GAMEDAY: BARRACUDA VS WRANGLERS
Dec 15, 2023SAN JOSE BARRACUDA (6-11-4-0, 16 pts.) vs. CALGARY WRANGLERS (16-4-2-0, 34 pts.)
FRI, DEC. 15 | 7:00 P.M. | Tech CU Arena | San Jose, CA
LISTEN | WATCH | GAME NOTES | MEDIA KIT
Calgary Connection: On Friday, the Barracuda continue its five-game home stand with the first of back-to-back games against the Calgary Wranglers (Calgary Flames). The Barracuda are 1-1 against the Wranglers this season after a 4-1 win in the last meeting on Nov. 5 at the Scotiabank Saddledome. The Barracuda are 1-4-0-1 against the Flames affiliate since the team moved to Calgary before the 2022-23 season and boast an all-time mark of 36-30-5-3 between the Stockton Heat and Wranglers.
Saturday Setback: After a 6-1 win against the Henderson Silver Knights on Friday at Tech CU Arena, the Barracuda were dealt a 5-1 loss to Vegas’ top affiliate on Saturday at home and are now 0-6 when coming off a win this season. 18-year-vet Adam Cracknell scored three times and Isaiah Saville, in his season debut, made 31 stops. The Barracuda finished the game 0-6 on the power play and 2-4 on the penalty kill. Brandon Coe scored his team’s only goal at 4:01 of the third period.
Alberta Adventure: The Barracuda are 1-1 against the Wranglers this season, splitting a weekend set on Nov. 3 and Nov. 5 in Calgary. In the first matchup, the Wranglers got a goal from Matt Coronato at 4:07 of the first and 27 saves from Dustin Wolf en-route to the win. For Wolf, a Gilroy native, it improved his lifetime record against the Barracuda to 12-0. Two days later, the Barracuda put together one of its best performances of the season, getting 34 saves from Georgi Romanov and goals from Henry Thrun, Danil Gushchin, Tanner Kaspick and Radim Simek, picking up a 4-1 victory. Wolf suffered his first loss against the Barracuda or Sharks in his career (13-1-0-0).
Wranglers Wrap: The Wranglers enter Friday sitting atop the Western Conference with a 16-4-2-0 record (34 pts., .773) and are 5-1-1-0 over its last seven games. Friday kicks off a five-game road trip for Calgary who boasts the AHL’s best road winning percentage (8-1-1-0=17 pts., .850%) and are third in the league in overall goals for (3.55) and goal against (2.59). The Wranglers also rank fifth in the league on the PK (86.3%).
Oh Rau: The Barracuda added veteran forward Kyle Rau on Monday for the remainder of the season. Rau, 31, who has yet to appear in a game this year, skated in 68 contents with the AHL’s Abbotsford Canucks in 2022-23, collecting 35 points (16 goals, 19 assists), 24 penalty minutes, and a plus-five rating. Over his eight-year professional career, the Eden Prairie, Minn., native has dressed in 61 NHL games with the Florida Panthers and Minnesota Wild, totaling seven points (two goals, five assists) and 15 penalty minutes. Additionally, he has appeared in 430 games in the AHL with the San Antonio Rampage, Portland Pirates, Springfield Thunderbirds, Iowa Wild, and Canucks, racking up 292 points (133 goals, 159 assists) and 182 penalty minutes.
Real Deal Danil: Sophmore forward Danil Gushchin is pacing the Barracuda in scoring (19), points-per-game (.95), and is T-first in goals (7). In addition, he is second on the team in assists (12), and is third in the league in shots (87). On Friday, Gushchin collected his first four-point game (1+3=4) of his AHL career in a 6-1 Barracuda win over the Henderson Silver Knights
Roaring Rory: Wranglers rookie Rory Kerins enters Friday with goals in three straight games and five during that stretch. Kerins also has points in four consecutive games (5+2=7) and five of his last six (6+2=8). Kerins is first on the Wranglers in power-play goals (5), T-first in goals (9), and T-third in points (16).