Patrick Williams, TheAHL.com Features Writer
Playoff positioning is on the line tonight and Saturday when the Manitoba Moose visit Chicago for a crucial two-game series at Allstate Arena.
Fifth in the Central Division – where the top five finishers will qualify for the Calder Cup Playoffs – Manitoba holds a three-point lead on Chicago going into the weekend. It’s the conclusion of a six-game road trip for the Moose, who will then play 10 of their final 15 games at home.
Manitoba has won six of its past seven games including a 6-0 romp in Milwaukee on Wednesday, powered by three points from Kristian Reichel and Thomas Milic’s first career AHL shutout. AHL All-Stars Brad Lambert and Kyle Capobianco are tied for the Moose’s team scoring lead with 41 points apiece.
The Wolves, meanwhile, have won four of their last six and are coming off a big 7-4 win last Sunday against the division-leading Admirals. Nathan Sucese broke a 14-game drought by scoring twice in the victory as Chicago set a season high for goals in a game.
An annual tradition is back Saturday night when the Colorado Eagles host their Pot of Gold Night.
The Eagles began the fundraising event to benefit local families dealing with the financial hardship created by a child’s medical condition. Since 2012, the organization has raised more than $600,000.
This season’s beneficiary is 14-year-old Cooper Logan, the team’s pre-game DJ who goes by the name of “DJ Lil Coop.” Cooper was diagnosed at three years old with Kawasaki disease, a condition that causes inflammation of the heart’s blood vessels and is the leading cause of heart disease in children up to age five. He has also been battling against a coronary aneurysm and renal failure, and is scheduled to receive a kidney transplant from a local donor next month.
Fans at Saturday night’s game against Calgary at Blue Arena will be able to bid via silent auction on the special St. Patrick’s Day jerseys that the team will don. The money raised will go to benefit the Logan family as well as the Kawasaki Kids Foundation that they founded after Cooper’s diagnosis.
A key North Division standings battle is set for tonight when the Rochester Americans host the Toronto Marlies in the AHLTV Free Game of the Week (7 ET/6 CT).
The Amerks and Marlies are among five teams separated by eight points between third and seventh place in the North Division. Rochester enters the weekend with 64 points, three up on fifth-place Toronto. The top five teams in the North will qualify for the Calder Cup Playoffs.
The teams complete a home-and-home series Saturday afternoon at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, then meet again next Friday for their third match-up in eight days.
Devon Levi has started 14 of the Amerks’ past 17 games, and he made 35 saves in a 3-2 win over Syracuse on Wednesday. Levi is 8-3-3 with a 2.42 goals-against average and a .932 save percentage in those 14 outings.
The Marlies, 5-3-3-0 in their last 11 contests, boast four 20-goal scorers in Kieffer Bellows (23), Logan Shaw (22), Alex Steeves (20) and Joseph Blandisi (20).
An AHLTV account is required to watch the AHLTV Free Games of the Week, but no subscription is needed. Visit AHLTV.com for details.
TheAHL.com features writer Patrick Williams has been on the American Hockey League beat for nearly two decades for outlets including NHL.com, Sportsnet, TSN, The Hockey News, SiriusXM NHL Network Radio and SLAM! Sports, and was most recently the co-host of The Hockey News On The ‘A’ podcast. He was the recipient of the AHL’s James H. Ellery Memorial Award for his outstanding coverage of the league in 2016.
