COMETS END THREE-GAME ROAD TRIP IN TORONTO
Jan 9, 2019UTICA COMETS (20-16-2-1) vs. TORONTO MARLIES (17-14-3-2)
Coca-Cola Coliseum, 7 p.m.
Watch Live: AHLTV | Listen Live: 94.9 K-ROCK
Follow and Interact Live: Twitter | Hashtag: #UTIvsTOR
Tonight’s Game: The Utica Comets wrap up their three-game road trip against the Toronto Marlies. Puck drop is at 7 p.m.
Last Game: Tanner Kero scored a hat trick and Ivan Kulbakov made a career-high 40 saves as the Utica Comets dominated the Cleveland Monsters during a 5-1 victory on Sunday at Quicken Loans Arena. Zack MacEwen and Vincent Arseneau also found the net for the Comets.
Head-to-Head: This is the fourth meeting between the Comets and Marlies this season. Utica leads the season series 2-1-0-0 and won the most recent matchup 5-3 back on October 14.
Scouting the Marlies: Toronto comes in with a record of 17-14-3-2 and sits in fifth place in the North Division. The most recently fell to the Charlotte Checkers 5-0 on Sunday. Chris Mueller leads the offense with 38 points, followed by Jeremy Bracco with 33 points. Eamon McAdam is the leading netminder with a record of 8-4-3, a 2.92 goals-against average, and a .893 save percentage.
Rolling: The Comets have been on a roll. Utica has won four straight games and has points in seven of their last 10 games. Additionally, the Comets have won four of their last five road games and have points in six of their last seven away from the Adirondack Bank Center.
Red Hot: Vincent Arseneau has been on fire. Arseneau has three goals in his last two games and five goals in his last five games. He has also beaten his previous AHL career high of one goal. The forward has five points (5-0-5) in 17 games this season.
Big Year: Tanner Kero is having a career year. Kero recorded his first professional hat trick this past Sunday in Cleveland and is one point shy of tying his career-high in assists (19). He is also seven goals away from his career-high of 20, and eight points back of tying his career-high of 39. The forward has 31 points (13-18-31) in 39 games this season.
Streaking: Brendan Gaunce’s huge year continues. After ending his three-game pointless skid, Gaunce responded in a big way as he is currently riding a four-game point streak, picking up five points (2-3-5). Gaunce has also recorded five multi-point games so far this season. The forward has recorded 20 points (10-10-20) in 23 games with the Comets this year.
Next Game: The Comets hit the ice again Friday night as they host the Bridgeport Sound Tigers. Puck drop is at 7 p.m. Fans are encouraged to utilize the ticket exchange website, StubHub!. The game can be heard on 94.9 KROCK and viewed on AHLTV. Be sure to get there early as the first 1,000 fans through the door will receive a Thatcher Demko bobblehead.