Morning Skate: Heat Aim For Fifth-Straight Win Saturday Against Toronto
Matchup: Stockton Heat (4-2-0-0; 2nd Canadian) at Toronto Marlies (6-5-0-0; 3rd Canadian)
Arena: Coca-Cola Coliseum | Toronto, ON
Time: 1:00 p.m. MST | 12:00 p.m. PST
Broadcast: Today’s game will be available on AHLTV.com.
Follow Along: For live, in-game updates, follow the Heat on Twitter @AHLHeat.
MEDIA GAME NOTES: STK | TOR | AHL
TODAY
Stockton looks to make it five consecutive wins, four against Toronto in Saturday’s matinee tilt against the Marlies. It’s the third game of a seven-game road stint, with the final four all coming in Winnipeg against the Moose.
RUZICKA, PHILLIPS IN THE RECORD BOOKS
Top line mainstays Adam Ruzicka and Matthew Phillips continued to torment opposition with three-point nights last night against the Marlies, Ruzicka with a pair of goals to go with a helper and Phillips with three assists. Each of them have made team history with their active four-game, multi-point scoring streaks – the first such runs in Stockton Heat history.
LONELY AT THE TOP
And then there were three. Despite playing only six games on the year, Ruzicka is now tied with only three other players, including Toronto’s Tyler Gaudet, with 12 points on the year to pace all AHL skaters. His seven goals are one shy of league leader Rem Pitlick of Chicago, and his 2.00 points per game clip is most of any player with three or more games played in the AHL this season.
CLAMPING DOWN
While the Heat have run it up on the offensive end to the tune of 21 goals in the last four outings, they’ve also put the clamps down on the opposition. Stockton has conceded only five goals in the last 240 minutes of hockey, including Garret Sparks’ one-goal-against efforts in the last two.
MAKE IT HAPPEN, CAP’N
Alex Petrovic was happy to lend a helping hand in Friday’s win, assisting on Stockton’s second, third and fourth goals of the contest. It was Petrovic’s first multi-point effort since November 22 of last season, as a member of the Providence Bruins while facing the Bridgeport Sound Tigers. It was his first three-point effort since November 21, 2014 when he played for San Antonio.
BIG MAC
Connor Mackey tallied a pair of firsts on Friday, potting his first professional goal and registering the first multi-point effort of his professional career. Mackey has found his way onto the score sheet in three of Stockton’s last four games, and is a plus-4 in Stockton’s last three.