Fast Facts: Moose vs. Calgary – Oct. 15

The Manitoba Moose and Calgary Wranglers clash for the second time this weekend today at Canada Life Centre (2 p.m.). The teams opened the season Friday in a matchup that saw the Wranglers score four unanswered goals on the way to a 4-2 victory. The Moose started out hot with a 2-0 lead after 20 minutes, but the Wranglers stormed back late in the second and early in the third.  Tickets for today's matinee affair are available at MooseHockey.com/TICKETS. Puck drop is slated for 2 p.m.

Coverage of today's game begins at 1:45 p.m. on CJOB.com/sports, MooseHockey.com/LISTENLIVE and AHLTV.com's opening weekend Freeview. Tune in on 680 CJOB starting just before puck drop.

Debuts

With the first game of the season in the books, the Moose saw a pair of forwards make the AHL debuts on Friday. Nikita Chibrikov and Danny Zhilkin each took their first strides in the league. It started out well for Chibrikov, who scored during his first shift of the game. He also recorded three shots on goal in his first action. Zhilkin didn’t find the scoresheet, but recorded one shot on goal and an even plus/minus rating.

Youthful Production

Six Moose players recorded points off the team’s two goals on Friday. Of those six players, four are age 21 or younger and three are 20 or younger. Among those were Nikita Chibrikov and Brad Lambert, who tallied Manitoba’s goals. Meanwhile, Chaz Lucius and Daniel Torgersson picked up helpers. The youthful Moose roster lists eight players born in 2002 or later. Manitoba iced five rookies in Friday’s contest and feature eight rookies on the current roster.

Back in Antlers

Friday’s game marked the return of C.J. Suess to the Moose lineup. Suess played 166 games with the Moose from 2018-2022 while recording 83 points (45G, 38A). He spent the 2022-23 campaign in the San Jose Sharks organization, appearing in one game with the Sharks and 46 contests with the Barracuda. Suess picked up 22 points (10G, 12A) at the AHL level while maintaining a plus-three rating, fifth on the Barracuda. The Forest Lake, Min. product recorded a team-high four shots on goal in his re-debut with Manitoba.

Open With a Split

Since the Moose returned to Winnipeg in 2015, the team has split its opening two games of the season five of eight seasons. In those five occurrences, the team dropped its first game and won the second on four occasions. Those splits include each of the past two seasons. This season marks just the third time the Moose open their season on home ice. The 2022-23 opening weekend saw the club earn three out of four points, while Manitoba dropped two games to Toronto to open the 2020-21 campaign.

Who's Trending?

Dominic Toninato notched a first period assist in Friday’s contest against Calgary. Dating back to the 2022-23 campaign, the forward has tallied points in three straight regular season games. He finished 2022-23 with points in 11 of his final 15 contests. Toninato wrapped the season ranked fourth among Moose forwards with 35 points (19G, 16A).