Red-hot Roadrunners ready for franchise's first-ever playoff game

Over the past 22 months, the Tucson Roadrunners have accomplished dozens of firsts. The first practice, game, goal, win, loss, roadtrip, transaction, coaching change, and on and on.

Thursday, the Roadrunners will play the first postseason game in franchise history. Tucson will take on the Barracuda in San Jose in the first round of the Calder Cup Playoffs.

The Roadrunners are the top seed in their division and the regular season Western Conference champions. Their opponent in the best-of-five series, San Jose, has found success against Tucson this season. The Barracuda won four of their seven regular season matchups against the Roadrunners.

The aggregate score in those seven games: 20-20.

“The biggest thing is playoffs,” Roadrunners head coach Mike Van Ryn said. “It’s great to win the division and that’s huge for our culture and huge for the organization. But now it’s really what it all comes down to.”

Tucson and San Jose both enter the series with plenty of confidence. The Roadrunners won six of their final seven regular-season games, including three straight against rival San Diego last week. The Gulls missed the playoffs when Tucson turned them back both Friday and Saturday at Tucson Arena. San Jose, meanwhile, won its final six games to wrestle the division’s fourth playoff spot away from the Gulls.

Lawson Crouse is Tucson’s hottest scorer, riding an eight-game point streak. Crouse, Dylan Strome and Mike Sislo will likely compose Tucson’s front line, although Tye McGinn and Ryan MacInnis have also received starts in recent games.

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Roadrunners forward Trevor Cheek, a midseason call-up from Fort Wayne, could prove another offensive weapon. He scored a pair of goals in the team’s regular-season finale against San Diego.

Tucson’s youth is balanced by the presence of veterans like Sislo, Carter Camper, Joel Hanley and Andrew Campbell. All four have AHL playoffs experience, and know what to expect.

“It’s going to be harder, faster, more physical,” Campbell said. “Teams are in your face and you kind of show what you’re made of.”

Tucson’s Adin Hill is the favorite to start at goalie after producing a string of strong performances to close the regular season. Hill has allowed just two goals across his last four appearances.

San Jose is led by 21-year-old Latvian forward Rudolfs Balcers, who tallied a team-high 48 points during the regular season. Stephon Williams will start in goal after Antoine Bibeau was called up to the San Jose Sharks for their playoff push.

Williams has only appeared in six games for the Barracuda, two of them coming against Tucson. Williams allowed one goal in a 4-0 Tucson win on March 20, then gave up two goals in a 3-2 San Jose victory on March 25.