GAMEDAY: BARRACUDA VS WRANGLERS
Nov 16, 2024SAN JOSE BARRACUDA (8-4-0-0) vs CALGARY WRANGLERS (11-3-0-0)
SAT, NOV. 16 | 6:00 P.M. | TECH CU ARENA | SAN JOSE, CA
LISTEN | WATCH | MEDIA KIT | GAME NOTES | MEDIA KIT
Saddle Up: The top two teams in the Pacific Division square off Saturday night at Tech CU Arena as the Barracuda host the Calgary Wranglers for the first of back-to-back games over the weekend. Last season, the Barracuda went 5-3 versus the Wranglers and 3-1 at home. The Flames affiliate boasts the AHL’s best record through the first month at 11-3-0-0 (.786). Both teams are a league-best +18 in goal differential.
Wednesday Wrap: Yaroslav Askarov made a career-high 48 saves in his 100th AHL game and Thomas Bordeleau scored a pair of power-play goals as the Barracuda held off the San Diego Gulls, 2-1, on Wednesday night at Tech CU Arena. With the win, the Barracuda are now 5-1 at home and have won two in a row.
Big Bad Barracuda: Entering Saturday, the Barracuda rank third in the AHL in goals for (3.92), seventh in goals against (2.42), first on the penalty kill (92.5%), ninth on the power play (21.2%), T-first in shorthanded goals (4) and have a league-best 7-0 record this season when scoring first.
Ask & You Shall Receive: Yaroslav Askarov made a career-high 48 saves on Wednesday en-route to a 2-1 win over the San Diego Gulls. The 22-year-old turned aside all 20 shots he faced in the opening period and would make 19 consecutive stops to close out the game after giving up a power-play goal in the second. Askarov is T-second in the AHL in wins (6), fourth in goals-against average (1.64) and save percentage (.949), and T-second in shutouts (2). After Wednesday’s victory, the native of Omsk, Russia, is 62-31-6 in 100 career games in the AHL. He has never faced the Wranglers. Askarov was the AHL Goalie of the Month in October after going 5-0 with two shutouts.
Collin Cookin’: Rookie forward Collin Graf was named the AHL’s Rookie of the Month for October after collecting points in his first seven games (3+7=10). On Wednesday, he picked up an assist and now has points in 11 of his first 12 this season. Among rookies, he ranks first in the league in points (15) and assists (11) and is T-second in plus/minus (+7). Graf, who is riding a four-game points streak (1+4=5) entering Saturday, is third in the AHL in overall scoring and T-third in assists.
Do the Cagn Cagn: Rookie defenseman Luca Cagnoni assisted on both Thomas Bordeleau goals on Wednesday in a 2-1 win over the San Diego Gulls and now has assists in his last four games (5) and points in nine of 10 (4+8=12). Among rookies, Cagnoni ranks second in points (13) and assists (9), just behind teammate Collin Graf, and first in power-play points (7) and assists (6). Among league blueliners, he is first in points, T-first in goals (4), assists, and power-play assists, and second in power-play points (7). A year ago, the native of Burnaby, BC, led Western Hockey League (WHL) defensemen with 90 points and 72 assists and finished tied for third among the group with 18 goals in 65 games with the Portland Winterhawks, earning U.S. Division First All-Star Team recognition. He was the first WHL blueliner since 1993-94 to reach the 90-point threshold and finished nine points clear of the next-closest defenseman in the positional scoring race.
Hot Pot: Andrew Poturalski’s goal-scoring streak ended at three games on Wednesday, but the veteran forward still managed to pick up an assist to extend his points streak to four (4+3=7). Poturalksi now has points in eight of his last nine (7+5=12) and ranks T-fourth in the AHL in scoring (14), second in power-play goals (4), and T-fourth in goals (7). The Sharks signed the two-time Calder Cup Champion to a two-year contract in July.
Calgary Check: After dropping their first game of the year on Oct. 11 vs. Abbotsford (3-4 L), the Wranglers went on to win their next nine from Oct. 13 to Oct. 31. Calgary is third in the league in goals against (2.14) and fifth in goals for (3.43) and are the AHL’s best third-period team (+13). The Wranglers are 6-0 when scoring first this season, 5-0 when leading after 20 minutes, and 7-0 when leading after two periods. The Wranglers have the eighth-best penalty kill (45/52=86.5%) entering Saturday. Forward Rory Kerins, who was the AHL Player of the Month for October after notching 11 points in 10 games, it T-first in the AHL in goals (10) and T-fourth in points (14).
Wranglers on the Road: The Wranglers enter Saturday 4-0 away from the Scotiabank Saddledome, outscoring the opposition 14-5. Calgary boasts the second-best road power play (4/13=30.8%) and the ninth-best road penalty kill (14/16=87.5).
Cat Like: Former Shark’ and Los Gatos native Devin Cooley is 8-2-0-0 to begin his tenure with the Calgary Wranglers this season, the best start of his career. Cooley, who signed a two-year deal with the Flames on July 1, 2024, was selected the Howies Hockey Tape/AHL Player of the Week for the period ending on Nov. 10 after stopping 81 of 83 shots over four appearances, notching two shutouts and a .64 goals-against average and .976 save percentage. The Jr. Sharks alumnus was traded from Buffalo to San Jose on Mar. 8, 2024, for a 2025 7th-rounder. He would appear in his first six NHL games with his hometown team, collecting his first NHL win on Apr. 6, 2024, vs. St. Louis. Cooley ranks T-first in the AHL in wins (8), first in shutouts (3), second in SV% (.954), and third in GAA (1.46).