It&#8217;s time to welcome back the Stockton Heat!

After a 12-day Christmas break, extended by postponed contests on Dec. 22 and 29, the Heat will finally return to action on Friday afternoon when they take on the San Jose Barracuda at 2:00 p.m. MT.
It remains to be seen whether @Dustin Wolf will start in net for Stockton after serving as @Jacob Markstrom&#8217;s backup in the Calgary Flames&#8217; 6–4 win over Seattle on Thursday. The Flames reassigned Wolf to Stockton on Friday morning.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true">
<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Flames?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Flames</a> Roster Update: Dustin Wolf has been assigned to the <a href="https://twitter.com/AHLHeat?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@AHLHeat</a>.
&mdash; Calgary Flames (@NHLFlames) <a href="https://twitter.com/NHLFlames/status/1476975145247920129?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 31, 2021</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
If Wolf is in net, the Heat stand a pretty good chance of winning. Wolf has yet to record a single regulation loss in 16 appearances this season, leading the entire AHL with a 14–0–2 record and ranking second with a .940 save percentage.
Stockton currently sits atop the AHL&#8217;s Pacific Division with an 18–2–3 record, with points in eight consecutive games. Conversely, San Jose ranks eighth in the Pacific at 10–13–1 and has already allowed 100 goals in just 24 contests this season.
<h2>Projected lineups</h2>
These combinations are based, in part, on those used in these teams’ respective previous games. 
Stockton
@Jakob Pelletier – @Glenn Gawdin – @Matthew Phillips 
@Emilio Pettersen – @Connor Zary – @Martin Pospisil 
@Justin Kirkland – @Luke Philp – @Walker Duehr 
@Alex Gallant – @Ryan Olsen – @Eetu Tuulola
@Connor Mackey – @Andy Welinski 
@Juuso Valimaki – @Colton Poolman 
@Ilya Solovyov – @Nick DeSimone
@Dustin Wolf 
@Adam Werner
San Jose
@Jayden Halbgewachs – @Nick Merkley – @Joachim Blichfeld 
@John Leonard – @Sasha Chmelevski – @Scott Reedy 
@Dillon Hamaliuk – @Krystof Hrabik – @Jake McGrew 
@Timur Ibragimov – @Zachary Gallant – @Evan Weinger
@Jaycob Megna – @Mark Alt 
@Santeri Hatakka – @Patrick Holway 
@Artemi Kniazev – @Ryan Merkley
@Alexei Melnichuk 
@Sam Harvey
<h2>Scoring leaders</h2>
This section excludes players recalled to the NHL or on assignment to other leagues.
Stockton — @Jakob Pelletier (10 goals, 27 points); @Glenn Gawdin (nine goals, 24 points); @Matthew Phillips (nine goals, 21 points); @Luke Philp (seven goals, 14 points); @Connor Mackey (three goals, 14 points).
San Jose — @Scott Reedy (13 goals, 22 points); @Jayden Halbgewachs (eight goals, 17 points); @Ryan Merkley (one goal, 17 points); @Joachim Blichfeld (eight goals, 16 points); @Nick Merkley (five goals, 14 points).
<h2>Players to watch</h2>
Stockton — Heat forward @Luke Philp snapped a nine-game goalless drought in Stockton&#8217;s 5–2 victory over the Colorado Eagles on Dec. 18, also tallying an assist in the victory. Philp has been a remarkably steady goal-scorer for Stockton over his three-year tenure, with 34 goals in 105 games, and still ranks near the team&#8217;s leaders this season despite his recent skid. He ranks fifth on the team with seven goals in 23 games this year.
San Jose — It already looks like @Scott Reedy might be a future NHLer for the San Jose Sharks. The 22-year-old forward has 13 goals and 22 points in 22 games during his first full professional season in the San Jose organization; in 17 games with the Barracuda last year, Reedy managed five goals and eight points. The Sharks originally selected Reedy in the fourth round of the 2017 NHL Draft.
<h2>How to watch</h2>
Friday&#8217;s game in Stockton 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 2:00 p.m. MT.
FlamesNation contributor Paige Siewert will provide live game updates on <a href="https://twitter.com/flames_update">her Twitter account</a>. Additionally, you&#8217;ll be able to follow along at <a href="https://theahl.com/">TheAHL.com</a>.
<hr />
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It's time to welcome back the Stockton Heat!



After a 12-day Christmas break, extended by postponed contests on Dec. 22 and 29, the Heat will finally return to action on Friday afternoon when they take on the San Jose Barracuda at 2:00 p.m. MT.

It remains to be seen whether @Dustin Wolf will start in net for Stockton after serving as @Jacob Markstrom's backup in the Calgary Flames' 6–4 win over Seattle on Thursday. The Flames reassigned Wolf to Stockton on Friday morning.

https://twitter.com/NHLFlames/status/1476975145247920129

If Wolf is in net, the Heat stand a pretty good chance of winning. Wolf has yet to record a single regulation loss in 16 appearances this season, leading the entire AHL with a 14–0–2 record and ranking second with a .940 save percentage.

Stockton currently sits atop the AHL's Pacific Division with an 18–2–3 record, with points in eight consecutive games. Conversely, San Jose ranks eighth in the Pacific at 10–13–1 and has already allowed 100 goals in just 24 contests this season.
<h2>Projected lineups</h2>
These combinations are based, in part, on those used in these teams’ respective previous games. 

Stockton

@Jakob Pelletier – @Glenn Gawdin – @Matthew Phillips
@Emilio Pettersen – @Connor Zary – @Martin Pospisil
@Justin Kirkland – @Luke Philp – @Walker Duehr
@Alex Gallant – @Ryan Olsen – @Eetu Tuulola

@Connor Mackey – @Andy Welinski
@Juuso Valimaki – @Colton Poolman
@Ilya Solovyov – @Nick DeSimone

@Dustin Wolf
@Adam Werner

San Jose

@Jayden Halbgewachs – @Nick Merkley – @Joachim Blichfeld
@John Leonard – @Sasha Chmelevski – @Scott Reedy
@Dillon Hamaliuk – @Krystof Hrabik – @Jake McGrew
@Timur Ibragimov – @Zachary Gallant – @Evan Weinger

@Jaycob Megna – @Mark Alt
@Santeri Hatakka – @Patrick Holway
@Artemi Kniazev – @Ryan Merkley

@Alexei Melnichuk
@Sam Harvey
<h2>Scoring leaders</h2>
This section excludes players recalled to the NHL or on assignment to other leagues.

Stockton — @Jakob Pelletier (10 goals, 27 points); @Glenn Gawdin (nine goals, 24 points); @Matthew Phillips (nine goals, 21 points); @Luke Philp (seven goals, 14 points); @Connor Mackey (three goals, 14 points).

San Jose — @Scott Reedy (13 goals, 22 points); @Jayden Halbgewachs (eight goals, 17 points); @Ryan Merkley (one goal, 17 points); @Joachim Blichfeld (eight goals, 16 points); @Nick Merkley (five goals, 14 points).
<h2>Players to watch</h2>
Stockton — Heat forward @Luke Philp snapped a nine-game goalless drought in Stockton's 5–2 victory over the Colorado Eagles on Dec. 18, also tallying an assist in the victory. Philp has been a remarkably steady goal-scorer for Stockton over his three-year tenure, with 34 goals in 105 games, and still ranks near the team's leaders this season despite his recent skid. He ranks fifth on the team with seven goals in 23 games this year.

San Jose — It already looks like @Scott Reedy might be a future NHLer for the San Jose Sharks. The 22-year-old forward has 13 goals and 22 points in 22 games during his first full professional season in the San Jose organization; in 17 games with the Barracuda last year, Reedy managed five goals and eight points. The Sharks originally selected Reedy in the fourth round of the 2017 NHL Draft.
<h2>How to watch</h2>
Friday's game in Stockton 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 2:00 p.m. MT.

FlamesNation contributor Paige Siewert will provide live game updates on <a href="https://twitter.com/flames_update">her Twitter account</a>. Additionally, you'll be able to follow along at <a href="https://theahl.com/">TheAHL.com</a>.

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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">Sign up for the DailyFaceoff tools here.</a>

HGD 24: Stockton looks to keep winning ways going after long break (2:00 p.m. MT)

Calgary Flames center Mikael Backlund (11) waits for a face-off against the Utah Hockey Club during the third period at Delta Center.

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