The Ontario Reign entered Tucson Arena on Friday night as the top-scoring team in the American Hockey League. Yet, it was the host Tucson Roadrunners who truly looked that part.
The Roadrunners erupted against arguably the AHL’s top team so far this season, defeating the Reign 8-4 behind a hat trick from rookie Matias Maccelli and multi-point nights from Mike Carcone, Jan Jenik, Cameron Hebig, Victor Soderstrom and JJ Moser.
The Roadrunners (4-4-1-0), who came in with the league’s third-worst offensive attack, handed the Reign (9-1-0-1) their first regulation loss in 11 games.
“We were just trying to play a good game tonight against a really good team. We were able to capitalize on some chances,” Tucson head coach Jay Varady said. “We got some goals. We got some on special teams tonight. So we’ve got to find a way to do it again tomorrow.”
These same teams face off Saturday at 7 p.m. at Tucson Arena.
Just as much as their offensive prowess — they Reign nearly met their nightly average of 4.2 goals per game Friday — Ontario entered with a top-four defense, too, allowing just 2.3 goals per outing. Prior to Friday, the Reign hadn’t allowed more than three goals in a single game in any of their first 10 games.
Maccelli not only managed the Roadrunners' third hat trick this season in just nine games played to date, but his five-point night — he also had assists on goals by Hebig and Moser — tied a Roadrunners single-game record.
“I had a tough eight games without any goals, so it feels good to finally get a couple,” Maccelli said. “Tonight I got lucky a couple of times. Good bounces and luckily scored on my chances.”
Maccelli’s first-career AHL goal came in the second period to tie the game at 3-3. He added two more in the final frame as Tucson would ultimately extend its 5-4 second intermission lead.
The other Roadrunners with hat tricks this season are Ben McCartney, during a 4-0 Tucson win over Texas on Oct. 23 and Hudson Fasching in a 6-4 win over San Diego a week later carded the other hat tricks. Fasching also tied the team record a five-point night that same evening.
Varady said a team generally can’t plan on a single player to score in high numbers like the Roadrunners have seen this season. He likened it to players feeding of each other’s success in-game.
“I thought Maccelli was unbelievable,” Varady said. “There’s no plan. I just think guys as they progress through a game and they’re starting to have some success, they build on that. We had that opportunity tonight.”
In all for Tucson, nine skaters netted points, including Carcone, Hebig and Moser each carding a goal and an assist. Sodorstrom notched a pair of assists from the blueline, while Fasching and Terry Broadhurst also added helpers. Jan Jenik and Boko Imama scored a goal apiece. Imama’s marker gave Tucson a 5-3 lead midway through the second period against the team that traded him to the desert this past offseason.
Brett Sutter, Jacob Moverare, Aidan Dudas and Martin Frk scored Ontario’s goals. Frk’s nine goals in 11 games lead the AHL, and his 18 points are tied for the league-high.
Tucson came in with 18 goals through eight games played — the Roadrunners’ 2.25 goals scored per game pitting them 29th of 31 AHL teams.
Carcone, who enjoyed his second multi-point night of the season wouldn’t go as far as saying that Friday would be a sign of things to come, but did contend that Tucson needed its younger roster to gain some time getting its sea legs.
“It’s so early in the season and we have a lot of young guys,” he said. “Just putting everyone together and finding the right fits, and who plays well together and also learning the system. Once all that clicks — well tonight, at least, it kind of clicked.”
While the Roadrunners pulled away in the third, both majority of the game’s penalty minutes came in the final 10 minutes of action as Carcone said it was important the Roadrunners not let Ontario try to push Tucson around out of late-game frustration.
“If we kind of roll over and let them play like that and don’t give it back, then they come in (Saturday) with some confidence,” he said. “So it’s good that we shut that down tonight.”
Added Varady: “Oh we want to be a team that stands together. I think our guys have been doing a good job of that this year in terms of standing together and making sure we’re there for each other.”
Carcone said the Roadrunners “understood the challenge” of facing a team coming in with wins in nine of 10 games so far this season.
“It’s definitely the same preparation,” he said. “But everyone knows the challenge that comes with that. And it gives you a little bit more of a sense of urgency.”
Maccelli, the hero Friday night, who leads the Roadrunners in both assists (six) and points (nine) through nine games, said bluntly: “We worked our asses off.”
