Game #47 – Roadrunners at Canucks
Game #47 – Tucson Roadrunners at Abbotsford Canucks
8:00 p.m. MST, Abbotsford Centre, Abbotsford, BC
WATCH LIVE HERE
LISTEN LIVE HERE
Tucson Roadrunners Current Roster: CLICK HERE
Referees: Morgan MacPhee (43) Riley Brace (90)
Linespersons: Nicholas Albinati (59) Nathan Howes (92)
The Tucson Roadrunners take on the Abbotsford Canucks on Friday in British Columbia for the first of two games with the AHL affiliate of the Vancouver Canucks. The weekend series from Abbotsford marks Tucson’s final two games taking place in Canada this season, after their two-game set against the Calgary Wranglers in November. The weekend also represents the last two meetings of the season between the Roadrunners and Canucks, with Tucson able to secure the season series with a win on Friday.
Three Things
1) The Roadrunners and Canucks last faced off in a two-game set January 28 and 29 at the Tucson Arena, when the Roadrunners swept Abbotsford with wins of 6-3 and 5-2. Tucson tallied four periods with multiple goals over the weekend, and Roadrunners forward J.S. Dea notched his first career hat trick in the series opener. Tucson won the special-teams battle as well, with a pair of power-play goals and a perfect six-for-six showing on the penalty-kill. The Roadrunners have yet to trail against the Canucks through two meetings this season, jumping out to leads of 3-0 and 2-0 in each of the first periods from Tucson. Mike Carcone leads the way in scoring against Abbotsford on the year with a goal and five assists, while J.S. Dea (3g 1a) and Adam Cracknell (1g 3a) are tied for second with four points apiece. In all, 17 different Roadrunners tallied at least a point in the series with the Canucks.
2) Tucson goaltender Ivan Prosvetov enters the weekend against Abbotsford looking for his fourth consecutive victory and team-leading 14th win overall on the season. Prosvetov recorded his first shutout of the season in his last outing on Friday, February 3 in Ontario, stopping all 23 shots faced. The 23-year-old posted 38 saves on 40 total shots faced in Tucson’s most recent matchup with the Canucks on January 29, tied for his second most saves in a game this year. The 5-2 win was the 23-year-old’s second of three-straight victories entering Friday, as Prosvetov possesses a .957 save percentage and just three goals allowed over his last three starts. Roadrunners goaltending has also allowed just six total goals over their last four series openers with four-straight multi-goal wins.
3) Friday’s series opener between the Roadrunners and Canucks represents Tucson’s first game after the AHL All-Star Break and first contest since Saturday, February 4 in Ontario. The five-day gap in between games is the Roadrunners longest break since they had January 1 through January 5 off to start the 2023 calendar year. Forwards Mike Carcone and J.S. Dea still found their way onto the ice during the break, as Carcone represented the Roadrunners at the AHL All-Star Classic in Laval, QC, February 5 and 6 while Dea made his Arizona Coyotes debut on February 6 at Mullett Arena. Carcone finished second in the AHL’s Fastest Skater Competition with a time that would have won in five of the last six NHL events and tallied four assists to lead the All-Star Classic as the Pacific Division won the event for the first time. In his Coyotes debut, Dea tallied a hit, a blocked shot, and a shot on goal in Arizona’s 3-2 win over the Minnesota Wild. The pair have since rejoined the Roadrunners in Abbotsford for the weekend set.
What’s The Word?
“It’s exciting to be here. My family is going to come out and I’m excited to see them all. I got to play a game [in Vancouver] in the NHL last year which was really exciting, and it’ll be just as exciting to do it again this weekend. It’s always fun to play in front of family and friends.”
Tucson defenseman Dysin Mayo on facing the Canucks on the road in Abbotsford, British Columbia. The 26-year-old is originally from Victoria, BC, and the weekend series with the Canucks marks his first trip to Abbotsford with the Roadrunners.
Number to Know
199 – The number of regular season AHL games played by Roadrunners defenseman Cam Dineen entering Friday’s series opener with Abbotsford. Dineen ranks third in total outings in Roadrunners team history and his 88 career points (18g 70a) are the second most by a Tucson defenseman all-time. The 24-year-old has spent his entire professional career within the Coyotes organization after being drafted by Arizona in the Third Round (#68 Overall) of the 2016 NHL Entry Draft. Dineen is one of four current Roadrunners blue-liners to have appeared for both the Roadrunners and the Coyotes after making his National Hockey League debut on November 5, 2021, and appearing in 34 total games for Arizona last season.
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 7:45 p.m. with Roadrunners Warm-Up hosted by Jimmy Peebles, before Adrian Denny has all the action from the Abbotsford Centre.
