The Manitoba Moose (29-24-5-1) kick off their Ontario road swing on Wednesday evening, taking on the Toronto Marlies (31-21-5-5). Manitoba dropped its most recent contest to the Tucson Roadrunners by a 4-1 scoreline. They are 5-5-0-0 over the past 10 games. The Marlies are coming off a 4-3 loss to the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins. They are 6-3-1-0 over their past 10.

Coverage of today’s matchup gets going at 5:45 p.m. CT on CJOB.com, the Winnipeg Jets App and AHLTV on FloHockey. Action at Coca-Cola Coliseum begins at 6 p.m. CT

Feels Like a Home Game

Manitoba’s roster includes five Ontario natives, all hailing from within roughly two hours of Toronto. Phil Di Giuseppe (Toronto), Domenic DiVincentiis (Bolton), Isaak Phillips (Barrie), Colby Barlow (Orillia), and Jacob Julien (London) all hail from the area. Danny Zhilkin, though born in Moscow, Russia, played his minor hockey in Toronto. The group will see a large contingent of friends at games throughout the team’s four-game Ontario road trip. DiVincentiis and Phillips both visited Toronto with the Moose in 2024-25, while Di Giuseppe’s most recent trip to the Coliseum was on Nov. 20/22 as a member of the Abbotsford Canucks. Barlow and Julien make their first trips to Toronto as professionals on Wednesday. DiVincentiis turned in two magnificent performances in Toronto a season ago, going 1-0-1 while making 51 saves and allowing just two goals in two games.

True North

The Moose close out their schedule against North Division opposition this week. Manitoba holds two meetings against the Toronto Marlies, split by matchups with the Belleville Senators. Manitoba is 6-2-0-0 in eight games against the North Division this season, having won its past four meetings. The Moose swept the Laval Rocket on the road before taking two straight from the Marlies at home in early March. David Gustafsson has scored five points (2G, 3A) in the five games he has skated, while Walker Duehr and Mason Shaw each have five points through eight games. In Manitoba’s two previous games against the Marlies, DiVincentiis and Thomas Milic were spectacular, allowing just two combined goals. Their success against the North dates back to Jan. 16 and Jan. 17 in Laval, when they conceded just one combined goal in two games.

Celebrating 150

Danny Zhilkin ticked up to the 150 career games mark in the AHL on Monday night. Zhilkin celebrated the milestone with a first period goal over the Tucson Roadrunners, bringing him to 22 points (11G, 11A) on the season. The Moscow, Russia export has set new career highs in goals, assists, points, shorthanded goals, game-winning goals, and shots. He will set another career high for games played at 54 when he next hits the ice. Zhilkin has collected 39 points (16G, 23A) in his AHL career after being a third round pick by the Winnipeg Jets in the 2022 NHL Draft. He made his NHL debut on Jan. 8 against Edmonton, playing three other contests before being loaned back to the Moose. He owned a plus-two rating. 

Who’s Trending?

Jaret Anderson-Dolan has found his offensive touch of late, picking up five points (3G, 2A) over his past five games. He currently enjoys a three-game point streak, the longest active run on the Moose, recording four points (2G, 2A) in that time. The Calgary, Alta. native has scored 27 points (11G, 16A) in 59 games this season, potting three game-winning goals.