AHL Stockton Heat

5 Things: Heat at Tucson

January 4, 2022 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Stockton Heat News Release


STOCKTON HEAT (19-3-2-1) at TUCSON ROADRUNNERS (10-9-2-0)

5:30 p.m. PST | Broadcast: AHLTV, Fox Sports 1280, Spreaker

Leading Scorers

Heat:

Goals - Jakob Pelletier (11)

Points - Jakob Pelletier (28)

Roadrunners:

Goals - Matias Maccelli (7)

Points - Matias Maccelli (21)

Special Teams

Heat:

PP - 21-for-103, 20.4% (t-8th)/PK - 92-for-102, 91.2% (1st)

Roadrunners:

PP - 14-for-86, 16.3% (t-25th)/PK - 70-for-87, 80.5% (22nd)

1. HEAT INDEX

The Stockton Heat make their second trip to the desert in the course of a month as they face off against the Tucson Roadrunners Tuesday and Wednesday at the Tucson Convention Center. The Heat come into Tucson on the heels of a bounce-back effort, a 4-1 win over San Jose Sunday at the SAP Center in a game in which Dustin Wolf turned in another strong, 33-for-34 effort on the back end while four skaters lit the lamp 200 feet away. The Heat will look to snap a two-game skid in the front end of back-to-backs against the Roadrunners with this evening's game.

2. THIS, THAT, THE OTHER

THIS... Luke Philp has quietly been putting together a strong season for Stockton, potting his eighth goal of the season - fourth-highest total on the roster - in Sunday's win over San Jose. Philp has matured into an all-situations player for Stockton, now in his third pro season, and has climbed to fifth on the team in scoring with 15 points, split evenly with eight goals and seven assists, and is a plus-10 on the year. THAT... The start of tonight's game should be fascinating to watch, with the Heat playing their third game in five days compared to Tucson, who hits the ice for the first time since December 18, more than two full weeks ago. The Heat learned how difficult 'flipping the switch' can be following the prolonged break, and will look to jump on a Roadrunners squad that has seen its last four scheduled contests get postponed to COVID-19 protocols. THE OTHER... Jakob Pelletier's steady production this season has him at the top of Stockton's scoring and goal ladders, his 11th goal of the season bringing him into sole possession of first place on the squad after breaking a tie with Adam Ruzicka. Pelletier is the AHL's top-scoring rookie, and he has clicked at a point-per-game pace, four points in four games, against Tucson.

3. PLAYERS TO WATCH

Heat - Matthew Phillips

The only player who has hurt Tucson more than Pelletier has been Matthew Phillips, who has five points (2g, 3a) in the past three meetings.

Roadrunners - Hudson Fasching

Fasching has three points in four games against the Heat this season, with a goal and two helpers, tied for the team lead alongside Matias Maccelli. He has not factored into a game for the Roadrunners since December 14, when he had an assist against Henderson.

4. MILESTONES WITHIN REACH

Kevin Gravel is one goal shy of 20 in his AHL career.

Eetu Tuulola is two goals shy of 20 in his AHL career.

Eetu Tuulola is one appearance shy of his 100th AHL game.

Emilio Pettersen is one appearance shy of his 50th AHL game.

5. QUOTABLE

"It was a good response by our hockey club following a loss. At the end of the day, what it boiled down to for us as a team was we needed more work, a more work-based approach. We needed to be more competitive and we needed to have more purpose and urgency to our game." - Mitch Love on Sunday's win after a Friday setback

Check out the Stockton Heat Statistics



American Hockey League Stories from January 4, 2022


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