Slow start dooms Roadrunners in 4-1 playoff loss to Texas Stars

A slow start buried the Tucson Roadrunners in a 4-1 loss to Texas Friday night at Tucson Arena. Their Calder Cup Playoff series is now tied 1-1 as it heads to Cedar Park, Texas for Game 3. 

The Roadrunners put up 19 shots in the third period as they tried to rally, but Texas scored two late goals and held on. 

Tucson’s steadfast goalie Adin Hill allowed a pair of goals in the opening period to give the Stars an edge.

Texas scored with four minutes to go in the first period on a score by Sheldon Dries. Curtis McKenzie of the Stars scored with 40 seconds left in the period.

“In the first, we weren’t as good as we didn’t have as much life,” Roadrunners coach Mike Van Ryn said.

After a penalty-free first period, Tucson and Texas combined for 27 penalty minutes in the second period. Seven of the period’s ten penalties went against Tucson.

The Roadrunners produced two five-on-three penalty kills, which fed into the team’s energy for the rest of the night.

“After we got through those kills I thought we played with a lot more intensity,” Van Ryn said. “We were driven. In a weird way, the positive was we got through all those kills. Normally a team dies after facing that many kills. Our guys stuck with it.”

The Roadrunners thought they had scored a shot by Kyle Capobianco nine minutes into the second period, but the officials ruled off the shot because of a high-stick call on Ryan MacInnis.

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Van Ryn disagreed with the high stick call.

“It’s hard in our league when they don’t go to review on those,” Van Ryn said. “Sometimes you get the breaks, sometimes you don’t, and tonight we were on the other end of it.”

Some of Tucson’s best scoring opportunities came in the opening minutes of the third period, when the Roadrunners took advantage of a power play goal. Tucson got off nine shots in the period’s first 3:51, but Texas goalie Mike McKenna swatted away every attempt.

Lane Pederson gave Tucson its only goal midway though the third period, with an assist by Michael Bunting.

“The third was the way you want to play,” Pederson said. “If we can do that for a full 60 minutes we should be all right." 

Texas scored an empty-net goal with 1:19 remaining to clinch the win and added another goal empty-netter with 32 seconds to go for good measure.

The Stars outshot Tucson by margins of 11-7 and 14-7 in the first and second periods.

The series heads to Texas for Games 3, 4, and 5. If the series goes beyond five games, it will return to Tucson for Games 6 and 7. 

“We’ve got to be ready to start right out of the gates,” Pederson said. “We’ll watch some video and get back out Monday.”