Preview: Moose at Toronto – Nov. 23

Moose at Toronto – Coca-Cola Coliseum – 3 p.m. CT
Broadcast: moosehockey.com/listenlive, AHLTV

After a couple days to catch their breath, the Moose hit Coca-Cola Coliseum for back-to-back games against the Toronto Marlies this weekend. The teams have already met this season with the Marlies picking up a pair of wins in Winnipeg. That was the beginning of a six-game losing skid for the Moose, but they've since turned things right around.

Wednesday's win over Belleville was Manitoba's seventh in a row as the club climbed back into the the Central Division playoff picture. Now, it's pretty early in the season to be talking playoffs, but keeping yourself in the cluster is crucial. Especially in a tightly-packed division like the Central. Mikhail Berdin continues to be one of the big stories for Manitoba. He added another 38 saves to his total on Wednesday and another first star nod.  The Moose tender hasn't allowed more than two goals against since the streak started. Berdin has started 10 straight games, winning nine of them.

Speaking of 10-straight games, Jansen Harkins pushed his point steak to double digits with an assist on Emile Poirier's game-winner. Harkins is just one game back of Lucas Elvenes and Matt Puempel for the league's longest run this season. Harkins has the most points collected during a streak in 2019-20 at 18 points (5G, 13A). The Moose will need him to continue driving the offence, especially with Seth Griffith doubtful to play this weekend. The veteran forward was struck by a puck last weekend and was forced to remain behind in Winnipeg for repairs. He has since joined the Moose on the road, but skated in a non-contact jersey yesterday.

Emile Poirier is filling in for Griffith on the line with Jansen Harkins and Andrei Chibisov. He made good on the opportunity on Wednesday, scoring the game-winner in the first period. Poirier has three tallies this season and all of them have clinched the game. Harkins was a fan of what Poirier brought to the group on Wednesday.

"(Poirier) played really well," said Harkins following the win. "He's a fast player and it was a pretty up and down game tonight so he kind of used that to his advantage and had a couple good breaks out there. He played really well tonight."

The depth scoring also came through again for Manitoba on Wednesday. Nathan Todd put away his first of the season, and first of his AHL career to open the scoring. Alexis D'Aoust picked up an assist on the goal playing in his first game with the Moose this season. While the Moose have relied on the Harkins line to provide a base level of offence. It seems each game another grouping steps up to provide that boost to get the Moose into the win column.

It's been an interesting week for the Toronto Marlies. After Mike Babcock was relieved of his duties on Wednesday, Marlies bench boss Sheldon Keefe was tapped to join the big club. With Keefe at the helm, the Marlies posted a video game-like record of 199-89-22-9 and won the Calder Cup in 2018. The club won its first game without Keefe behind the bench, but hasn't announced a new head coach as of yet. The Moose could see a familiar face in net at some point this weekend. Michael Hutchinson was recently assigned to the Marlies by the Maple Leafs. Hutchinson played for Manitoba during the 2017-18 season and was named to the AHL Second All-Star Team for his work between the pipes.

Puck drop between the Moose and Marlies is at 3 p.m. CT today. Coverage of the game starts at 2 p.m. with Moose Weekly hosted by Austin Siragusa. Tune in on moosehockey.com/listenlive and AHLTV.