The Tucson Roadrunners have a new single-season scoring champion after forward Michael Carcone’s two-assist night on the road paced the Roadrunners (25-26-6-0) to a 3-2 win over the Milwaukee Admirals (32-19-3-2).
Carcone, who carded a pair of assists, now holds Tucson’s top mark for points in a season with 68. The two-point night also put him back into a tie for first place in points across the American Hockey League. He’s tied with T.J. Tynan of the Ontario Reign at 68 points so far this season.
Carcone already set the Roadrunners single-season goals mark earlier this year — he’s currently at 26; that broke his own record of 24 set last season — and his 42 assists are third all-time in Tucson’s record books.
On a wild play that saw a goalie dive for a puck, a deflection off the post and more, Tucson Roadrunners defenseman Vladislav Kolyachonok scored to give the Tucson Roadrunners a 2-1 lead in an eventual 3-2 road victory over the Milwaukee Admirals. Michael Carcone and Michael Kesselring earned assists on the goal. With his second assist of the night, Carcone became the Roadrunners' single-season scoring leader with 68 points so far in 2022-23. Video courtesy Tucson Roadrunners
On Friday night, Carcone’s two assists were alongside the play of newcomer Michael Kesselring and new No. 1 goaltender — for now, at least — Tyler Parks as the Roadrunners held on to their grip on the final AHL playoff position out of the league’s 10-team Pacific Division.
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Kesselring tallied a goal and an assist and goaltender Parks stopped 25 of 27 shots on goal to help Tucson to improve to .500 over its last 10 games and within a single win of .500 on the season. Tucson also stays five points ahead of the San Jose Barracuda for the Pacific Division’s seventh playoff position. San Jose kept pace via a win Friday, 4-0, over Kesselring’s old team, the Bakersfield Condors.
Kesselring, a defenseman acquired by the Arizona Coyotes ahead of the NHL trade deadline before being assigned to Tucson last weekend, knotted the game at one apiece with roughly three minutes remaining in the first period.
Newly-acquired Tucson Roadrunners defenseman Michael Kesselring scores the Roadrunners' first goal of a 3-2 road win over the Milwaukee Admirals Friday, March 10, 2023. Michael Carcone and Nathan Smith earned assists on the goal. Kesselring added an assist in the second period for the two-point night. Video courtesy Tucson Roadrunners
He’d add an assist on a second-period goal by Vladislav Kolyachonok that gave Tucson a 2-1 lead.
Curtis Douglas scored what was ultimately the game-winning goal for Tucson three minutes into the third period. Parks stopped all seven Milwaukee shots after Douglas’ goal to seal the victory.
Nathan Smith and Hudson Elynuik also picked up assists for Tucson in the win.
Parks moved into the defacto top spot in net when longtime Roadrunner Ivan Prosvetov was called up this week by the NHL’s Coyotes. Prosvetov earned his first NHL victory Thursday, stopping 39 of 40 shots in a 4-1 Coyotes’ win over the Nashville Predators in Tempe.
A win Friday for the Admirals would have pushed them into the lead in the Central Division. But now Milwaukee will enter Saturday’s matchup with the Roadrunners — a 5 p.m. faceoff at UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena — still a single point out of first place.
Tucson Roadrunners forward Curtis Douglas buries the would-be game-winner in a 3-2 road victory over the Milwaukee Admirals on March 10, 2023. The goal was assisted by Hudson Elynuik. Video courtesy Tucson Roadrunners
