Tucson Roadrunners

The Tucson Roadrunners are a professional ice hockey team in the American Hockey League (AHL) that began play for the 2016–17 season. Based in Tucson, Arizona, and affiliated with the National Hockey League's unnamed Utah team, the Roadrunners play their home games at the Tucson Convention Center Arena.
On April 18, 2024, the Arizona Coyotes, the Roadrunners' previous NHL affiliate, was deactivated by the NHL Board of Governors. The team's hockey operations were transferred to form a new, standalone expansion team in Utah, with the owner of the Coyotes (Alex Meruelo) being granted a five-year window to potentially reactivate the Coyotes, pending the location of a new home arena. Announcements have confirmed that the Roadrunners will be the AHL affiliate for the Utah team for the 2024–25 season, while Meruelowho also owns the Roadrunnershas not yet finalized plans as to whether the AHL club will change its location or name.
==History==
===Arizona Coyotes affiliation===
On April 19, 2016, the Arizona Coyotes announced that they had reached an agreement to purchase their AHL affiliate, the Springfield Falcons, and would relocate the team to Tucson for the 2016–17 season. Said purchase and relocation was contingent on three approvals; the first from Rio Nuevo (Tucson's downtown revitalization authority) to invest $3.2 million in arena upgrades to bring the Convention Center to professional-quality standards was approved on April 26, the second from the AHL Board of Governors to conditionally approve the purchase and relocation by the Coyotes was approved on May 10, and the third from the Tucson City Council for a 10-year lease with the Convention Center was approved on May 17.
A name-the-team contest was held between May 17 and May 31. The hockey club's new name and logo were revealed on June 18 during the Tucson Convention Center's open house event. The chosen name, Roadrunners, pays homage to the Phoenix Roadrunners, a team name that was used for various Phoenix professional hockey teams from 1967 to 2009, and creates a play on words with its parent club the Coyotes (a reference to the classic cartoon duo of Wile E. Coyote and the Road Runner). Its logo, as well, is a close match for the traditional logo used for Phoenix Roadrunners' teams of the past. On October 27, the day before their home opener, the Roadrunners unveiled their mascot, Dusty the Roadrunner. Dusty wears number 16 on his jersey, representing the year the Springfield Falcons relocated to Tucson in 2016.
On June 21, 2016, Mark Lamb was hired as the team's first head coach after holding the same position with the Western Hockey League's Swift Current Broncos since 2009. Mark Hardy was hired as an assistant coach. The team named its first president Brian Sandy, along with three other key staff members, on July 18. On July 20, the Roadrunners announced their first general manager, Doug Soetaert, promoted from his former position as a scout for the Coyotes.
The Roadrunners played their first-ever game on October 14, 2016, against the San Diego Gulls at Pechanga Arena, losing 5–3. Roadrunners' inaugural captain Craig Cunningham scored the team's first two goals in franchise history. The Roadrunners played their first home game two weeks later on October 28, winning by a score of 6–5 in front of 6,521 fans.
During a home game against the Manitoba Moose on November 19, 2016, Roadrunners player Craig Cunningham collapsed on the ice just before the opening faceoff. He was promptly transported to the hospital, where he was diagnosed with an acute cardiac arrest resulting from ventricular fibrillation, a condition that caused his heart to stop beating. The arena's medical team, in addition to the staff at St. Mary's Hospital and Banner-University Medical Center, worked continuously for 85 minutes to administer CPR and ultimately succeeded in saving his life. On October 27, 2017, the Roadrunners retired Cunningham's No. 14 jersey during a pregame ceremony.
After one season, Lamb was released and replaced by Mike Van Ryn, the player development coach with the Coyotes. Under Van Ryn, the Roadrunners finished in first place in the Pacific Division but were eliminated by the Texas Stars in the division finals of the 2018 Calder Cup playoffs. Van Ryn then left to pursue other coaching opportunities and was hired by the St. Louis Blues. The Coyotes then hired Jay Varady as head coach of the Roadrunners for the 2018–19 season after a successful season as coach of the Kingston Frontenacs.
On May 12, 2020, the AHL announced the cancelation for the remainder of the 2019–20 season due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Roadrunners were awarded the Pacific division title for having the best record in the division when play was suspended and later canceled. Prior to the postponed start of the 2020–21 season, head coach Varady joined the Coyotes' staff as an assistant coach and assistant Steve Potvin was promoted to head coach of the Roadrunners. Varady returned to the Roadrunners as head coach before the 2021–22 season. Following the season, Varady departed for the Detroit Red Wings as an assistant coach, with Potvin being renamed as head coach for the 2022–23 season.
In the 2022–23 season, Roadrunners forward Michael Carcone led the AHL in total scoring with 31 goals, 54 assists, and 85 total points in 65 games played, winning the John B. Sollenberger Trophy. Carcone also set franchise records in goals, assists, points, power-play goals (14), and shots on goal (273), while earning his first career AHL All-Star selection and being named to the AHL First All-Star Team at the end of the season. The Roadrunners also saw the professional debut of forward Josh Doan, joining the team in March 2023 following his sophomore season with the Arizona State Sun Devils. Doan debuted with Tucson on March 17 and scored his first pro goal two games later on March 21. The Roadrunners qualified for the 2023 Calder Cup playoffs, marking their first appearance since 2018. In the first round, they faced the Coachella Valley Firebirds, where they lost in a win-or-go-home game 3. 
In the 2023–24 season, the Roadrunners had rookie Josh Doan and goalie Matthew Villalta represent them for the 2024 AHL All-Star Game. Doan finished the regular season with 26 goals and 20 assists for 46 points in 62 games, as his 26 goals ranked first on the Roadrunners along with all rookies in the AHL, while Villalta led the AHL with 31 wins. The Roadrunners finished the regular season with a 43–23–4–2 record and finished second in the AHL’s Pacific Division, with their 43 wins marking the most in a single season for the Roadrunners; which helped them clinch home-ice advantage for the first round of the 2024 Calder Cup playoffs and bring home playoff games to Tucson for the first time since 2018. However, Tucson was upset by the Calgary Wranglers in the first round, losing the first two games in a best-of-three series.
===Utah affiliation and potential relocation===
Following concerns about an indefinite timeframe on a new arena and the effects of continued play at the 4,600-seat Mullett Arena in Tempe, the NHL facilitated the sale of the Coyotes franchise to Utah-based billionaire Ryan Smith on April 18, 2024, after the NHL Board of Governors voted to establish a team in Utah using the Coyotes' hockey assets; however, rather than formally relocate, the Coyotes franchise was instead marked "inactive", with Utah considered a hybrid (due to transfer of assets) expansion team. Coyotes owner Alex Meruelo retained his rights to the Roadrunners, confirming that they would continue as the AHL affiliate for the Utah NHL team, and initially announced his intention to move the Roadrunners from Tucson to Mullett Arena (either part-time or full-time) before rescinding those comments the next day, stating that he "spoke too soon". The lease agreement with Mullett Arena is specifically for an NHL team, and any adjustments to the lease agreement with the ASU-owned arena would need to be approved by the Arizona Board of Regents. Furthermore, Tucson city officials received no communication from Meruelo on this intended move, nor has the Roadrunners franchise.
==Rivalries==
The Roadrunners consider the San Diego Gulls, the AHL affiliate of the Anaheim Ducks, as their primary rival and refer to them as their "I-8 Border Rival". Additionally, the winner of each season's series between the two teams is presented with the "I-8 Border Cup Trophy", which has been in the possession of the Roadrunners since the 2018–19 season. As of the 2023–24 season, the two teams have faced each other 72 times during the regular season, which is the highest number of games that the Roadrunners have played against any opponent. The Roadrunners current record against the Gulls is 38–31–2–1, with the Roadrunners winning the 2023–24 season series 7–1–0–0.
==Season-by-season results==
Regular season	Regular season	Regular season	Regular season	Regular season	Regular season	Regular season	Regular season	Regular season	Regular season	Regular season	Playoffs	Playoffs 	Playoffs 	Playoffs 	Playoffs 	Playoffs
Season 	Games 	Won 	Lost 	OTL 	SOL 	Points 	PCT 	Goalsfor 	Goalsagainst 	Standing 	Year 	FirstRound 	DivisionSemifinals 	DivisionFinals 	ConferenceFinals 	Calder CupFinals
2016–17 	68 	29 	31 	8 	0 	66 	.485 	187 	237 	6th, Pacific 	2017 	Did not qualify 	Did not qualify 	Did not qualify 	Did not qualify 	Did not qualify
2017–18 	68 	42 	20 	5 	1 	90 	.662 	214 	173 	1st, Pacific 	2018 	— 	W, 3–1, SJ 	L, 1–4, TEX 	— 	—
2018–19 	68 	34 	26 	5 	3 	76 	.559 	206 	202 	5th, Pacific 	2019 	Did not qualify 	Did not qualify 	Did not qualify 	Did not qualify 	Did not qualify
2019–20 	58 	36 	19 	1 	2 	75 	.647 	198 	163 	1st, Pacific 	 	Season cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic	Season cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic	Season cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic	Season cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic	Season cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic
2020–21 	36 	13 	20 	3 	0 	29 	.403 	103 	126 	7th, Pacific 	2021 	— 	L, 1–2, SJ 	— 	— 	—
2021–22 	68 	23 	39 	5 	1 	52 	.382 	182 	268 	8th, Pacific 	2022 	Did not qualify 	Did not qualify 	Did not qualify 	Did not qualify 	Did not qualify
2022–23 	72 	30 	33 	8 	1 	69 	.479 	219 	245 	7th, Pacific 	2023 	L, 1–2, CV 	— 	— 	— 	—
2023–24 	72 	43 	23 	4 	2 	92 	.639 	222 	214 	2nd, Pacific 	2024 	L, 0–2, CGY 	— 	— 	— 	—
==Players==
===Current roster===
Updated April 26, 2024.
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===Team captains===
* Craig Cunningham, 2016
* Andrew Campbell, 2017–18
* Dakota Mermis, 2018–19
* Michael Chaput, 2019–20
* Dysin Mayo, 2021
* Hudson Fasching, 2022
* Adam Cracknell, 2022–23
* Steven Kampfer, 2023–present
===Retired numbers===
Tucson Roadrunners retired numbers
No.	Player 	Position	Career	No. retirement
14 	Craig Cunningham	C 	2016 	October 27, 2017
==Team records and leaders==
Figures are updated as of the conclusion of the 2023–24 season.
===Scoring leaders===
These are the top-ten point-scorers for the Tucson Roadrunners in the AHL.
Note: Pos = Position; GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; P/G = Points per game; = current Roadrunners player
Points
Player 	Pos	GP 	G 	A 	Pts	P/G
Michael Bunting	LW 	260	74	106	180	.69
Michael Carcone	LW 	148	70	81 	151	1.02
Lane Pederson 	C 	183	58	66 	124	.68
Jan Jenik 	LW 	165	46	74 	120	.73
Kyle Capobianco	D 	155	21	91 	112	.72
Hudson Fasching	RW 	174	49	57 	106	.61
Laurent Dauphin	C 	137	44	60 	104	.76
Brayden Burke 	LW 	146	35	64 	99 	.68
Cam Dineen 	D 	207	18	72 	90 	.43
Nick Merkley 	RW 	109	31	58 	89 	.82
===Franchise leaders===
====Single season====
Type 	Number	Player 	Season 	Ref
Goals 	31 	Michael Carcone 	2022–23 	
Assists 	54 	Michael Carcone 	2022–23 	
Points 	85 	Michael Carcone 	2022–23 	
Penalty minutes 	178 	Bokondji Imama 	2021–22 	
Power play goals 	14 	Michael Carcone 	2022–23 	
Short-handed goals	3 	Laurent Dauphin & Jeremy Gregoire	2016–17 & 2019–20	
Game winning goals	8 	Josh Doan 	2023–24 	
Plus–minus 	+30 	Joel Hanley 	2017–18 	
Wins 	31 	Matthew Villalta 	2023–24 	
Shutouts 	5 	Adin Hill 	2017–18 	
====Career====
Type 	Number	Player 	Ref
Games played 	279 	Dysin Mayo 	
Goals 	74 	Michael Bunting	
Assists 	106 	Michael Bunting	
Points 	180 	Michael Bunting	
Penalty minutes 	287 	Bokondji Imama 	
Power play goals 	28 	Michael Carcone	
Short-handed goals	5 	Hudson Fasching	
Game-winning goals	11 	Michael Bunting	
Plus-minus 	+30 	Joel Hanley 	
Wins 	66 	Adin Hill 	
Shutouts 	10 	Adin Hill 	
==References==
==External links==
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Category:Tucson Roadrunners
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Category:Ice hockey clubs established in 2016
Category:Ice hockey teams in Arizona