Josling Pots First Career AHL Goal In Gulls Loss To Bakersfield
Dec 17, 2021By AJ Manderichio/SanDiegoGulls.com
The San Diego Gulls continued to struggle to find offense, falling 5-1 to the Bakersfield Condors tonight at Pechanga Arena San Diego. They scored just once in back-to-back losses, nearing the halfway mark of a team-record seven-game homestand with one win in three home contests.
Raphael Lavoie and Devin Brosseau posted career nights to lead a shorthanded Bakersfield to the win. Lavoie collected 2-3=5 points – a career-high for points in a game and a new Bakersfield team record – while Brosseau picked up a career-high 2-2=4 points in the victory. Goaltender Ilya Konovalov stopped 20-of-21 shots for his third win of the season.
Sean Josling scored San Diego’s goal, the first of his American Hockey League career. Lukas Dostal, returned by the Anaheim Ducks before the game, made 27 saves in the loss.
"From the first minute they were physical on us," Gulls head coach Joel Bouchard said. "We had no push back. We had no solution. All our young guys, the whole team got on their heels. I see it coming from the last game a little bit. I was trying to be nice about it, but now we’re getting in the dark days. It’s gonna be tough.
"The lineup we have, the lack of experience that we have, we cannot afford to be intimidated. We cannot afford to play like boys. Are they gonna grow? They’re gonna have to face adversity until the end of the year and our job is to push them, but we’re into some dark days right now."
Playing with only 10 forwards, Bakersfield came hard out of the gate, pressuring San Diego’s defense with a shoot-first mentality.
The strategy paid off, as Brosseau opened the scoring with just 12.5 seconds left in the opening frame. Former Gull Adam Cracknell carried the puck deep into the San Diego zone, drawing two defenders. He spun around and found Brosseau in the slot, and the center quickly fired a shot toward the net. It deflected off the skate of a sliding Gull and past Dostal for his first goal of the season.
Bakersfield ended the first period with a 13-5 shot advantage and wouldn’t let up in the second frame.
Brosseau collected his second goal of the game just 1:24 into the middle frame to push Bakersfield's lead to two.
Lavoie pressured San Diego on the forecheck, collecting a loose puck behind the goal line and finding an open Brosseau at the front of the net. The center tapped it past Dostal for his second goal of the season and the first multi-goal game of his American Hockey League career.
Jack Badini nearly broke through for San Diego shortly after, forcing Konovalov to make a highlight-reel stop on a 2-on-1 chance at 7:13 of the period.
Brogan Rafferty started the rush, beating two Condors to a loose puck at his blue line and quickly turning up ice. After maneuvering around a stick check at Bakersfield's blue line, the defenseman dished the puck to a streaking Badini, who one-timed a shot to the far post. A sliding Konovalov stuck out his pad and just got enough of the puck to deny the chance and freeze play.
Lavoie pushed the Condors lead to three, scoring his first goal of the game with just under eight minutes left in the second period.
Brosseau intercepted a clearing attempt at San Diego's blue line, feeding Lavoie on the wing. The right wing brought the puck off the side wall and wired a shot past the glove of Dostal.
"We were just flat, intimidated, it was too much," Bouchard said. "We’re gonna have to dig. I pushed them a lot tonight. I was all over them tonight. The reality is they took it on the chin. You know, they want to play in the NHL, they better get used to taking it on the chin. And the want to get to the other league, it’s not gonna be a walk in the park. Success is not a magic trick. We have nine guys up front that have no experience in the American league and they have a chance to play right now. I don’t think they should take it for granted, cause AHL is a clearing house.
"So, we’re gonna work with them. Last game and tonight is a good wakeup call. We played two teams that were big, that were heavy, that were old, that were fast, and our team just crumbled."
Josling put San Diego on the board, scoring his first career AHL goal with 1:12 remaining in the period.
Bryce Kindopp pulled a loose puck off the side boards and moved it to Greg Printz below the goal line. He quickly played it out to the slot, where Josling ripped a one-timed shot past Konovalov for the milestone marker.
"I saw the puck turned over there, Kindopp down to Printzy (Printz) and I was just hoping," he explained following the game. "Great pass by both of those guys and just put it in."
The Toronto, ONT native signed a professional tryout (PTO) with the Gulls on Nov. 4 and made his AHL debut on Nov. 6 against the Colorado Eagles.
"Definitely a good feeling," Josling said of scoring. "You know, I wish it would have come in a better game, but that’s hockey."
Lavoie scored his second goal of the game, restoring the Condors three-goal lead at 8:17 of the final frame. The center quickly swept a loose puck on net, sending his shot off the glove of Dostal and into the back of the net for his second goal of the season.
Bakersfield's penalty kill, the third-ranked road unit entering tonight's game, snuffed out a San Diego comeback bid midway through the period. With Brad Malone serving two penalties - one for tripping and one for roughing - the Condors kept the Gulls off the board and without a high-danger scoring chance. The power play ended when Hunter Drew received a cross-checking penalty with just over a minute left in his team's man advantage.
Philip Broberg capitalized on the momentum, scoring with 5:15 left in regulation.
Skating 4-on-4, Lavoie fed a pass to Brosseau, who moved into the Gulls defensive zone on a 2-on-1 rush. He cut to the faceoff circle and fed a pass to Broberg, who tipped his attempt past a lunging Dostal for his first goal of the season.
Brosseau, who entered the game with six career AHL points, collected his fourth point (2-2=4) on the tally.
Konovalov would shut the Gulls down from there, earning his second win in three starts against the Gulls. The Bakersfield netminder has a 1.27 goals-against average (GAA) and .945 save percentage (SV%) against San Diego.
The Gulls continue their homestand tomorrow night when they host the San Jose Barracuda for Winter Wonderland Night. Included in the festivities is the return of the team’s Teddy Bear Toss. Fans are encouraged to bring wrapped bears to throw on the ice following San Diego’s first goal of the game.
"I want to see more from everybody, obviously," Bouchard said. "I think veterans are gonna have to help out. Right now they need to go to sleep, eat and drink some fluids. And let’s see if they can come up with a little more muscle, a little more jam. My job is to take them out of their comfort zone, to push them, but they’re the ones that hold the stick and have the jersey and have a career in front of them. They have a chance to be a professional hockey player. Things change in a hurry.
"Again, they’ve been good. They’ve been good guys. I’ve been pushing them, taking them out of their comfort zone. I’ve said it before, a lot of them are drinking from a firehose, but tonight they were boys and I’m looking for more men tomorrow."