As the Tucson Roadrunners begin their long, now annual gem-show road trip this week, they do so riding a four-game win streak after going 5-1-0-0 on their most recent homestand.
On Sunday afternoon, the Roadrunners beat the Abbotsford Canucks 5-2 to secure their second straight series sweep. Sunday’s victory, which put Tucson back over .500 on the season, followed up a 6-3 win over the Canucks on Saturday and a pair of wins over the defending Calder Cup champion Chicago Wolves earlier in the week.
“We talked about it in the Chicago series — (it’s) difficult to win two games in a row against any team,” Tucson coach Steve Potvin said. “This was a big win for us, and we needed to build confidence and be comfortable in these types of scenarios. We haven’t really been in this scenario that often recently, so for us to be able to be in this scenario and power through with a win was really satisfying.”
Sunday’s win was Tucson’s last home game until Feb. 18, as the Tucson Gem, Mineral & Fossil Showcase takes over the Tucson Convention Center grounds; that includes the Arena floor, keeping the Roadrunners out of Southern Arizona for nearly three weeks.
The Roadrunners start their trip at Bakersfield on Tuesday night, the first of seven straight road games. Then the Roadrunners go to Ontario, Abbotsford, San Diego and Coachella Valley.
In between those Ontario and Abbotsford trips is the American Hockey League’s All-Star break — a wrinkle not usual amid the gem-show pilgrimage.
“I think it’s something to look forward to,” Potvin said. “We’ve been playing a lot of games. We’re in a stretch where have 16 games in 32 nights.
“So we’re going through that stretch, and now we know that there’s a limited amount of games left until the All-Star break and we just need to push through.”
The Roadrunners close out January in a much different place than earlier in the month when they tied a club-record with a seven-game losing streak.
Adam Cracknell, Tucson’s captain, said when the Roadrunners stick to the game plan they give themselves a chance.
Tucson Roadrunners defenseman Victor Sodorstrom's blast from the blueline gave the Roadrunners the early 1-0 lead in an eventual 5-2 victory over the Abbotsford Canucks Sunday, January 29, 2023, at Tucson Arena. Video courtesy Tucson Roadrunners
“You’re going to face some adversity. I think it’s how you come out the other side,” Cracknell said. “We started playing our game, and we weren’t getting results. But you have to trust the process, and I think the guys did a good job of sticking to it.”
The Roadrunners’ play in this recent four-game set appears to be what that “other side” looks like.
Tucson scored a pair of goals in the first period against the Canucks on Sunday thanks to goals from Victor Soderstrom and Milos Keleman. Defenseman Dysin Mayo scored what was ultimately the winning goal in the second before Tucson added a pair of empty-net goals in the third.
Forward Michael Carcone continued to shine in the series. He netted two points Sunday and four on Saturday, jumping his AHL-best points total to 60 in 36 games.
On Saturday the Roadrunners jumped out to a 3-0 first-period lead with goals from center Jean-Sebastien Dea, Carcone and Cracknell. Then in the third they added three more, including a pair from Dea to win 6-3.
It was Dea’s first professional hat trick. He has 148 goals in 493 career AHL games over nine pro seasons.
“It’s nice,” Dea said. “It’s my first one, so it feels nice to get rewarded after all those years. But it’s a good team effort.”
The attendance Saturday of 5,717 was Tucson’s highest since Nov. 9, 2019, when the Roadrunners defeated the Stockton Heat, 7-6, on Military Appreciation Night at Tucson Arena.
Tucson Roadrunners forward Cameron Hebig's goal with less than four minutes to play Saturday, Jan. 28, 2023, put the Roadrunners up 6-2 in what wound up a 6-3 Tucson victory over the Abbotsford Canucks at Tucson Arena. Right as Hebig's shot went in the next, Tucson's Milos Keleman and Abbotsford's Wyatt Kalynuk started scuffling, with both earning five-minute major penalties for fighting. Video courtesy Tucson Roadrunners
“It was awesome,” Dea said. “I guess that ‘Star Wars Night,’ we should do it more often. But no, it was nice to see everybody there that showed up to cheer for us.”
Carcone, who will be Tucson’s lone representative for this coming weekend’s All-Star festivities in Laval, Quebec, was more focused postgame Sunday on what Tucson had just accomplished.
“You go 4-0, that’s pretty good, eh?” Carcone said.
