HENDERSON, N.V. – The Henderson Silver Knights will look to make it a series sweep with a second victory over the Tucson Roadrunners. Forward Jonas Rondbjerg potted two goals and an assist in Friday’s shootout victory. Brandon Hickey and Jakub Brabenec also earned two-point nights, with Brabenec additionally scoring one of Henderson’s two shootout tallies. Puck drop is set for 7 p.m. PT.
BOOSTED BY BRANDON
Throughout the Silver Knights’ line shuffles, Brandon Hickey has been instrumental in the depth he has provided the team. On Friday, his fifth game as a forward this season, he tallied a two-point night (1G, 1A) against the Roadrunners. Hickey has now notched 7 points (2G, 5A) in 29 games this season.
“I’m feeling good,” he said after Friday’s victory. “I just want to help the team win in any way I can, whether that’s playing defense, forward, PK – whatever they need me to do. It felt really good to contribute tonight and help the guys get the win.”
FORWARD ON THE FORECHECK
Both Hickey and Head Coach Ryan Craig credited the Knights’ success on Friday to their execution on the forecheck and the team’s willingness to drive the net.
“I really liked our start. I thought we stayed with our game,” said Craig on Friday evening. “[Rondbjerg] had a good game attacking, he made some great plays on quite a few of the goals. I thought he managed the ice really well and was a driver for us tonight.”
“We got on the forecheck hard and played the body, and then we reloaded on top of them to make it really hard for them to come through the neutral zone,” added Hickey. “They ended up turning over some pucks and we got some chances off of it. We were really happy with the way we forechecked tonight.”
BEHIND ENEMY LINES
- Rookie defenseman Max Szuber led the Roadrunners to early success in the first period of Friday’s game, scoring a goal and earning an assist on Josh Doan’s game-opening tally. It marked Szuber’s first point in ten games.
- With his power-play goal for Tucson late in the second period of Friday’s game, Aku Raty now stands second on the Roadrunners in goals. He has notched 27 points (12G, 15A) in 37 games this season. Raty additionally has four points (3G, 1A) in the team’s last five games, including a two-goal performance against Bakersfield.
FURTHER NOTES
- Christoffer Sedoff is week-to-week
- Adam Cracknell is week-to-week
- Gage Quinney is week-to-week
- Carson Focht is week-to-week