The Tucson Roadrunners continued their strong season in San Jose with an 8-6 win against the San Jose Barracuda. Despite trailing multiple times in the first and second period along with allowing the Barracuda to remain in it towards the end of the game, the Roadrunners claimed victory at the start of a California road trip. Here are three takeaways from Wednesday’s (Dec. 20) game.
Aku Raty is a Prospect to Keep an Eye On
Most Arizona Coyotes fans are aware of the big-name prospects like Josh Doan, Dylan Guenther, and Conor Geekie. However, there’s a player on the Roadrunners that fans might get to know better soon.
Aku Raty was a fifth-round draft pick back in 2019 and has quickly established himself as an offensive threat. Last season, he scored 42 points in the Liiga with Ilves and made the jump over to the American Hockey League (AHL) this season. Most European players have to get acclimated to North American-styled ice but it didn’t affect the 22-year-old at all. Thanks to his hat trick against the Roadrunners, he now has 12 points in 18 games.
“The game is a little different but the guys treat me pretty well here,” Raty said. “It’s just about getting more comfortable after every game.”
Raty is one of the few prospects still developing that were drafted back when John Chayka was still the general manager (GM) of the Coyotes. Despite the messy departure he had with the team, Chayka didn’t leave current GM Bill Armstrong with an empty prospect pipeline and it’s still showing with Raty developing into a great forward. Head coach Steve Potvin sees that as well.
“He’s just one of those guys that shows up every day and wants to learn,” Potvin said. “He wants to be a part of all of it. He loves putting the gear on and loves being at the arena. We’re really happy to have him. We’re really happy to see him have success and he plays a man’s game for a young kid. He’s taken another step in the right direction here tonight.”
Raty played with Ryan McGregor for most of the game. McGregor had a good game himself as well, setting up Raty with some nice passes which earned him two assists.
The Coyotes have themselves a very talented prospect in Raty who isn’t talked about enough by fans. His speed and grit make him a player that’s hard to defend. While players like Doan and Guenther will most likely make it to the Coyotes before Raty does, it’s not hard to envision the Finnish forward eventually grabbing a full-time NHL spot in the near future.
Goaltending Depth is an Issue
After Ivan Prosvetov was claimed off waivers by the Colorado Avalanche, it left a question on who was going to be the starting goaltender for the Roadrunners. Matthew Villalta has played the most games appearing in 21 games with a 13-7-1-1 record and Potvin thought he played great against the Barracuda.
“Our goaltending this season so far has been really good,” Potvin said. “I think tonight, it was hard for him to track the puck. San Jose was able to get guys in front of the net and made it hard on us. So it was hard to drive the puck. There was a lot of volume of shots and sometimes that happens, but he’s he’s been outstanding this year so far.”
While all six goals that the Roadrunners gave up weren’t all Villalta’s fault, it was an issue. The Coyotes do have Michael Hrabel in the system but he most likely won’t be with the Roadrunners for a couple of years.
It is Villalta’s first season with the Roadrunners after four seasons with the Ontario Reign. In those four seasons, he hasn’t recorded a season under .500. It could be a matter of more time for the 24-year-old goaltender to fit in with the Roadrunners before we see him be fully comfortable in the starting role.
The Roadrunners’ Future Looks Bright
Last season, the Roadrunners were middling eventually ending up in the final playoff spot in the West with a 30-33-8 record. They went up against the Coachella Valley Firebirds who they unexpectedly pushed to the brink of elimination. Now this season, the Roadrunners are third in the Pacific Division with a 15-8-1-1 record. Despite players like Jan Jenik and Milos Keleman constantly getting called up and down from the Coyotes due to injury, they’ve managed to sustain success.
Potvin notices the competitiveness in his group and believes that a sense of community and togetherness has really helped this team battle for a top-three spot in their division.
Related: 3 Takeaways From Coyotes’ 4-3 Win Over Senators
“I think there’s a real sense of community in our team,” Potvin said. “Everybody fights for each other. They fight really hard for each other. I think goaltending has been a really big bonus for us. Matt’s (Villalta) has been our MVP. I think our guys are just buying into the game plan. We’ve got a bunch of guys who enjoy playing. When they enjoy playing for each other, it makes it a really strong team.”
Players like Raty who didn’t play with the Roadrunners or the American Hockey League (AHL) last season are really enjoying playing with the young team as well.
“I really like it here,” Raty said. “I like the organization, I like the coaching too.”
There’s a strong young core forming in Tucson. While emerging stars like Doan and Guenther might be called up in a year or two, there are others like Geekie and Maveric Lamoureux who will most likely be in a Roadrunners jersey in a couple of seasons. Players like Michael Carcone and Michael Kesselring have benefited from time with the Roadrunners and are now thriving with the Coyotes today. It shows how well Armstrong has constructed not only his NHL roster but his AHL roster as well.
The Roadrunners are now 15-8-1-1 which puts them in third place in the Pacific Division. They will now head south to play the Bakersfield Condors on Friday (Dec. 22).