Preview: Moose at Belleville – Nov. 20

Moose at Belleville – CAA Arena – 6 p.m. CT
Broadcast: TSN 1290, moosehockey.com/listenlive, AHLTV

The Manitoba Moose get a seven-game road trip started tonight against the Belleville Senators. It’s a whopper of a trip that will see the Moose hit six different cities over 17 days. The team really doesn’t spend much time off the road over the next month. Manitoba plays all of four home games before Christmas, and will be in Winnipeg all of six days over the next month while playing 12 of their next 14 on the road.

That grind starts tonight with the Senators. The Moose come in as one of the AHL’s hottest teams, winning six straight games dating back to Nov. 8 against Rockford. During that streak, the team has allowed just five goals, led by Mikhail Berdin who has made 210 saves on 215 shots during that span.

Berdin’s play in four games against Texas and San Antonio earned him CCM/AHL Player of the Week honours for the period ending Nov. 17. He posted a 4-0-0 record, supported by a 1.24 goals-against average and a .967 save percentage.  The second-year pro has started 15 of Manitoba’s 17 games this season. He leads the AHL in wins and is second in both minutes played (877) and saves (454).

While Berdin is stopping almost everything, he isn’t the one scoring goals. Though he did tally an assist on Sunday. Jansen Harkins continues to roll right along, picking up two assists on Sunday. His point streak, now the longest active in the AHL, sits at nine games. Harkins is up to 20 points (5G, 15A) on the campaign and is tied for third in league scoring. Andrei Chibisov is going right with him. The Russian forward has goals in back-to-back games and nine points (3G, 6A) over his past eight games.

Depth scoring has also been crucial for the Moose during their winning streak. Cole Maier provided two of Manitoba’s first three goals on Sunday. It was the rookie’s first multi-goal performance as he scored a shorthanded tally and struck for the game-winner at even strength. While they didn’t score, the line of Skyler McKenzie, Nathan Todd and Brent Pedersen combined for eight shots on Sunday.

The Belleville Senators just saw a winning streak of their own snapped. Tonight's hosts dropped a 4-2 decision to Milwaukee on Saturday that brought a four game run to a halt. Extra time may be in the cards tonight as the Senators went past 60 minutes in five of their last seven outings. Belleville is led by Ottawa fourth round pick Drake Batherson who has 17 points (6G, 11A) in 15 games in the AHL.

Tonight’s game gets going at 6 p.m. CT. You can tune in on TSN 1290, moosehockey.com/listenlive and AHLTV with the pre-game show starting at 5:45 CT.