The Tucson Roadrunners fought through a physical, playoffs-like atmosphere in a 3-0 win over Grand Rapids on Friday night.
Powered by a shutout from goalie Adin Hill, the Roadrunners maintained their advantage atop the division standings and moved closer to earning the top record in the American Hockey League’s Western Conference.
Tucson also clinched home ice in the first round of the Calder Cup Playoffs.
“It’s huge,” Roadrunners head coach Mike Van Ryn said. “You can hear our fans, it’s a loud building. Once you get more people in here it’s going to be even better so it will be a real tough place to play.”
Tucson, which clinched its playoff ticket last weekend, faced a Grand Rapids opponent looking to seal its own postseason berth.
A chippy affair ensued, highlighted by a second period brawl that began with Hill shoving away a Griffins attacker. Soon, every Roadrunners player on ice was involved in a squabble until the referees broke apart the fighting.
“It was a physical, high-paced game with a lot bodies flying around,” Hill said. “It was a fun game to be in.”
It took the Roadrunners some time to find a rhythm offensively. Grand Rapids had out-shot Tucson by a 15-7 margin early in the second period.
Midway through the second, Tucson’s Mario Kempe earned a two-minute delay of game penalty, giving Grand Rapids a man advantage.
Yet it was the Roadrunners who scored on the Grand Rapids power play when Lawson Crouse netted a goal with 9:42 to go in period. Carter Camper and Kyle Wood assisted the score.
The goal marked Crouse’s fourth straight game with a point.
“I thought our start was actually not that bad, better than it had been at least,” Van Ryn said. “We weren’t connecting on a lot but I thought we were working pretty hard.”
Ryan MacInnis expanded Tucson’s lead to 2-0 on a goal just over five minutes into the third period. Tucson’s Tye McGinn scored an empty-net goal with 51 seconds remaining.
Hill held off a streaking Grand Rapids offense by saving all 25 shots that came his away.
For Hill, it was a bounceback performance after being pulled early in his last two starts.
Tucson is now four points away from clinching the Pacific Division title. Two more wins for the Roadrunners would give Tucson the title, as would one victory combined with a loss by second-place Ontario.
“Hopefully we can just keep building some momentum here as a team and try to get the city behind us some more,” Van Ryn said.
