Roadrunners Preview: On the road again

After dropping three straight games in a California road-trip, the Tucson Roadrunners returned home for what most would say was a few days of needed rest and a home stand against the Ontario Reign. Heading into the weekend the Roadrunners record against the Reign was 2-1.

At the end of the weekend they would finish 3-1-1, including an exciting OT winner on the team’s Teddy Bear Toss night.

After the game it was hard not to feel the uplifted energy of team after finally securing a win for the first time in five games. After scoring the OT winner forward Christian Fischer put on quite the celly display.

His teammates prompted media to draw attention to his celebration and when Five For Howling asked he said: “It was just a big win, obviously emotions run high. It was a great win.” It was a win that the club desperately needed to get their feet back under them.

After sliding out of the number one spot in the Pacific due to losing four straight games it’s time for the club to regain their footing and get four much needed points against the San Antonio Rampage this weekend. The Roadrunners take on the Rampage at 6:30 PM on Friday and 6 PM on Saturday.

The Rampage currently sit at the bottom of the Pacific Division and are the only team who have yet to crack .500 on the season with a record of 11-13-1. They are 5-4-1 in their previous 10 games.

This will be the first time that the Roadrunners take on the Rampage before facing them in two weeks at home on December 30th and 31st. Statistically this matchup should be in favor of the Roadrunners, but with their recent slump who knows. This is the first time the team has faced adversity this season after a hot start.

Veteran defenseman Zybnek Michalek acknowledged the club’s need to over come this adversity after their win last Friday.

“It’s a long season you know?,” said Michalek. “Every team goes through ups and downs and you just have to stay calm. You can’t get too high and you can’t get too low. You just have to go through it. And through experience you learn how to manage it. I know that we started the season so well but it’s hard to continue and it’s not going to last all year. Just stick with the program trust in the system. Trust what the coaches are teaching and good things will come. Work hard follow the system and play the right way.”

Only time will tell how long it will take the team to get their feet solidly back in front of them.

Tucson Tidbits

• It’s unclear if Jamie McBain traveled with the team to San Antonio as he has been battling the flu all week. Dysin Mayo has been recalled from the Rapid City Rush just incase.
• Heading into this weekend’s games the Roadrunners have replenished their forward depth a bit. Both Tyler Gaudet and Laurent Dauphin have been re-assigned to the team by the Arizona Coyotes.
• However the team will be without goalie Adin Hill as he has be assigned to the ECHL Rapid City Rush.
• In the absence of Brendan Perlini and Craig Cunningham, Chris Mueller and Kyle Wood have stepped up to capture the scoring titles for the team with 19 and 18 points respectively.
• The team will be looking for either the first win out of Justin Peters or the third win out of Marek Langhammer this weekend
• Having played four less games than the Stockton Heat and seven points behind them, the Roadrunners still sit at second in the Pacific Division.