By the Numbers: Ice v Mustangs Semi-Final Preview

Cross-town rivals the Melbourne Ice and the Melbourne Mustangs will open up the first-round of the 2017 AIHL Finals presented by Air Canada on Saturday September 2^nd at the O’Brien Group Arena, facing off in the Goodall Cup series for the first time since August 2014.

This is the twelfth straight appearance in the post-season for the Ice, whereas the Mustangs return to the playoffs after a two-year absence. By the numbers both teams offer a formidable match up that will keep fans on the edge of their seats come the first weekend of September.

Steady Mustangs, ready for the Finals

To look simply at the 2017 head-to-head record between the two clubs, the stats don't fall in the Mustangs favour. The Mustangs went 1-3-0 against the Ice this season: their lone win coming in a shootout on July 13^th at O’Brien Group Arena. But the playoffs are a different story notes Mustangs Head Coach Michael Flaherty.

“It all comes down to the next game and that is what we will be focusing on,” said Flaherty.

Coming into the Finals as the fourth-placed team, this will be the Mustangs second post-season appearance in their six seasons since joining the AIHL in 2011, but they’re not an unproven Finals club by any means.

In 2014 the Mustangs hoist the Goodall Cup as the AIHL Champions hoist the Goodall Cup. Photo: AIHL Archive. 

Ice rolling red hot into the Finals

Across town, the Melbourne Ice come into the 2017 Finals having claimed the AIHL Minor Premiership for the second straight season. Now, they seek the post-season success that has eluded the team for the better part of the last four years.

The Ice will be making their 13^th consecutive playoff appearance since the club’s founding in 2002. Last season, the Ice went into the playoffs with high hopes after lapping the field in the league, however the team was routed by eventual Goodall Cup champions, the CBR Brave, falling in overtime in the Semi-Final.

Undeterred and with fresh leadership in 2017, the Ice came back stronger than ever: posting a 22-3-2-1 for a record-setting 71 points, amassing a League-leading 132 goals in the process.

Ice offence ones to watch

On paper, the Mustangs will have a tough time battling the depth of offensive talent at the Ice. Yet in 2017, the Mustangs have seen an increase in their scoring average and win percentages - can they rally when it counts?

For the Ice it’s been scoring by committee this season. Joseph Hughes has led the way offensively with 18 goals and 43 points in 25 games, followed by Viktor Gibbs Sjödin’s 15 goals and 40 points in 24 contests. Kristoffer Backman has registered 35 points and Matt Armstrong 33. 

“We don’t rely on one or two or three players. We’ve been playing 20 players and everyone has chipped in,” says Ice Head Coach Charles Franzen.

That seems to ring true as the Ice are the only playoff team to have 16 different players register at least two goals each during the regular season.

Of those 16 players, nine have scored at least five goals and six players (Ottosson, Armstrong, Gibbs Sjödin, Backman, Hughes, Dahlberg) have registered at least 10 goals.

For the Ice, the mindset is that they’ll be focusing on what they can do and preparing for all situations.

“We can’t do anything about the other teams or refs or whatever it is. We’re going to stick with our game plan and follow that and if we do that we’re going to be successful” says Franzen.

“You can be unlucky in one game and that can hit you, but we’re prepared on most of the things. We’ve been coming back from being down in the third period by multiple goals and we can still overrun the other team and make sure that we win at the end. That builds a lot of confidence through the team so they know that we can do it. I think that we’re getting prepared to have a good weekend.”

Important duos in the Stable
Not to be outdone offensively, the Mustangs have built up a series of dangerous duos on several lines.

With 11 wins and 40 points in regular season, the Mustangs’ scoring has been led largely by the offensive efforts of Jamie Bourke and Anton Kokkonen, who each have over 40 points.

Bourke leads his team in goals with 24, while imports Patrick O’Kane (19 goals), Maxime Langelier-Parent (15 goals) and Anton Kokkonen (13 goals) have accounted for over 45% of the Mustangs 104 goals in 28 games.

The introduction of Kokkonen and Langelier-Parent has proven to compliment the Mustangs existing talent.

“Both Anton and Max have added so much not just on the ice but also off the ice. [They are] great guys who have really set a standard for our team to reach for and achieve” said Flaherty.

Evidence of their effect can perhaps be seen in the steady rise of goals scored, from 89 in 28 games last year to 104 this season, and a moderate increase in winning percentage from 0.440 in 2016 to 0.476 in 2017.

Netminders will play key roles

If the Ice’s scoring ability isn’t enough of a threat, a key obstacle for the Mustangs will be solving the goaltender Dayne Davis challenge. The 32-year old has had success throughout the League and goes into the Finals 20-1-0 with two shutouts this season – one of which came in the 9-0 win over the Mustangs in May.

Dayne Davis for the Ice (left) and James Kruger for the Mustangs will play crucial roles in defence and in giving their offensive players confidence to get the job done. 

At the other end of the ice, the Mustangs acquired former Dartmouth College, NCAA goaltender James Kruger in late May of this year. Kruger has given the Mustangs steadier goaltending than at any point in recent seasons, posting a 10-8-0 record, a 3.18 GAA and .902 SV% in the 18 games he has played this season.

The season’s numbers provide a tantalising look at the first AIHL Finals presented by Air Canada Semi-Final, but as history has shown, anything is possible once the post-season commences.

The puck drops at the Ice v Mustangs Semi-Final at 3pm AEST, whether you’re at the game or watching live, join the conversation using #AIHLFinals.

Catch all the action with an AIHL Finals live stream pass, starting from $17.90 AUD.