The Tucson Roadrunners are well-stocked for a postseason run.
Tucson welcomed back Dylan Strome, Joel Hanley, Dakota Mermis and Trevor Murphy this week. All were assigned from the Arizona Coyotes to the Roadrunners in anticipation of the playoffs.
Stromeโs return means that Tucson will have its top scoring threat back as the regular season winds down. Tucson travels to San Diego on Wednesday, then hosts the Gulls on Friday and Saturday before opening the playoffs.
The Roadrunners have already secured a postseason spot.
โIโm looking forward to having a long playoff run,โ Strome said. โWe have a great team here so Iโm excited for it.โ
Strome is coming off a 10-game stint with the Coyotes where he produced three goals and five assists. The 21-year-old forward has played in 47 games with the Roadrunners this season, tallying 22 goals and 50 points. Only Carter Camper, Tucsonโs recent acquisition from Cleveland, has more.
The return of Hanley, Mermis, and Murphy puts three of Tucsonโs best defensemen back in the lineup. Hanley and Mermis have been constants in Tucsonโs defensive lines all season.
Murphy, a trade deadline addition, made an immediate impact upon joining the Roadrunners.
โIโm just going to try to keep doing what I did,โ Strome said. โJust having fun, playing with confidence, trying to create some turnovers, and obviously putting some pucks in the net and helping my team win.โ
โMurphy, Mermis and Hanley are all key guys for us on the back end,โ goalie Adin Hill said. โThem coming back makes our defense a little more mobile.โ
Roadrunners coach Mike Van Ryn cautioned against his team becoming overly complacent in response to the added depth.
Van Ryn is the concerned that some players may resort to playing passive knowing that they have more talented players in the lineup. Tucson has posted a 4-3-2 record against San Diego this season.
โA lot of times when you think youโve got a strong roster, guys tend to think itโs just going to happen,โ Van Ryn said. โSan Diego is going to be ready. From what I hear, theyโve been talking about us for a while now for these last three games. Theyโre going to be prepared.โ
Depending on how the final week of the regular season plays out, Tucson could potentially match up against San Diego in the first round of the playoffs.
The Roadrunners are currently in first place in the Pacific division. One more point will clinch a division title.
San Diego sits in third place, just three points percentage points above fourth-place Texas. If the Gulls slips to the fourth place spot and Tucson holds on to fourth, the two teams will then play each in other in a best-of-five first round series.
Tucson elected to play the first two games of the series on the road, then will host Game 3, as well as Game 4 and Game 5 if those are necessary.
