A stack of to-go boxes sat next to the San Jose Barracuda’s postgame spread Friday night. The message was clear: time to leave town, and quick.
The Tucson Roadrunners knocked the Barracuda out of the AHL playoffs — and back to Northern California — with a 3-0 win Friday night to advance to the second round of the Calder Cup playoffs. They’ll face the Texas Stars in the second round, a best-of-seven series that opens in Tucson Wednesday night.
Tucson goalie Adin Hill led the way with his second straight shutout performance, and the Roadrunners’ defense smothered a San Jose attack that didn’t get many scoring chances.
“I thought we played harder on pucks,” Tucson coach Mike Van Ryn said. “I think the first two games, we kind of felt it out to see what these games were going to be like. Then we decided to play our game. Obviously, Hill has played well for us as well.”
Tucson dominated the first period, even though the teams were scoreless.
The Roadrunners outshot San Jose 10-1 over the first 20 minutes, but Barracuda goalie Antoine Bibeau deflected a handful of Grade-A Tucson scoring attempts. Bibeau’s tight first period goaltending was a marked improvement from Game 3 Wednesday, when he was pulled in the second period after allowing five goals on 15 shots.
On Friday, Tucson finally broke through early in the second period. Mario Kempe scored with assists from Carter Camper and Lawson Crouse, and the Roadrunners took a 1-0 lead. Tucson’s Conor Garland scored five minutes into the third period to make it a two-goal advantage.
“It was good to get a little insurance goal there,” Kempe said. “We played a bit more relaxed after that.”
An empty-net goal by Kempe with one minute remaining clinched the win.
Tucson outscored San Jose 9-0 over the last two games of the series. The teams split the first two games in Northern California.
“We stuck to the structure,” Roadrunners defenseman Andrew Campbell said. “We had a couple of good practice days between Games 2 and 3 and we just got back to basics. You have to really look at Hill back there. He really stood tall these last two games. As a defenseman, he gave a lot of confidence to stand back there and the blue lines the last two games.”
Van Ryn gave his players high-fives as they marched to the locker room after the game. Minutes later, the coach’s attention had fully shifted to the upcoming series against Texas. The Roadrunners, with home ice advantage, chose a 2-3-2 home-away format. Tucson will host Games 1 and 2 Wednesday and Friday night.
Game 3 will be held in Texas on May 7, followed by Game 4 on May 9. An if-necessary Game 5 would also take place in Texas on May 11.
If the series extends past five games, Game 6 would be played in Tucson on May 13 and Game 7 on May 14.
Texas beat the Ontario Reign in the first round.
“They’ve had a couple days to get ready, so we’re going to have to get some guys rested up,” Van Ryn said.
