Gulls, Eagles Meet In Final Regular-Season Game
Mar 5, 2022By Paige Burnell/SanDiegoGulls.com
The San Diego Gulls look to end their time in Colorado on a positive note as they face the Eagles for the sixth and final time in the regular season tonight at Budweiser Events Center in Loveland, CO (6:05 p.m. PT; TV: AHL TV; RADIO: Gulls Audio Network).
The Gulls fell to the Eagles 7-4 last night and now hold a 13-10-1-0 overall record against the club, including a 5-5-1-0 record on the road. After Gulls a power-play goal to start the game, this battle of the birds quickly turned in favor of the Eagles as Colorado held a 6-1 lead by 10:44 of the second period.
However, the Gulls made a valiant comeback attempt with back-to-back shorthanded goals and their second power-play goal of the game.
"It was an emotional game on Wednesday, and I think we had a good start, you know?" Gulls assistant coach Daniel Jacob said. "The first few shifts we were alright and then we digged ourself a hole and battled back. You cannot give them that much that early because it’s going to be tough to come back."
Buddy Robinson put San Diego back on track as the veteran, in his return to the lineup from the Anaheim Ducks, answered Colorado’s six goals with his first shorthanded goal and third goal of the season in the second period. Bryce Kindopp responded less than a minute later with a shorthanded tally of his own as the Gulls would strike twice on the penalty kill for the first time since a 5-3 win over the San Jose Barracuda on Jan. 31, 2020.
"I think we were desperate," Jacob said. "We needed goals. The guys, they put pressure on them and we got some breaks, but, again, it’s the broader picture. You need to be sound five-on-five in order to have good pp, good pk. We’re gonna have to bounce back and be better five-on-five."
The Eagles outscored the Gulls 4-0 at even strength, a key advantage to their eventual win. A more focused effort when 5-on-5 should help San Diego keep Kiefer Sherwood (1-2=3), Dylan Sikura (2-0=2), Mikhail Maltsev (0-2=2), Keaton Middleton and Rob Hamilton (0-2=2) from repeating their multi-point efforts.
The Gulls power play continues to produce, going 7-for-14 (50%) in the last four games. It struck twice last night, with Danny O’Regan and Jacob Perreault recording the man-advantage tallies. O’Regan enters tonight leading San Diego in power-play goals (7) and points (7-6=13) and is riding a four-game point streak.
"I think we‘ve been keeping it a little more simple," Gulls center Vinni Lettieri said. "We’ve been doing well in practice. Coaches have been doing a lot of work with us in practice, which has been really good to get some reps in, but both units just collectively have just doing a great job and holding each other accountable and we’ve been getting a few goals off of it."
Colorado also scored twice on their power play, with Sherwood and Jacob MacDonald both capitalizing on the man advantage. Sherwood ranks second in the American Hockey League with 11 power-play goals while teammate Jordan Gross, who earned the assist on Sherwood’s tally, ranks tied for third among AHL defensemen with 16 power-play assists.
"You know the execution is going to have to be better, moving our feet, finishing our hit, being physical and slowing them down." Jacob said
The offense is a bright spot for the Gulls, as last night marked the team’s 10th straight game scoring three-or-more goals. Powering the effort were multi-point performances from Perreault (1-1=2), Lettieri (0-2=2) and Nikolas Brouillard (0-2=2).
Brouillard extended his assist streak to three games (0-4=4) with his helpers and enters tonight leading the team in assists (19) and scoring (8-19=27).
San Diego, entering tonight with wins in five of its last eight games (5-3-0-0), wants to make sure it ends the regular-season series with its best effort.
"Just bring it," Lettieri said. "I mean we just railed off three in a row, which is a good step in the right direction for us. Learn a little bit and then we’ll be ready to play."