Game #33 – Admirals at Roadrunners
Game #33 – Milwaukee Admirals at Tucson Roadrunners
6:30 p.m. MST, Tucson Arena, Tucson, Arizona
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Tucson Weekly Game Sheet: CLICK HERE
Tucson Roadrunners Current Roster: CLICK HERE
Referees: Jackson Kozari (27) Stan Szczurek (73)
Linespersons: Anthony Caruso (54) Jake Herzog (48)
The Roadrunners will host the Milwaukee Admirals Tuesday night for their first ever regular-season meeting with the AHL affiliate of the Nashville Predators. The midweek series wraps up a four-game home stand at the Tucson Arena, with six additional home contests coming up in the month of January. The Roadrunners come into the series after their first two contests of 2023 Friday and Saturday, while the Admirals arrive from Milwaukee after a series split with the San Diego Gulls over the weekend.
Three Things
1) The Admirals are the second of three AHL Central Division opponents the Roadrunners will face this season, with four total matchups scheduled between Tucson and Milwaukee. The Roadrunners only two cross-division contests so far this year were against the Stars in Texas on December 30 and 31, while the Admirals enter the series coming off of their fourth and final meeting of the season against the Pacific Division’s San Diego Gulls. Milwaukee finished the season series against San Diego with a 3-1 record, with last Friday’s 5-0 defeat marking the only loss. Tucson is the only other Pacific Division team the Admirals will face, while the Roadrunners will welcome the Chicago Wolves to the desert later this month for their third Central Division opponent on the season.
2) Tucson has found success in midweek outings this season, with a 6-2-0-0 overall record in games from Monday to Thursday. The Roadrunners have also earned a standings point in five of their eight total series openers on home ice this year, with a 3-1-1 record over their last five. Tucson’s last Tuesday matchup came on December 20, when they netted three power-play goals in a 3-2 win over the first-place Coachella Valley Firebirds. The previous Tuesday, the Roadrunners set a franchise record with five power-play goals in a 7-2 victory against Coachella Valley. The series opener in Tucson marks just the fourth Tuesday-night outing for the Admirals this season, who have a 2-1-0-0 mark with a pair of one-goal games.
3) The Arizona Coyotes and Tucson Roadrunners have announced a handful of roster moves since the Roadrunners last took the ice on Saturday, January 7. Forward Mike Carcone was assigned to Tucson from the Coyotes and returns as the AHL’s leading scorer with 42 points in 27 appearances with the Roadrunners this season. Carcone scored a pair of goals over five games with Arizona since his first NHL call-up of the year on December 27. In addition, goaltender Ivan Prosvetov was recalled to the Coyotes on Sunday with Connor Ingram unavailable due to an illness. With Prosvetov in the NHL, the Roadrunners recalled netminder David Tendeck from the ECHL’s Atlanta Gladiators. Tendeck has a 9-6-1 record in 17 appearances with Atlanta this season, helping them to an overall record of 21-10-2-0 and first place in the ECHL’s South Division. In addition, forward Reece Vitelli was reassigned to Atlanta after appearing in a pair of games for the Roadrunners in Texas on December 30 and 31.
What’s The Word?
“When I came in here [in 2018], I had to clean up my overall game. I think I made some improvements, and that’s allowed me to go back to my roots and use my playmaking abilities. It’s been good to get that going this year.”
Roadrunners defenseman Cam Dineen on the growth of his offensive game since arriving in Tucson in 2018. The 24-year-old leads Roadrunners blue-liners in assists with 20 and is tied for fifth in the AHL among defensemen.
Number to Know
20 – The number of power-play goals scored by the Roadrunners while on the home ice this season, which remains atop of the AHL’s Pacific Division and tied for the third-most in the American Hockey League overall. The Roadrunners average more power-play goals per-game at home (1.25) than any other team in the AHL’s Western Conference, while Milwaukee enters the week tied for the second-fewest goals scored on the man-advantage as the visiting team in the West. The other side of Tucson’s special-teams shined in the weekend series against Colorado on January 6 and 7, as the Roadrunners penalty-kill went 11-for-12 overall on the weekend.
We’re Doing It Live
Tonight’s game will be broadcast live on AHLtv, as well as on the radio at FOX Sports 1450AM and the iHeartRadio app. Coverage begins at 5:00 p.m. with a special extended Pregame Edition of Roadrunners Happy Hour featuring a special guest: Tucson Captain Adam Cracknell. Regular pregame coverage will continue at 6:15 with Roadrunners Warm-Up hosted by Jimmy Peebles, before “Voice of the Roadrunners” Adrian Denny has all the action from the Tucson Arena.
