Preview: Moose at Texas – Dec. 11
By: Daniel Fink | Published: December 11th 2019
Moose at Texas – H-E-B Center – 7 p.m. CT
Broadcast: TSN 1290, moosehockey.com/listenlive, AHLTV
On the road again, that's right, the Moose are on the road again. After a brief break from the road life and two games at Bell MTS Place the Moose hit the road for Texas yesterday. The team faces the Stars tonight to open a five-game road swing.
By the end of said trip, the Moose will reach the midway point of their season's road schedule just 31 games into the campaign. With Manitoba sitting at the .500 mark with a 13-13-0-0 record, this final swing leading up to the holiday break will be crucial. Come through with a strong showing and it really sets the team up nicely heading into the unofficial second half. Have a rough trip, and it puts the Moose in a hole they will need to dig out of. Not something the team would like to do for a second straight season.
The Moose come into tonight's game after some roster upheaval yesterday. The Winnipeg Jets assigned forward Mason Appleton to the Moose after missing six weeks due to a broken bone in his foot. Appleton returns to the Moose with 98 points in 116 career AHL games. The Green Bay, Wisc. native is expected to skate on the right side of Michael Spacek and Kristian Vesalainen. Should Appleton get back up to speed quickly, he could provide a major offensive boost to the Moose.
Along with Appleton, the Moose also recalled defencemen Charles-David Beaudoin and Hayden Shaw from the Jacksonville Icemen. Beaudoin looks to be joining the lineup tonight which puts him in line for his 100th AHL game and his 94th with the Moose.
The Moose aren't the only ones in tonight's matchup dealing with changes. The Texas Stars saw head coach Derek Laxdall get the call to join the Dallas Stars as an assistant coach with the dismissal of Jim Montgomery. With Laxdall moving on, Neil Graham takes over as the top bench boss of the AHL outfit. Graham was in his first season as an assistant with the Stars after spending four seasons as the head coach of the Idaho Steelheads. This is Graham's first stint as a head coach at the AHL level. The Stars roll in with points in seven straight games and wins in six of those contests.
The Moose and Stars drop the puck at 7 p.m. CT tonight. Tune in to the contest on TSN 1290, moosehockey.com/listenlive and AHLTV starting at 6:45 p.m.
