Trailing the San Diego Gulls by one point in the postseason race, the Tucson Roadrunners need to continue their road warrior reputation to make the playoffs for the fourth straight season.
On Wednesday, the Roadrunners (30-24-9-0) play at San Diego for a single game. San Diego (29-23-8-4) leads Tucson by one point for the last playoff spot in the Pacific Division.
“It's going to be unreal, like it’s playoffs games,” said Tucson forward Julian Lutz. “It’s gonna be a battle out there for sure.”
AHL teams get two points for wins and one point for overtime or shootout losses.
The Gulls led Tucson by three points heading into the weekend, but the Roadrunners got the split against the first-place Ontario Reign, and San Diego got swept by the last-place Abbotsford Canucks.
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“Obviously, after the game, we're checking the box scores and saw they lost tonight,” said Tucson center Cameron Hebig. “So, one point behind them and playing them on Wednesday, it's a huge game. Our goal is to make the playoffs here.
“Big playoff push and we're excited for it, we’ll be ready and that's where you want to be.”
The San Diego match starts Tucson’s last road trip of the season, a seven-game affair that also includes a couple against the sixth-place Henderson Silver Knights, who are eight points ahead of the Roadrunners. Tucson closes out the regular season by hosting the Silver Knights for a pair.
“It's pretty interesting here in the last stretch, we've got two games versus San Diego and four versus Henderson,” said Tucson head coach Steve Potvin. “So, I think it means a lot for our guys to just enjoy this moment right now and have an opportunity to literally reflect on what's kind of transpired and how much they've been able to elevate their game and something that we've been priding ourselves on, that we're going to be able to elevate our game when it matters the most.
Michael Hrabal, a Prague native who signed with the Roadrunners last week, made 22 saves against 24 shots, a .917 save percentage against the Reign.
“If you can do what we can to be the best without the topic, then I think that it's proven to be the right recipe, we’re doing what we can to be the best without the puck and it's allowing us to elevate our game.”
Tucson is 10 points behind the Coachella Valley Firebirds, who are in fourth place, the last slot that has home ice advantage in the first round.
The Roadrunners have nine games left, a game in hand on San Diego, which has eight remaining.
On paper, Tucson’s road to the playoffs looks rough, with seven road games, but it went 3-3 on its last long road trip and 3-2 on its Gem Show road trip.
Tucson is 16-11-2-0 in away games and 14-13-7-0 in home games.
Lutz said their road success is due to them loving to be on the road with each other and getting to hang out a lot together.
“I think getting on the road with the guys, you just bond with the guys, you're in the hotels together, you're on the bus together, you’re eating meals together, and it’s fun, it's fun to be on the road,” Hebig said. “I think with Tucson and our travel, we are on the road a lot, we’re used to it, so no excuse for us being on the road.
“I think we're a good road hockey team and we're up for the challenge.”
Hrabal wins debut
Goalie Michael Hrabal led the Roadrunners to a win in his first professional game on Saturday, winning the first Star of the Game award.
The Czech net minder made 22 saves against 24 shots, a .917 save percentage against the Reign.
“His performance was great, that big save in the third period on the breakaway, made the save of the night, all the guys reacted and responded well to it,” Potvin said. “I think from that point on, I kind of felt a little bit more calm, I thought that if you start, you gave us that calm, we weren't worried about it but we know the team that we're playing and once that save was made and the guys kind of stood up and you could see that there's a little shift in the energy.
New Roadrunners goalie Michael Hrabal led the Roadrunners to a win in his first professional game on Saturday, winning the first Star of the Game award.
“I don't think the energy to that point was negative by any stretch, but I think that it kind of gave us a little bit of that hope that we're in this game.”
Hrabal signed a three-year contract with the Utah Mammoth last week after three seasons at Massachusetts and then signed a professional tryout agreement to play for Tucson this season. Hrabal still had his UMass mask and pads on Saturday.
Hebig reaches first on Roadrunners’ scoring list
With his 20th goal of the season, Hebig reached 180 career points for the Roadrunners, tying him for first on the franchise’s all-time list with Michael Bunting.
“Yeah, it's cool, especially with the big win (Saturday) night, that's the most important thing is getting the win down here in the home stretch,” Hebig said. “Yeah, it's nice, guys are excited for ya and I’ve just been playing with the players so many years and played a lot of great players; I think that's just what happens when you when you play with some good players and play long enough.”
Hebig has 47 points this year, tying his career high set two seasons ago.
Bunting, who plays for the Dallas Stars, has 252 points in his NHL career. He played for Tucson from 2016-21.
“It's really cool because I'm close with Mike still and I sent him a text and saying, ‘Well, you might have to finish your career here, maybe to spark a little more out of Hebs.’
“We want to keep him moving, right? So that competition sometimes can get you a little ways,” Potvin said. “But yeah, of course, we're so proud of Hebs. He’s been here for a long time, he’s had to battle a lot of adversity to get himself to this point and earn NHL contracts, and it hasn't been roses for him all the time.
Roadrunner Cameron Hebig reached 180 career points for the Roadrunners this past weekend, tying him for first on the franchise’s all-time list with Michael Bunting.
“He's had to go through some of that adversity, I think it's pretty simple to say that you appreciate the sunshine when you've seen enough rain,” he added. “So we're extremely proud of him and we hope that he keeps he keeps surpassing his former self.”
It’s Hebig’s sixth season in Tucson. Last year, he earned his first AHL All-Star selection and his first NHL contract, and this season, he got his first NHL call-up.
Looking ahead
After the San Diego game, the Roadrunners head to Henderson for a series on Friday and Saturday.
Then Tucson heads to Bakersfield to play the fifth-place Condors for a solo game on April 8 and then play at the second-place Colorado Eagles on April 10 and 11 before closing out the road trip at San Diego on April 15.
Slapshots
– Saturday’s game coincided with the ending of the Arizona men’s basketball Elite Eight game. When the Wildcats won, a big cheer erupted. Then the fans started chanting “U of A,” while “Bear Down Arizona” was played during the next stoppage of play and then during the next commercial break, it was announced that the Wildcats had reached the Final Four.
– With a 4-0-1-1 record against Tucson so far this year, San Diego has clinched the I-8 Border Rivalry Trophy for the second time. The trophy dates back to 2016-17, but the Roadrunners had won it every year except for 2021-22.
