Jay Varady never intended to be a hockey coach. He is though, and he’s a good one. An All-Star coach, in fact.

Bakersfield forward Tyler Benson and Tucson forward Brayden Burke have been added to the Pacific Division team roster for the 2020 AHL All-Star Classic.

The news that Jay Varady was named a head coach for the American Hockey League’s upcoming All-Star Classic spread around the Roadrunners’ locker room early Sunday.

Hartford’s Kris Knoblauch, Rochester’s Chris Taylor, Milwaukee’s Karl Taylor and Tucson’s Jay Varady have clinched the honor of coaching at the 2020 AHL All-Star Classic.

The New Jersey Devils have acquired forwards Nick Merkley and Nate Schnarr, junior defenseman Kevin Bahl, a 2020 first-round draft pick and a conditional 2021 third-round pick from the Arizona Coyotes in exchange for forwards Taylor Hall and Blake Speers.

The Arizona Coyotes have acquired defenseman Vili Saarijarvi from the Detroit Red Wings in exchange for goaltender Eric Comrie.

Tucson’s rotating cast in net has been up to the task so far in 2019-20, despite facing a heavy workload each night.

Ivan Prosvetov has shown a lot over the past couple of months in terms of his fit with the Arizona Coyotes organization, including standing on his head — metaphorically, this time.

Lane Pederson has scored 10 goals in his last 13 AHL games, including a pair of hat tricks, a couple of game-winners, and a newfound confidence that his coaches and teammates can’t help but notice.

Michael Chaput wasn’t expecting to hear his name called when the Tucson Roadrunners named their 2019-20 team captain. But that doesn’t mean for a second he’s not up to the role.