PREVIEW: Gulls, Bakersfield Meet On Gulliver’s Kids Club Day
Feb 19, 2023By AJ Manderichio/SanDiegoGulls.com
The San Diego Gulls look to extend their home point streak today against the Bakersfield Condors at Pechanga Arena San Diego (5 p.m. PT; TV: AHL TV; RADIO: Gulls Audio Network).
The Gulls are riding a modest three-game point streak on home ice, going 2-0-1-0 after a 4-3 overtime loss to the Ontario Reign last night. Rocco Grimaldi recorded a hat trick – the third of his American Hockey League career – while Michael Del Zotto collected three assists. The total is a new AHL career-high for the defenseman, who is second among Gulls blueliners in assists since joining the club in December.
"It was one of the better games we played all year," Gulls head coach Roy Sommer said. "The fans that came were treated to a pretty good hockey game. The return of (Gulls captain Chase) De Leo in the lineup made a big impact on the way we played and just our overall game performance. I mean, at one point we were outshooting them almost 2-to-1. A team that's, you know, won a lot more games than we have that knows how to win, and we just couldn't close it out."
De Leo’s 48-game absence ended last night, when the Gulls’ captain dressed for his first home game since Feb. 2, 2022. He grabbed an assist and enters tonight with 2-1=3 points in his two games this season.
"It's huge," Gulls forward Hunter Drew said about his return. "I played with him for a couple of years before and, even then, he's a good teammate, a good guy and a hell of a player. So having him back just lifts the group, like you said. I'm proud of him, just for how hard he's worked to get back and love to see him out there."
Sommer paired Grimaldi and De Leo, and the duo drove the team’s offense.
"He was good, especially those two guys together (Grimaldi and Chase De Leo)," Sommer said following the game. "Kind of a special bunch to watch. The fans that get to see those guys play. Who knows how much longer we're going to have them, but they're a joy to watch, especially standing behind the bench. They make plays, they're on top of pucks. Just a lot of fun to watch."
The Gulls enter tonight looking to rediscover their magic against a Pacific Division rival. San Diego owns a 34-27-2-2 all-time record against Bakersfield, including an 18-12-1-1 mark, but is just 1-5-0-0 against the Condors this season. Their lone win came on home ice, a 5-3 victory on Jan. 25. In that game, Grimaldi tallied 2-2=4 points against Bakersfield to tie a season high for points earned in a single game, while Del Zotto recorded 1-2=3 points in the same contest.
Bakersfield enters tonight on a hot streak, going 7-2-0-1 in its last 10 games. The run vaulted them into the seventh in the division standings, the final playoff spot as teams vie for a postseason berth. They sit two points ahead of the eight-place San Jose Barracuda and also two points behind the sixth-place Tucson Roadrunners.
The Condors pulled off a rare regulation win in Coachella Valley last night, defeating the Firebirds 3-2 at Acrisure Arena. Justin Bailey recorded two assists as Bakersfield raced out to a 3-0 lead after two periods. The Firebirds pushed late, scoring twice in the third but failing to complete the comeback.
Seth Griffith drives the team’s offense, with his 11-28=39 points well above any other skater on the club. He’s continued his strong play against San Diego this season, with his 0-6=6 joining Michael Kesselring (3-3=6) and Raphael Lavoie (2-4=6) to tie for the lead among Condor skaters with six points each against San Diego this season.
The gameplan for the Gulls is a simple one – replicate last night’s performance and finish with a different result.
"I think we just keep going," Drew said when asked about the matchup. "Keep your foot on the gas. It's a quick turnaround; afternoon game tomorrow. We'll push hard tomorrow. That's obviously a beatable team tomorrow, and I think we're gonna win."