opener by a score of 2-0, as goaltender Ivan Prosvetov earned a 23-save shutout while forwards Hudson Elynuik and Milos Kelemen each lit the lamp in the win. Elynuik’s goal with 3:09 gone by in the second period was the difference through 57:58, before Kelemen’s empty-net tally with 2:02 remaining in regulation secured the victory for Tucson. The Reign took the series finale by a score of 5-2, as the Roadrunners trailed by one at 3-2 before a pair of empty-net goals by Ontario in the final 1:07 of the contest. The series marked the Roadrunners final trip to the Toyota Arena in Ontario this season, with the remaining two matchups in the eight-game season series scheduled for March 21 and 22 in Tucson. 

See You Soon 

After the upcoming series in Abbotsford, the Roadrunners will be back at Tucson Arena the following weekend for a pair of games with the Henderson Silver Knights Saturday, February 18 and Sunday, February 19. The weekend series with the AHL affiliate of the Vegas Golden Knights marks the only Tucson home games in the month of February, compared to eight contests on the road. The series opener will be the fourth Roadrunners game this season to be televised live in Southern Arizona on The CW Tucson, while also featuring a Youth Jersey Giveaway presented by DentalPros. The following afternoon is Kids Day Presented by Stantec, with all kids 12 and under admitted for free at the Tucson Arena Box Office with a paying adult. For more information and to purchase tickets, visit TucsonRoadrunners.com/Fun.  

Tenacious Dea 

Following Tucson’s weekend series in Ontario, the Arizona Coyotes recalled Roadrunners forward J.S. Dea to the NHL. Dea represents the fifth skater to be recalled from Tucson this season, joining forwards Laurent Dauphin, Mike Carcone, Jan Jenik and Milos Kelemen. The 28-year-old is coming off of a stretch where he recorded 10 points (6g 4a) in as many outings and is currently tied for second on the team in total scoring with 19 goals and 18 assists for 27 total points. Dea is one of three Tucson skaters to have played in al 46 games so far this season, joining Nathan Smith and Vlad Kolyachonok. In his Coyotes debut on Monday, February 6, Dea logged 7:41 of ice time witth a hit, a blocked shot, and a shot on goal as the Coyotes defeated the Minnesota Wild 3-2. After his appearance with Arizona, Dea was assigned to the Roadrunners Tuesday morning. 

Ivan Says No 

Tucson Roadrunners goaltender Ivan Prosvetov opened the weekend series against the Reign by posting his first shutout of the season on Friday in Ontario. The 23-year-old stopped all 23 shots faced in Tucson’s 2-0 series-opening win for his fifth professional shutout and fourth as a member of the Roadrunners. The 23-save effort represented Prosvetov’s second-fewest saves needed for a shutout in his AHL career, after the Roadrunners limited the Texas Stars to just 19 shots on Ivan in a 4-0 win on October 23, 2021. Prosvetov has won each of his last three starts with just three goals allowed and a save percentage of .957 (66-for-69) during that span. Entering the week, Prosvetov ranks fifth in the AHL in total saves with 713 across 27 appearances. 

Dineen Dials It Up 

Fifth-year Roadrunners forward Cam Dineen enters the week on a scoring streak of three games (2g 2a), with 10 points (2g 8a) over his last 11 outings overall. The 24-year-old has set career highs in assists (29) and total points (33) after making his National Hockey League debut and appearing in 34 NHL contests with the Coyotes last season. Dineen has consistently been at or near the top of the American Hockey League this season in assists, power-play points, and total scoring by a defenseman. His next appearance with Tucson will mark his 200th career AHL outing, all as a member of the Roadrunners. 

Did You Know? 

The upcoming weekend set from Abbotsford will wrap up the four-game season series between the Roadrunners and Canucks, marking the first season series to be completed by Tucson this year. With 26 games remaining on the schedule, the Roadrunners will take on 12 different teams during that span. Their next season series to conclude will be the eight-game set with the Coachella Valley Firebirds, ending on Wednesday, February 15 in Palm Desert. 

On The Air 

Tucson Roadrunners Happy Hour airs every Tuesday at 5 p.m. on FOX Sports 1450AM and the iHeartRadio app, with a podcast version also available after each episode on the iHeartRadio app. This week, co-hosts Adrian Denny, Brett Fera and Kim Cota-Robles will be joined by a member of the Roadrunners from their All-Star Break. In addition, a new episode of the Tucson Roadrunners Insider Podcast released on Sunday, as TucsonRoadrunners.com’s Jimmy Peebles and Guest Host Brett Fera reacted to Mike Carcone in the AHL Skills Competition and heard from forward Laurent Dauphin after the two-game set in Ontario. The podcast can be found on the iHeartRadio App.