GAMEDAY: BARRACUDA VS WILD
Feb 5, 2019San Jose Barracuda (26-8-2-4 .725) vs. Iowa Wild (24-16-4-3 .585)
TUESDAY, FEB. 5 | 7:00 P.M.
SAP Center | San Jose, Calif.
LISTEN | WATCH | GAME NOTES
Tuesday’s Tilt: On Tuesday, for the first time since 2016, the San Jose Barracuda and Iowa Wild collide in an out of division matchup. In the only two previous meetings, overtime was needed with each team earning a win on home ice. The Barracuda are 5-0-0-1 against the Central Division in 2018-19 and 21-10-2-1 all-time. San Jose is riding a seven-game point streak entering Tuesday.
Sommer-Time: Barracuda head coach and Oakland native Roy Sommer earned his 750th AHL win on Friday. The AHL’s all-time leader in victories, games coached and seasons coached was the third Golden State native to make the NHL during his playing career that spanned three games with the Wayne Gretzky-led Edmonton Oilers and became the second Californian to score in the NHL on January 28, 1981, against the Montreal Canadiens.
Home-Sweet-Home: The Barracuda enter Tuesday’s meeting with the Iowa Wild on a four-game home point streak (3-0-1-0) and rank T-third in the AHL in home winning percentage (14-4-1-1 .750). In addition, San Jose’s +21 home goal differential is the best in the pacific.
Star-Studded: The Barracuda were well represented at the 2019 AHL All-Star Classic earlier this week in Springfield, MA. Assistant captain Jake Middleton, winger Francis Perron, goaltender Josef Korenar and head coach Roy Sommer were all in Springfield as Barracuda representatives. Perron co-won the sharp-shooter contest on Sunday after hitting all four targets in six attempts and collected two points (one goal, one assist) in the three-on-three tournament. Middleton finished T-second among all skaters with four points (one goal, three assists) during the three-on-three tournament.
The Truth: Sophomore forward Alex True potted a pair of goals on Friday and now leads the Barracuda in points (36), T-first in goals (14), first in assists (22), second in plus/minus (+19), T-third in power-play goals, T-first in points-per-game (.90), and first in game-winners (4). Since December first, True has registered seven multi-point games.
Two-Headed Monster: San Jose’s goalie combo of Josef Korenar and Antoine Bibeau have combined for the AHL’s best goals-against average (2.42) and save percentage (.916). The 20-year-old rookie Korenar is second in the AHL in GAA (2.20), third in SV% (.922), T-fourth in wins (16), and T-third in shutouts (3). Bibeau is 9th in the league in GAA (2.56) and is T-11th in SV% (.914).
Francis on Fire: Acquired from the Ottawa Senators in the Erik Karlsson trade, third-year pro Francis Perron is second on the Barracuda in points (31), T-first in goals (14), third in assists (17), first in power-play goals (6), first in shooting percentage (25.9%), second in game-winning goals (3), fifth in plus/minus (+15) and first in multi-point games (8).
Hard Wood: Acquired in an offseason trade with the Arizona Coyotes, Kyle Wood is second on the Barracuda in assists (21), first in plus/minus (+21), first in power-play assists (7), and is fourth in points (25). Wood was an AHL All-Star in 2016-17 and was named an AHL All-Rookie member after totaling 43 points (14g, 29a) with the Tucson Roadrunners.
Gams Goes Up: The Sharks recalled rookie forward Dylan Gambrell on Monday for their four-game road trip that starts in Winnipeg on Tuesday. Gambrell ranks third on the Barracuda in points (31), third in goals (11), third in assists (17), T-third in power-play goals, T-first in points-per-game (.90), first in shots (86), second in power-play assists (6), and T-third in game-winning goals (2).