'Yotes Notes: Roadrunners Ready for Postseason Debut

GLENDALE --The Tucson Roadrunners will make their debut in the American Hockey League playoffs on Thursday night when they skate vs. the San Jose Barracuda in the first game of a best-of-five series.

Tucson, the Coyotes' AHL affiliate, finished the season with the league's third-highest winning percentage (.662) and as the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference. The Roadrunners own home-ice advantage vs. San Jose, but opted to play the first two games at the SAP Center. Game 3, and Games 4 and 5 if necessary, will be played at the Tucson Arena.
The Roadrunners, who are in just their second season of existence, will enter the playoffs having won seven of their final 10 games of the season, and three in a row.

"Everything we do in Tucson is done to try to prepare our players to become National Hockey League players, make our big club better and help us to someday win a Stanley Cup," said Coyotes Assistant General Manager Steve Sullivan, who also serves as G.M. of the Roadrunners. "So, this is big for our organization because these are meaningful games. We think that's key. Obviously, making the playoffs means we won a lot of games and we're creating a good winning culture down here. Hopefully these guys can carry that on to the NHL at some point."
Sullivan is in San Jose to attend the first two games. After watching practice on Wednesday, he said the mood around the Roadrunners is business as usual.
"This is a hard-working, fun group," Sullivan said. "They really enjoy each other on the ice and in the dressing room. Nothing appears to have changed as we approach the start of the playoffs. They feel as if they have a recipe for success so why change that? I firmly believe that the reason they've had so much success is because of how close they are and how much they like to compete with each other on a daily basis."
Tucson struggled vs. San Jose in the regular season; it posted a 3-4-1 record in eight games.
"It's a tough matchup," Sullivan said. "San Jose is playing some great hockey winning their last six games to get into the playoffs. They were 10 points behind San Diego with six games to play. They're a really good hockey club and they gave us some trouble during the regular season, but our guys are into it and are understanding what the challenge is in front of them and are really looking forward to it."
Dylan Strome, who notched nine points (four goals, five assists) in 21 games for the Coyotes this season, will play for Tucson in the playoffs. Strome produced 53 points (22 goals, 31 asissts) in 50 games for Tucson this season and was voted to the
AHL's All-Rookie Team
.

"Dylan is a big part of this hockey club," Sullivan said. "He's been very good for us offensively throughout the year. He's coming back to us with a lot of confidence after what he was able to accomplish in the National league after his recall late in the season. We're hoping for him to help carry this team on to where we want to go. For him, it's about pressure-packed situations and playing in big games. He's an OHL champion and he played in the Memorial Cup last season. Those are real big games so he's used to it. Hopefully he can tap into those experiences and bring confidence from them here."
Forwards Mario Kempe (18 games with Arizona) and Lawson Crouse (11 games with Arizona), and defensemen Dakota Mermis (nine games with Arizona) and Trevor Murphy (eight games with Arizona) also will skate for Tucson in the postseason.
Goalie Adin Hill, who played four games for the Coyotes this season and earned his first NHL win, is expected to carry the load in net for the Roadrunners in the postseason.
Forwards Nick Merkley and Laurent Dauphin, who played one and two games for the Coyotes this season, respectively, will miss the AHL playoffs because of lower-body injuries.
TUCSON VS. SAN JOSE
GAME 1: April 19 - at San Jose
GAME 2: April 21 - at San Jose
GAME 3: April 25 - at Tucson
GAME 4: April 27 - at Tucson (if necessary)
GAME 5: April 28 - at Tucson (if necessary)
NOTE: Click
HERE to view SERIES OUTLOOK
• Defenseman Jordan Gross, whom Arizona signed to a two-year contract last week following his four-year career at Notre Dame, notched two assists for Tucson vs. San Diego in his pro debut last Saturday. Gross has returned to Notre Dame to finish the school year and will not play for Tucson again this season.
• General Manager John Chayka and members of the Coyotes scouting staff are in Russia for the 2018 IIHF U18 World Championship, which runs from April 19-29 in Chelyabinsk and Magnitogorsk. Ten nations, including the United States and Canada, are competing at the event, as are many top prospects who are eligible for the 2018 NHL Draft.
Arizona, which finished 29th in the NHL standings with 70 points, has the third best chance of landing the No. 1 pick in this year's draft via the draft lottery, which will be staged at 5 p.m. (Arizona time) on April 28. The Coyotes own an 11.5 percent chance to win the lottery behind only Buffalo (18.5 percent) and Ottawa (13.5 percent). Fans can watch the lottery on NBC.
• Three of Arizona's junior hockey prospects still are competing as the postseason unfolds.
Defenseman P.O. Joseph has captained the Charlottetown Islanders to the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League semifinals. They will face the Armada de Blainville-Boisbriand starting Friday. Joseph, whom the Coyotes drafted 23rd overall last year, has notched one goal and eight asissts in 11 playoff games thus far.

Forward Mackenzie Entwistle has chipped in two goals and five assists in 10 playoff games for the Hamilton Bulldogs, who have reached the Ontario Hockey League's semifinals. They will play the Kingston Frontenacs starting Wednesday. Arizona drafted Entwistle 69th overall in 2017.

And forward Tyler Steenbergen has notched 18 points (10 goals, eight assists) in 14 playoff games for Swift Current, which has reached the Western Hockey League semifinals. Swift Current will face the Lethbridge Hurricanes starting Friday. Arizona picked Steenbergen 128th overall at last year's draft.