Game #52: Henderson Silver Knights (2) at Tucson Roadrunners (3)

Roadrunners Recap: 2/19/23

Game #52: Henderson Silver Knights (2) at Tucson Roadrunners (3)

SOG: HSK (38) – TUC (26)

PP: HSK (0/4) – TUC (1/2)

HENDERSON SCORING: Sheldon Rempal (13), Lukas Cormier (8)

TUCSON SCORING: Mike Carcone (24 PP), Milos Kelemen (13), Hudson Elynuik (6 PP)

ROADRUNNERS WIN SIXTH-STRAIGHT MATCHUP AT HOME WITH 3-2 VICTORY AGAINST HENDERSON

Tucson, Arizona – The Tucson Roadrunners defeated the Henderson Silver Knights by a score of 3-2 for the second-straight night on Sunday to secure a series sweep at the Tucson Arena. Henderson jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the opening 8:26, but the Roadrunners and goaltender Ivan Prosvetov kept the AHL affiliate of the Vegas Golden Knights off the board for the remainder of regulation with 36 total saves by Prosvetov. Tucson took their first lead of the night with just 5:02 left in the third period when forward Hudson Elynuik broke a 2-2 tie with his sixth goal of the season. The Roadrunners will head back out on the road next weekend for a two-game set with the Chicago Wolves Saturday, February 26 and Sunday, February 26.

YA GOTTA SEE IT

Roadrunners forward Hudson Elynuik scored the game-winning goal for Tucson on Sunday with just 5:02 still to play in regulation. Elynuik’s score was his sixth of the season and broke a 2-2 tie to give the Roadrunners their first lead of the night, which they never relinquished. The goal was also Elynuik’s 20th total point on the season, making him the ninth Tucson skater to reach the 20-point mark this year.

DON’T OVERLOOK IT

SHINING SPECIAL-TEAMS – Tucson forward Mike Carcone’s first-period power-play strike on Sunday marked the Roadrunners second goal scored while on the man-advantage over the two-game series with Henderson. Their special-teams units played a key role in their second-straight 3-2 victory against the Silver Knights, with their penalty-kill going a perfect four-for-four on the night with back-to-back kills early in the third period. The score was Carcone’s 12th while on the power-play this season, which leads the American Hockey League.

PHOTO OF THE GAME

Roadrunners goaltender Ivan Prosvetov started in net for both outings against the Henderson Silver Knights on the weekend to earn his 14th and 15th wins of the 2022-2023 campaign. Prosvetov stopped 55 of 59 shots for a .932 save percentage while limiting the Silver Knights to just two goals in each matchup. His victory in Sunday’s series finale matched his career high for wins in a single season from last year, and the 23-year-old has won four consecutive outings at the Tucson Arena dating back to January 25 which was against the Roadrunners next opponent: the Chicago Wolves.

THEY SAID IT

“We were gone for quite a bit there, so it was nice to be back. The fans packed the stands this weekend, I think they missed seeing us too. All in all, it was really good.”

Roadrunners forward Mike Carcone on returning home and earning a pair of wins against the Henderson Silver Knights over the weekend at the Tucson Arena. Carcone put Tucson on the board in the first period with his 24th goal of the season, which tied his own record for the most goals in a single season in team history.

THE RUNDOWN

Henderson opened the scoring for the second-straight contest on the weekend when Sheldon Rempal wrapped the puck around the Roadrunners net for a 1-0 lead 5:45 into the first period. The Silver Knights extended the early advantage to 2-0 with another five-on-five goal 2:41 later for their first multi-goal lead of the two-game series. Tucson got back to within a goal on their first power-play of the contest with 7:50 still to play in the opening frame, as forward Mike Carcone netted his 24th tally of the season to match the single-season franchise record for Tucson that he set last season. Carcone also took sole possession of first place in the AHL in total power-play goals with his 12th of the year, while forwards Adam Cracknell and J.S. Dea each notched their 20th assists on the season. The remainder of the opening 20 minutes of play was without a goal, sending the Roadrunners to Sunday’s second period still trailing 2-1. Tucson came out hard in the opening minutes of the period and got rewarded with a redirected goal by forward Milos Kelemen to even the score at 2-2. The goal was Kelemen’s 13th time finding the back of the net this season, with defensemen Ronald Knot and Vlad Kolyachonok adding assists for the fifth-straight score that a blue-liner had factored into for Tucson on the weekend. After Kelemen’s early tally, both teams were held scoreless through the final 16:58 of the second period to remain knotted at 2-2 entering the third. The Roadrunners flipped the script in the middle frame after being outshot 16 to seven in the first period by recording 13 shots to Henderson’s seven. Tucson and the Silver Knights were scoreless for the opening 14:58 of the third period before Hudson Elynuik gave Tucson their first lead of the night at 3-2. After fending off back-to-back Henderson power-plays before the midway point of the period, the Roadrunners kept the Silver Knights from scoring with an extra attacker for the final 2:15 of regulation to come away with their second 3-2 win on the weekend.

(Photo Credits: Kate Dibildox)