Tucson Roadrunners Road Ahead: I Wish They All Could Be California

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Upcoming Games On California Road Trip (All Times MST)

Wednesday, April 3, Tucson @ Bakersfield, 6:30 p.m.  (Live Watch Party at Cold Beers and Cheeseburgers)

Saturday, April 6, Tucson @ San Diego, 6:00 p.m.

Sunday, April 7, Tucson @ San Diego, 5:00 p.m.

Roadrunners Record Through 64 Games: 37-22-3-2 (79 points), third place in the Pacific Division, fourth place in the Western Conference.

Pacific Playoff Watch This Week:

Coachella Valley Firebirds 41-14-5-4, (91 points), First Place

  • Thursday, April 4 Coachella Valley 3 – San Jose 1
  • Saturday, April 6 @ Abbotsford Canucks at 7:00 p.m. PST
  • Sunday, April 7 @ Abbotsford Canucks at 4:00 p.m. PST

Ontario Reign 37-21-3-4, (81 points), second Place

  • Wednesday, April 3 Ontario 5 – Henderson 4 OT
  • Saturday, April 6 vs. San Jose Barracuda at 6:00 p.m. PST

Colorado Eagles 36-22-5-2, (79 points), Fourth Place

  • Tuesday, April 2 Texas 5 – Colorado 3
  • Wednesday, April 3 Colorado 3 -Texas 3
  • Saturday, April 6, Henderson Silver Knights 4 – Colorado Eagles 1
  • Sunday, April 7 @ Henderson Silver Knights at 1:00 p.m. PST

Calgary Wranglers 35-24-5-3, (78 Points), Fifth Place

  • Friday, April 5, Calgary 5 – Bakersfield 2
  • Saturday, April 6 @ Bakersfield Condors at 7:00 p.m. PST

Bakersfield Condors 35-25-2-2, (76 points), seventh Place

  • Wednesday, April 3 Bakersfield 4 – Tucson 1
  • Friday, April 5, Calgary 5 – Bakersfield 2
  • Saturday, April 6 vs. Calgary Wranglers at 7:00 p.m. PST

Abbotsford Canucks 36-24-4-2, (78 points), Sixth Place

  • Tuesday April 2 Abbotsford 4 – Manitoba 3
  • Wednesday, April 3 Abbotsford 5 – Manitoba 2
  • Saturday, April 6 vs. Coachella Valley Firebirds at 7:00 p.m. PST
  • Sunday, April 7 vs. Coachella Valley Firebirds at 7:00 p.m. PST

Check Out The Entire AHL Playoff Primer HERE

Back To California:

The Roadrunners head back to California for another three-game road trip versus the Bakersfield Condors for one game on Wednesday, April 3 and the San Diego Gulls for two on Saturday, April 6 and Sunday, April 7. After their recent set of games versus California teams, the Roadrunners stand at a record of 10-4-0-0 when playing in California. Tucson’s only losing record this season comes against Bakersfield at 2-5-0-0. However, away teams in the season series are 6-1-0-0 in seven total games between the two. Tucson closes out their season series with the San Diego Gulls this weekend; having won the season series with the Anaheim Ducks affiliate on Saturday, April 30 with a 7-3 win to improve to 5-1 against the Gulls.

FOUR!!!:

In Tucson’s 7-3 win over the San Diego Gulls, the team put up another four-goal period in the second frame en-route to the dominant win. Though the team is going back on the road, the recent home games are something to not look past with the capability of scoring. In the last five home games, the Roadrunners scored four goals in a period three times: winning every match in those three games. On the season, Tucson has scored four goals in a period six times; all coming at the TCC; in which the team is undefeated at 6-0-0-0 when doing so. In those six periods, Aku Raty leads the way in scoring with nine points (3 goals, 6 assists), Josh Doan (Recalled to Arizona Coyotes) is second with six points (five goals, 1 assist) and Jenik is third with five points (3 goals, 2 assists). In addition, Steven Kampfer (1 goal, 3 assists), Curtis Douglas (4 assists) and Hunter Drew (3 goals, 1 assist) all have four points in the four-goal periods. The Roadrunners also have four home games left on the regular season schedule when they return to face the Colorado Eagles on Friday, April 12 and Saturday, April 13.

A March To Remember:

The Roadrunners finished March with an 8-4-1-1 record; their most wins in a month since a 9-2-0-0 December. In the month of March, the team averaged 3.42 goals per game including a 4.25 goals-for average with a 6-1-1-0 record at the TCC. Aku Raty finished March as the team’s highest scorer with 16 points (3 goals, 13 assists) in 14 games; which was also the fifth best in the AHL. Raty’s 16-point March is the second-best March in Roadrunners history behind Carter Camper’s 17 points (3 goals, 17 assists); which he set in 2018 right after being traded to the Roadrunners on February 26, 2018. Defenseman Steven Kampfer also had a tremendous month of March with 13 points (1 goals, 12 assists) in 14 games; which not only led the Roadrunners from defensemen but the entire AHL from the blue line. Jan Jenik had 13 points (5 goals, 7 assists) in March while Justin Kirkland (5 goals, 5 assists) and Josh Doan (5 goals, 5 assists) finished March with double digit points of 10. Goaltenders Matthew Villalta and Dylan Wells combined for a 2.77 goals against average and .909 save percentage in March; including Wells’  4-1-0-0 record, 2.80 goals against average and .920 save percentage in the Month.

The Final Stretch:

The Roadrunners have just eight regulation games remaining on the schedule as April 20 caps off the season for the Roadrunners against the San Jose Barracuda. Tucson has the goal of hosting playoffs in the first round of the Calder Cup Playoffs with WhiteOut Tucson at the TCC. Entering the week, the Roadrunners are in line to host the first round in second place of the Pacific Division; also meaning if the Roadrunners advance to round two, they will also host the Pacific Division Semifinals. Places two-through-four remain up in play as Tucson (79 points), Ontario (79 points), Colorado (77 points) and Calgary (76 points) are separated by just three standings points. Tucson has not hosted a playoff game since May 4, 2018.

We’ll Do It Live:
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 Adrian Denny with Co-Hosts Kim Cota-Robles and Brett Fera are joined by Roadrunners defenseman Cam Crotty. In addition, the latest episode of the Tucson Roadrunners Insider Podcast dropped on Saturday after Tucson’s 7-3 victory over the San Diego Gulls as the guys go over what’s to come in April for the tight Pacific Division race.