Perhaps it's dubious to call a mid-season, two-goal comeback one for the ages. But considering the depths the Tucson Roadrunners have plunged to over the last three-to-four weeks, maybe it isnβt all that much of a stretch.
With the Roadrunners teetering on taking possession of the worst overall record among all 31 American Hockey League teams if theyβd have lost, Tucson overcame a 2-0 third period deficit before landing their own knockout punch in overtime, securing a much-needed 3-2 win over visiting Bakersfield Condors on Saturday night at Tucson Arena.
Ben McCartney scored both the game-tying goal midway through the third period and the overtime winner roughly 50 seconds into the extra frame β the latter following a defensive zone takeaway by Vlad Kolyachonok the initiate the Roadrunnersβ breakout.
βI canβt take full credit for any of that,β McCartney said, noting that teammate Matias Maccelli, Tucsonβs top offensive producer, set up the game-tying goal, before, on the overtime winner, βKoley made a really nice stick check there.
βI thought we had a bunch of character,β McCartney added. βA few bounces didnβt go our way the last few games. I thought and it was just nice to get the two points and get back on track.β
With Tucson trailing 2-0, Cameron Hebig got the Roadrunners on the board 6:47 into the third period, with helpers going to Matias Maccelli and Cam Dineen. Less than three minutes later, McCartney tied the game at two apiece with a power play marker, sending the crowd of 5,323 β the second-largest Tucson Arena audience of the season β into a frenzy. Maccelli and Hebig earned their second points of the night with assists on McCartneyβs first goal.
βWeβre just all pulling on the same rope,β Hebig said. βI think thatβs how weβre going to be successful, when everyoneβs bought in and everyoneβs hungry to work. I think thatβs what makes our group when weβre ticking.β
The win kept Tucson from being swept in three straight by the Condors this week, while also at least somewhat salvaging an otherwise miserable month of January. The Roadrunners won just three of their 13 games in January, falling from fourth place after a 2-1 win over the then-first-place Stockton Heat on Jan. 4 to eighth out of nine teams in the AHLβs Pacific Division heading into Saturday.
With last-place San Jose idle Saturday, a loss would have mathematically pushed Tucson to that bottom rung at the exact midway point of the Roadrunnersβ season.
But the win in game No. 34 of 68 actually let Tucson climb past the San Diego Gulls into seventh in the Pacific Division. With the Roadrunnersβ next game Friday at San Diego, too, it also has Hebig optimistic about what Tucson is capable of in the second half of the season.
βWe learned a lot in the first half β¦ Some ups and downs. Weβve got to learn from that and keep building,β Hebig said. βWe want to climb those standings, and weβve got halfway to go here.β
Tucson coach Jay Varady said he was happy to see his players finally rewarded for βworking hard. Theyβve been paying the price. Theyβve been blocking shots. Theyβve been in the battle. But we havenβt been able to get points.
βTonight, we got points and as a hockey player and as a hockey team, thatβs what you want to do and thatβs why you get up in the morning on game day,β he added.
Bakersfieldβs second period goals off the sticks of James Hamblin and Brad Malone β both bang-bang finishes came on odd-man, transition rushes β were all that would get past Tucson goaltender Ivan Prosvetov. Prosvetov stopped 16 of 18 Bakersfield shots on goal, with Tucson holding the Condors to just three shots in the first period, eight in the second, and seven in the third. The Roadrunners outshot the Condors 40-18 overall, including 1-0 in overtime.
Bakersfield netminder Ilya Konovalov turned away 37 Tucson shots in defeat.
While Kolyachonok now has a point in seven straight games from the blueline, Roadrunnersβ forward Michael Carcone saw his own eight-game point streak snapped. A night would have given Carcone the club record.
Maccelliβs two assists give him 36 points in 32 games this season. Maccelli is ninth overall in the AHL in points, and fourth in assists.
