At 5-on-5, Stockton is out-pacing opponents at a remarkable 10-2 clip through four contests. The Heat have trailed just twice during play this season, both deficits coming Saturday, and it took 45 seconds to erase one deficit, 3:25 for the latter to vanish. The Flames' AHL affiliate is one of only two teams in the league to hold opponents to fewer than three goals in every game this season.
The secret ingredient?
Head coach Mitch Love has an answer.
"It's the leadership and maturity we have in our dressing room," said Stockton's bench boss, off to a 3-0-1 start in his professional coaching career. "Getting Byron Froese back, our team captain, that's been a big addition. Glenn Gawdin, a guy in his fourth year, I could go up and down the list of guys. There's not a lot of panic in our group. That's important.
"You'll have pockets in every game that won't go your way. Having that composure, that maturity on the bench, saying the right things and worrying about your next shift. That's important."
Early days still, but the Heat displayed multiple paths to victory already. They've done it with top-line talent, like in Friday's win over San Diego, the top line of Jakob Pelletier (1 goal, 2 assists), Adam Ruzicka (1 goal, 1 assist) and Matthew Phillips (1 goal, 1 assist) paced the Heat in a rout. They've done it with depth - Kevin Gravel netting an equalizer in the first period for the Heat and third-line winger Justin Kirkland lighting the lamp for the third consecutive game to draw even in the second. They've done it with solid defence and goaltending throughout - the Heat strangling opponent attacks to the tune of 1.75 goals against per game, the second-lowest mark in the league.
"We have a very, very deep group," said right-winger Matthew Phillips. "Any guy in our forward group is capable of playing a top-nine, top-six role. It's good and it provides a lot of competition. Our lineup is very balanced. We have guys who, we all play the same system, but some guys do it in different ways than others. We have some big, strong, fast players and we have some smaller, skilled guys. I think as long as we're all working on the same page, we'll match up well with any team because we have the ability to bring something different depending who's on the ice."
A rare treat in the always-busy AHL schedule, Stockton has seven days between their last game and their next, going Saturday-to-Saturday without competition. It's an opportunity to fine-tune areas that could still use some work, not that problem areas are plentiful for a team that has already banked seven of a possible eight points thus far. It's an opportunity to continue to gel as a group as well, with Froese and Gawdin each making their season debuts with the Heat over this past road trip.
With the veteran presence in the room and leadership group of Froese, Gravel and Phillips, complacency won't be an issue. This is a team built to compete over the long haul, and they know it.
Improvement this week is the name of the game, and it's a process that Love and staff relish before welcoming the Colorado Eagles and San Jose Barracuda to Stockton Arena this weekend.
"We're at a point where it's been a bit of a college hockey schedule, lots of practice time," said Love. "For myself it's been good, it's been a chance to get to know the players and get accustomed to this level of hockey, get into their routine, how they work, how they operate and their personalities.
"We've thrown a lot at these young men, but they've done a great job. They come to the rink with the right mindset, wanting to get better, wanting to learn. Now it's about finding that balance, making sure we're game-ready when games come, that we're ready to go and play some good hockey when the puck drops."
