Game #64 – Tucson Roadrunners at Colorado Eagles

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2:05 p.m. MST, Budweiser Events Center, Loveland, Colorado

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Referees: Chris Waterstradt (88) Jack Young (24)

Linespersons: Neil Campbell (7) Jamie Alary (60)

The Tucson Roadrunners and Colorado Eagles meet Sunday afternoon for the second matchup of a two-game series at the Budweiser Events Center in Loveland, Colorado. Sunday’s contest also marks the fourth and final meeting between Tucson and the AHL affiliate of the Colorado Avalanche on the season, with the Roadrunners looking for a sweep after taking Saturday’s series opener by a final score of 7-1. The 7-1 win was Tucson’s third win in their last four efforts, snapping the Eagles five-game unbeaten streak in the process. Following Sunday’s matinee matchup in Colorado, the Roadrunners will continue on to the second stop of their six-game road trip to face the San Diego Gulls on Wednesday, March 29.

Three Things
1) Saturday’s series opener saw the Roadrunners fall behind 1-0 in the first period before putting up seven unanswered goals on an Eagles team that had previously outscored their opponents by 24 on their home ice this year. Tucson scored two goals or more in all three periods of their 7-1 victory on the road, marking the second time this season that they had recorded three multi-goal periods in a contest. The Roadrunners previously accomplished the feat on December 13 at home against the Coachella Valley Firebirds after trailing 2-0 in the opening 6:48 of the first period. Tucson also notched a two-goal opening frame the following night against the Firebirds for four-straight multi-goal periods, which represents their longest streak of the season. Saturday’s 7-1 win was the Roadrunners largest margin of victory this year and Tucson’s biggest win since their 9-2 defeat of the San Diego Gulls on May 1, 2021. In addition, the six-goal margin of victory was the largest ever by the Roadrunners over the Eagles, and their third-straight multi-goal win in a series opener from Colorado. Tucson’s previous best margin of victory over Colorado was three goals, which they have done four times since the Eagles joined the AHL in 2018 and most recently in a 4-1 road win on December 3, 2021.

2) The Roadrunners 7-1 win over Colorado on Saturday night featured standout performances on both sides of the ice beginning with goaltender Tyler Parks, who started in net for Tucson for the seventh-straight outing. Parks earned his seventh win of the year by stopping a career-high 40 shots that also represented the most saves by a Roadrunners backstop this season, narrowly surpassing Ivan Prosvetov’s 39 saves in a 9-4 win on December 17 against San Diego. Parks has allowed two goals or less in five of his last eight starts, as well as in three of his last four outings on the road. On offense, forward Colin Theisen kept up his impressive March with three assists for his third multi-point performance of the month. Theisen has amassed nine points over his last eight games with three multi-point efforts during that span, and his three-assist night on Saturday came exactly one year after recording his first AHL points with a goal and an assist in his second career American Hockey League contest on March 25, 2022 against Henderson.

3) With a pair of assists in Saturday’s series opener, Roadrunners forward Mike Carcone moved into a tie for first place in the American Hockey League in total scoring with 27 goals and 45 assists for 72 points. His 27 goals and 72 total points are both all-time records for Tucson, while his 45 assists are just three away from matching Chris Mueller’s record of 48 from the 2016-2017 campaign. Carcone is currently tied with Ontario Reign forward T.J. Tynan for the scoring lead with seven less games played than Tynan. The 26-year-old is also in second place in the league in shots on goal with 225, and his 14 total power-play goals trail only Colorado Eagles forward Charles Hudon’s 16. Carcone enters Sunday’s series finale with four points (1g 3a) over his last three games played and his two-assist effort on Saturday marked his 21st multiple-point performance of the season.

What’s The Word?

“I think we’ve done a good job of finding our identity [this season]. Now all we have to do is stick to it and bring it to every game. If we keep on doing this the rest of the way, we’ll give ourselves a good chance.”

Roadrunners Forward Boko Imama on Tucson maintaining their style of play over the final nine games of the 2022-2023 regular season.

Number to Know
8 – The number of players to score a goal for Tucson through three games of the four-game season series between the Roadrunners and Colorado Eagles. Seven different Tucson skaters lit the lamp in Saturday’s 7-1 road victory, while Ryan McGregor became the only Roadrunners player with multiple goals against the Eagles after previously scoring in their first meeting of the year on January 6 at the Tucson Arena. Colorado’s roster also features only one player with multiple goals in the season series, as forward Jean-Luc Foudy found the back of the net twice on January 7.

We’re Doing It Live
Tonight’s game will be broadcast live on AHLtv, as well as on the radio on FOX Sports 1450AM and the iHeartRadio app. Coverage begins at 1:45 with Roadrunners Warm-Up hosted by Jimmy Peebles, before “Voice of the Roadrunners” Adrian Denny has all the action from the Budweiser Events Center.