Connections to Roadrunners, and Tucson, run deep at 2024 AHL All-Star Classic

There are plenty of Tucson ties at the AHL All-Star Challenge on Monday night in Northern California.

Tucson Roadrunners goalie Matthew Villalta and forward Josh Doan are set to suit up as Pacific Division All-Stars in the challenge, a tournament of six-minute, 3-on-3 games pitting representatives of the league’s four divisions against each other.

The All-Star Challenge from Tech CU Arena in San Jose begins at 7 p.m. on NHL Network. AHLtv, the league’s streaming service, will also broadcast the games for free on its app or at AHLtv.com.

Forward Dylan Guenther was originally set to represent Tucson at the All-Star Classic along with Villalta, but the 20-year-old has been with the Arizona Coyotes since Jan. 6.

On Wednesday, San Jose Barracuda defenseman Shakir Mukhamadullin and Henderson Silver Knights forward Grigori Denisenko were announced as replacements for a couple of Pacific Division players, including Guenther.

On Friday, however, the Roadrunners got that second All-Star spot back, as Doan, who leads Tucson with 17 goals and 29 points this season, replaced San Jose forward Danil Gushchin.

“It’s a nice addition that Doaner is now taking part, as he should. He’s a heck of a player and has a very bright future,” Villalta told Roadrunners’ play-by-play voice Adrian Denny postgame Saturday at Coachella Valley. “He’s a heck of a player and has a very bright future. He’s a great friend a great teammate. To get to experience that with him, it’s going to be a great time.”

On Friday, the AHL also added Manitoba Moose defenseman Kyle Capobianco, who played for the Roadrunners for five straight seasons until 2021. Capobianco represented Tucson at the All-Star Classic three times.

Saturday in Coachella Valley, the Roadrunners (28-13-1-1) topped the Firebirds (26-12-4-2) 4-3 on the road after a shootout to move into first place in the Pacific Division at the All-Star break. Tucson and CV are tied atop the division with 58 points, but the Roadrunners have the superior winning/points percentage — .674 to .659 — because they have a game in hand.

“It’s a good feeling heading into the break in first place,” Doan told Denny after the game. “We’ve got a resilient group and a group that trusts each other. When stuff goes sideways on us, we stick together and we have faith in each other and tonight showed that to a ‘T.’”

Trent Cull of the Calgary Wranglers will coach the Pacific team even though the Wranglers have dropped to third place; Cull received the nod since Calgary was ahead of the Roadrunners by a point at the All-Star coaching selection deadline of Dec. 31, leaving Tucson coach Steve Potvin at home.

Henderson Silver Knights forward Adam Cracknell, who served as captain for Tucson last season, is the Western Conference’s All-Star captain but will not play Monday night. Cracknell has played more than 1,000 professional games in his career, including parts of 15 seasons in the AHL. The league names the AHL All-Star Classic captains “in recognition of their outstanding leadership and service.”

Finally, University of Arizona alumnus Nick Nollenberger, the San Jose Barracuda’s director of broadcasting and play-by-play voice, will serve as the rinkside reporter on the NHL Network/AHLtv broadcast.

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The NHL’s Colorado Avalanche waived former Roadrunners goalie Ivan Prosvetov. The Russian went 4-3-1 with the Avalanche with a 3.16 goals-against average and .895 save percentage. While another NHL team could have claimed him, Prosvetov ultimately cleared waivers Sunday, opening up the door for the Avalanche to send him to the AHL’s Colorado Eagles.

The Coyotes waived Prosvetov, who played for Tucson from 2019-20 to 2022-23, before the AHL season, intending to send him to the Roadrunners until the Avalanche claimed him.

If Prosvetov ends up with the Eagles and sticks, Tucson and Colorado face each other two more times this season, on April 12-13 in Tucson.