If Connor Mackey scored the final American Hockey League goal at the Stockton Arena, it was a good one.

With just over five minutes remaining in overtime of Game 5 between the Stockton Arena and Chicago Wolves, the 25-year-old defenceman took a feed in the high slot and wired a wrist shot past Wolves goaltender @Alex Lyon.
Mackey&#8217;s first career AHL playoff goal kept the Heat alive in the Western Conference Final.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true">
Never in doubt. <a href="https://t.co/amey5oss6E">pic.twitter.com/amey5oss6E</a>
&mdash; y &#8211; Stockton Heat (@AHLHeat) <a href="https://twitter.com/AHLHeat/status/1535841893237420032?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 12, 2022</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
The Heat dropped the first three games of the series — two in Rosemont, IL, one in Stockton — before roaring back to win back-to-back overtime games at home. The Western Conference Final now shifts back to Illinois for Game 6 and (if necessary) a winner-take-all Game 7.
It&#8217;s not as though Stockton was grossly outplayed in its losses against Chicago. Games 1 and 2 both ended with the Wolves up by one goal; Game 3 saw Dustin Wolf make 27 saves in a 3–0 Heat loss.
Stockton took Games 4 and 5 despite being without top-six centres Adam Ruzicka and Luke Philp. Glenn Gawdin and Byron Froese have both risen to the occasion in big ways, with Gawdin scoring the OT winner in Game 4 and Froese setting up Mackey&#8217;s clincher in Game 5.
Even if the Heat fall on Tuesday evening, they have a lot to be proud of. They&#8217;ve won eight playoff games, including two against the AHL&#8217;s top team in the regular season.
If they can push this series to Game 7 and win, they&#8217;ll become legendary. Only three AHL teams have ever come back from 0–3 series deficits to advance.
The Heat are halfway there.
<h2>Projected lineups</h2>
These combinations are based, in part, on those used in these teams’ previous games. 
Stockton Heat
@Justin Kirkland – @Glenn Gawdin – @Matthew Phillips 
@Jakob Pelletier – @Byron Froese – @Martin Pospisil 
@Emilio Pettersen – @Connor Zary – @Eetu Tuulola 
@Alex Gallant – Rory Kerins – @Walker Duehr
@Kevin Gravel – @Colton Poolman 
@Connor Mackey – @Nick DeSimone 
@Juuso Valimaki – @Andy Welinski
@Dustin Wolf 
@Adam Werner
Chicago Wolves
CJ Smith – @Andrew Poturalski – @Stefan Noesen 
@Josh Leivo – @Jack Drury – David Gust 
@Noel Gunler – Vasili Ponomarev – @Richard Panik 
Stelio Mattheos – @Jamieson Rees – Spencer Smallman
Max Lajoie – @Jalen Chatfield 
Jesper Sellgren – @Joey Keane 
Cavan Fitzgerald – Josh Jacobs
@Alex Lyon 
@Pyotr Kochetkov
<h2>Playoff scoring stars</h2>
This section excludes players recalled to the NHL or on assignment to other leagues.
Stockton Heat
<ol>
<li>Justin Kirkland — 12 GP, 7 G, 12 P</li>
<li>Byron Froese — 12 GP, 1 G, 10 P</li>
<li>Matthew Phillips — 12 GP, 3 G, 8 P</li>
<li>Jakob Pelletier — 12 GP, 4 G, 7 P</li>
<li>Glenn Gawdin — 9 GP, 3 G, 6 P</li>
</ol>
Chicago Wolves
<ol>
<li>Josh Leivo — 12 GP, 10 G, 19 P</li>
<li>Jack Drury — 12 GP, 7 G, 16 P</li>
<li>Stefan Noesen — 12 GP, 7 G, 15 P</li>
<li>Andrew Poturalski — 12 GP, 4 G, 13 P</li>
<li>David Gust — 12 GP, 3 G, 10 P</li>
</ol>
<h2>Heating up</h2>
Heat captain Byron Froese has beautifully risen to the occasion with his team&#8217;s season on the line.
The 31-year-old centre has slid into a top-six role in the last two games and has responded with four assists, including the primary helper on Glenn Gawdin&#8217;s last-second equalizer in Game 4.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true">
<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ICYMI?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#ICYMI</a>: Glenn Gawdin (<a href="https://twitter.com/AHLHeat?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@AHLHeat</a>) tied up <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/CHIvsSTK?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#CHIvsSTK</a> last night with just 49 seconds left in regulation. <a href="https://t.co/z4GS4IuBwE">pic.twitter.com/z4GS4IuBwE</a>
&mdash; American Hockey League (@TheAHL) <a href="https://twitter.com/TheAHL/status/1535664648522981376?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 11, 2022</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
<h2>How to watch</h2>
Game 6 in Rosemont, IL will be broadcast on <a href="https://www.watchtheahl.com/">AHL TV</a> (subscription required) and on <a href="http://spreaker.com/user/stocktonheat">Spreaker</a> (audio only), with the opening puck-drop set for 6:00 p.m. MT.
FlamesNation contributors Paige Siewert and Mike Gould will provide live game updates on Twitter. Additionally, you&#8217;ll be able to follow along at <a href="https://theahl.com/">TheAHL.com</a>.
<hr />
<h2><a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/purchase-options/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer follow" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/purchase-options/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1637192862258000&amp;usg=AOvVaw3dLuPqW6rbyceDwC6Lbc9o" data-wpel-link="internal">HEAT GAME PREVIEW BROUGHT TO YOU BY DAILYFACEOFF</a></h2>
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="CToWUd a6T jetpack-lazy-image jetpack-lazy-image--handled" src="https://ci6.googleusercontent.com/proxy/6X0Dv3_3PYFPZkrLaCbWeYHXMWzAuuXH7t2JLsFB1K2CKHzv26F60yZHHLRR12FCRBsmykWDyeegP6hZLXPKs-Eh0ldWPAdIalTDjc6NK66QBuw7_5ft-rH7CN3uSSVIFr216hvo7Hon19ua7JUBjO1KV9pf7iUjZeLTRUvNVMf6EPrRW0k=s0-d-e1-ft#https://i1.wp.com/publish.oilersnation.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/DailyFaceoff-Fantasy-Tools.png?resize=796%2C265&amp;ssl=1" alt="" width="796" height="265" data-lazy-loaded="1" />
Looking to up your fantasy hockey game? DailyFaceoff has the tools you need for both daily and season-long fantasy leagues, including a lineup optimizer, daily projections, and a whole lot more. <a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/purchase-options/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer follow" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/purchase-options/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1637192862258000&amp;usg=AOvVaw3dLuPqW6rbyceDwC6Lbc9o" data-wpel-link="internal">Sign up for the DailyFaceoff tools here.</a>
<hr />
<h2><a href="https://flamesnation.ca/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer follow" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://flamesnation.ca/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1643426444783000&amp;usg=AOvVaw0ZoMy36-f05a90iD5z8D6E" data-wpel-link="internal">More from FlamesNation</a></h2>
<ul>
<li><a href="https://flamesnation.ca/2022/06/11/tyler-toffoli-had-mixed-results-after-joining-the-flames-mid-season/" rel="v:url follow" data-wpel-link="internal">Tyler Toffoli had mixed results after joining the Flames mid-season</a></li>
<li><a href="https://flamesnation.ca/2022/06/10/brad-treliving-flames-off-season/" rel="v:url follow" data-wpel-link="internal">Brad Treliving has a really, really long off-season to-do list</a></li>
<li><a href="https://flamesnation.ca/2022/06/09/milan-lucic-calgary-flames-flamesnation-player-evaluation/" rel="v:url follow" data-wpel-link="internal">Milan Lucic struggled mightily down the stretch in 2021–22 after a hot start</a></li>
</ul>

If Connor Mackey scored the final American Hockey League goal at the Stockton Arena, it was a good one.



With just over five minutes remaining in overtime of Game 5 between the Stockton Arena and Chicago Wolves, the 25-year-old defenceman took a feed in the high slot and wired a wrist shot past Wolves goaltender @Alex Lyon.

Mackey's first career AHL playoff goal kept the Heat alive in the Western Conference Final.

https://twitter.com/AHLHeat/status/1535841893237420032

The Heat dropped the first three games of the series — two in Rosemont, IL, one in Stockton — before roaring back to win back-to-back overtime games at home. The Western Conference Final now shifts back to Illinois for Game 6 and (if necessary) a winner-take-all Game 7.

It's not as though Stockton was grossly outplayed in its losses against Chicago. Games 1 and 2 both ended with the Wolves up by one goal; Game 3 saw Dustin Wolf make 27 saves in a 3–0 Heat loss.

Stockton took Games 4 and 5 despite being without top-six centres Adam Ruzicka and Luke Philp. Glenn Gawdin and Byron Froese have both risen to the occasion in big ways, with Gawdin scoring the OT winner in Game 4 and Froese setting up Mackey's clincher in Game 5.

Even if the Heat fall on Tuesday evening, they have a lot to be proud of. They've won eight playoff games, including two against the AHL's top team in the regular season.

If they can push this series to Game 7 and win, they'll become legendary. Only three AHL teams have ever come back from 0–3 series deficits to advance.

The Heat are halfway there.
<h2>Projected lineups</h2>
These combinations are based, in part, on those used in these teams’ previous games. 

Stockton Heat

@Justin Kirkland – @Glenn Gawdin – @Matthew Phillips
@Jakob Pelletier – @Byron Froese – @Martin Pospisil
@Emilio Pettersen – @Connor Zary – @Eetu Tuulola
@Alex Gallant – Rory Kerins – @Walker Duehr

@Kevin Gravel – @Colton Poolman
@Connor Mackey – @Nick DeSimone
@Juuso Valimaki – @Andy Welinski

@Dustin Wolf
@Adam Werner

Chicago Wolves

CJ Smith – @Andrew Poturalski – @Stefan Noesen
@Josh Leivo – @Jack Drury – David Gust
@Noel Gunler – Vasili Ponomarev – @Richard Panik
Stelio Mattheos – @Jamieson Rees – Spencer Smallman

Max Lajoie – @Jalen Chatfield
Jesper Sellgren – @Joey Keane
Cavan Fitzgerald – Josh Jacobs

@Alex Lyon
@Pyotr Kochetkov
<h2>Playoff scoring stars</h2>
This section excludes players recalled to the NHL or on assignment to other leagues.

Stockton Heat
<ol>
 	<li>Justin Kirkland — 12 GP, 7 G, 12 P</li>
 	<li>Byron Froese — 12 GP, 1 G, 10 P</li>
 	<li>Matthew Phillips — 12 GP, 3 G, 8 P</li>
 	<li>Jakob Pelletier — 12 GP, 4 G, 7 P</li>
 	<li>Glenn Gawdin — 9 GP, 3 G, 6 P</li>
</ol>
Chicago Wolves
<ol>
 	<li>Josh Leivo — 12 GP, 10 G, 19 P</li>
 	<li>Jack Drury — 12 GP, 7 G, 16 P</li>
 	<li>Stefan Noesen — 12 GP, 7 G, 15 P</li>
 	<li>Andrew Poturalski — 12 GP, 4 G, 13 P</li>
 	<li>David Gust — 12 GP, 3 G, 10 P</li>
</ol>
<h2>Heating up</h2>
Heat captain Byron Froese has beautifully risen to the occasion with his team's season on the line.

The 31-year-old centre has slid into a top-six role in the last two games and has responded with four assists, including the primary helper on Glenn Gawdin's last-second equalizer in Game 4.

https://twitter.com/TheAHL/status/1535664648522981376
<h2>How to watch</h2>
Game 6 in Rosemont, IL will be broadcast on <a href="https://www.watchtheahl.com/">AHL TV</a> (subscription required) and on <a href="http://spreaker.com/user/stocktonheat">Spreaker</a> (audio only), with the opening puck-drop set for 6:00 p.m. MT.

FlamesNation contributors Paige Siewert and Mike Gould will provide live game updates on Twitter. Additionally, you'll be able to follow along at <a href="https://theahl.com/">TheAHL.com</a>.

<hr />

<h2><a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/purchase-options/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer follow" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/purchase-options/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1637192862258000&amp;usg=AOvVaw3dLuPqW6rbyceDwC6Lbc9o" data-wpel-link="internal">HEAT GAME PREVIEW BROUGHT TO YOU BY DAILYFACEOFF</a></h2>
<img class="CToWUd a6T jetpack-lazy-image jetpack-lazy-image--handled" src="https://ci6.googleusercontent.com/proxy/6X0Dv3_3PYFPZkrLaCbWeYHXMWzAuuXH7t2JLsFB1K2CKHzv26F60yZHHLRR12FCRBsmykWDyeegP6hZLXPKs-Eh0ldWPAdIalTDjc6NK66QBuw7_5ft-rH7CN3uSSVIFr216hvo7Hon19ua7JUBjO1KV9pf7iUjZeLTRUvNVMf6EPrRW0k=s0-d-e1-ft#https://i1.wp.com/publish.oilersnation.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/DailyFaceoff-Fantasy-Tools.png?resize=796%2C265&amp;ssl=1" alt="" width="796" height="265" data-lazy-loaded="1" />

Looking to up your fantasy hockey game? DailyFaceoff has the tools you need for both daily and season-long fantasy leagues, including a lineup optimizer, daily projections, and a whole lot more. <a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/purchase-options/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer follow" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/purchase-options/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1637192862258000&amp;usg=AOvVaw3dLuPqW6rbyceDwC6Lbc9o" data-wpel-link="internal">Sign up for the DailyFaceoff tools here.</a>

<hr />

<h2><a href="https://flamesnation.ca/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer follow" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://flamesnation.ca/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1643426444783000&amp;usg=AOvVaw0ZoMy36-f05a90iD5z8D6E" data-wpel-link="internal">More from FlamesNation</a></h2>
<ul>
 	<li><a href="https://flamesnation.ca/2022/06/11/tyler-toffoli-had-mixed-results-after-joining-the-flames-mid-season/" rel="v:url follow" data-wpel-link="internal">Tyler Toffoli had mixed results after joining the Flames mid-season</a></li>
 	<li><a href="https://flamesnation.ca/2022/06/10/brad-treliving-flames-off-season/" rel="v:url follow" data-wpel-link="internal">Brad Treliving has a really, really long off-season to-do list</a></li>
 	<li><a href="https://flamesnation.ca/2022/06/09/milan-lucic-calgary-flames-flamesnation-player-evaluation/" rel="v:url follow" data-wpel-link="internal">Milan Lucic struggled mightily down the stretch in 2021–22 after a hot start</a></li>
</ul>

Heat Playoff Game Day: Time for the toughest test yet (6:00 p.m. MT)

Flames assign Jakob Pelletier and Walker Duehr to the Wranglers for the NHL roster freeze

Counting down the best Flames fights of 2024

Beyond the Boxscore: Flames get enough goals to hold off Blackhawks in 6-4 victory

Flames Post-Game: Flames hang on for a close win over Chicago

Calgary Flames right wing Matt Coronato (27) during the face off against the Ottawa Senators during the second period at Scotiabank Saddledome.

Recent articles from Mike Gould

Breaking News