Game #55 – San Diego Gulls at Tucson Roadrunners

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7:00 p.m. MST, Tucson Arena, Tucson, Arizona

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Tucson Roadrunners Current Roster: CLICK HERE

Referees: Brandon Schrader (46) Mike Sullivan (89)

Linespersons: Jake Herzog (48) Gabe Lomen (76)

The Tucson Roadrunners return home to open the month of March with a two-game set against their I-8 Border Rivals, the San Diego Gulls. The first matchup of the weekend series from Tucson Arena is Friday, March 3 at 7:00 p.m. MST. Friday marks the first game for the Roadrunners since they faced the Chicago Wolves on the road Sunday afternoon, while San Diego enters the weekend set off of a 6-5 loss at home to the Henderson Silver Knights on Wednesday. The series opener also marks the Gulls first trip to Tucson since December 22 and 23 of 2022, when the Roadrunners and San Diego split a two-game series before the Christmas Break.

Three Things
1) Tucson is taking on the AHL affiliate of the Anaheim Ducks for the sixth time this year Friday night and currently possess a 3-2 record in the eight-game season series. All three of the Roadrunners wins over San Diego have been by multiple goals, including a 6-2 victory in their last series opener at the Tucson Arena on December 22. Roadrunners forward Mike Carcone leads the season series in scoring with three goals and five assists for eight points, while Ronald Knot leads either active roster as a plus-seven. Tucson has gone a combined 4-2 at home against the Gulls since the start of 2021-2022, and a two-game sweep over the weekend would clinch the season series and the I-8 Border Cup Trophy for the Roadrunners.

2) The Roadrunners enter the weekend with a season-high six-game winning streak on their home ice, which dates back to a 5-1 win over the Chicago Wolves on January 24. Since the start of the streak, Tucson has outscored their opponents 26 to 11 while allowing two goals or less in five of the six victories. The Roadrunners have also scored the third-most goals at home in the Pacific Division (94) this year and have the second-best home power-play percentage in the Division at 23.9%. Over their last six outings at the Tucson Arena, Roadrunners goaltenders Ivan Prosvetov and Tyler Parks have combined for a .941 save percentage (174-for-185) and have allowed two goals or less in four-straight games overall, which is tied for Tucson’s longest streak since the 2019-2020 campaign.

3) Friday’s series opener against San Diego represents the Roadrunners second El Lazo de Tucson Night of the season, with the team donning their alternate El Lazo jerseys in celebration of Southern Arizona’s rich culture and heritage. In their first El Lazo outing of 2022-2023 on Friday, January 20, Tucson defeated the Bakersfield Condors 6-2 to open a six-game home stand that saw the Roadrunners go 5-1 overall. Friday’s El Lazo contest features a special ticket package for Dusty’s Cheering Section, which includes one ticket, a Roadrunners Rally Towel, and a pregame edition of Roadrunners Hockey Rules for the first-time hockey fan. The third and final El Lazo de Tucson Game of the year is scheduled for Friday, April 14, as part of the Roadrunners last weekend of the regular season.

Roadrunners Roster Moves

  • The Roadrunners have recalled defenseman Noah Laaouan from the ECHL’s Atlanta Gladiators. The 21-year-old has recorded 20 points (7g 13a) in 52 appearances with Atlanta in his first professional campaign.
  • Forward Laurent Dauphin and defenseman Vlad Kolyachonok were recalled by the Arizona Coyotes earlier this week.
  • Tucson’s current roster stands at two goalies after Jon Gillies was traded to the Columbus Blue Jackets on Thursday.
  • Defenseman Cam Dineen was traded the Edmonton Oilers on Thursday. His 207 games played are the third most in Roadrunners franchise history.

What’s The Word?

“It’s nice being able to practice and get back into that routine [at home], especially after being out on the road for some long stretches. It allows us to practice hard and get a good gameplan for whoever we’re playing that week.”

Roadrunners defenseman Cam Crotty on Tucson having a week of practice at home before Friday’s series opener against the Gulls.

Number to Know
10 – The number of home games remaining on Tucson’s regular-season schedule beginning with Friday’s series opener against the Gulls. The Roadrunners are one of four Pacific Division teams with double-digit home games left in 2022-2023 along with Abbotsford (11 games), Bakersfield (14 games) and Coachella Valley (14 games). San Diego represents Tucson’s most common opponent down the stretch with three of the Roadrunners 18 remaining contests coming against the Gulls.

We’re Doing It Live
Tonight’s game will broadcast live on AHLtv, as well as on the radio on FOX Sports 1450AM and the iHeartRadio app. Coverage begins at 6:45 p.m. with Roadrunners Warm-Up hosted by Jimmy Peebles, before Adrian Denny has all the action from Tucson Arena.