Gulls, Eagles Meet In Penultimate Regular-Season Game of 2020-21 Season

May 13, 2021

The San Diego Gulls will look to close the regular season strong with a weekend back-to-back against the Colorado Eagles, beginning tonight at Budweiser Events Center (6:05 p.m. PT; TV: AHL TV; RADIO: Gulls Audio Network). San Diego won six of its past eight games against Colorado.

With two games remaining in the regular season, San Diego sits third in the Pacific Division by point percentage (.583). The Pacific Division playoffs begin next week at FivePoint Arena.

Colorado earned a 2-1 win in the first meeting of the three-game set. The Eagles scored twice in the first ten minutes to race out to an early lead. Chase De Leo pulled San Diego within one late in the first period with a shorthanded tally, but the Gulls could not beat Adam Werner again. The 24-year-old netminder stopped 29-of-30 shots for his sixth win of the season.

“They were playing really hard and I think they caught us by surprise, even though they shouldn’t have,” said Gulls forward Andrew Agozzino. “This is a big time of year for a lot of guys for different reasons, but they definitely came out really hard.”

“I thought their team played with a little more urgency in the game and controlled a lot of the tight areas, blocking shots and had a lot of back pressure against us,” explained head coach Kevin Dineen. “We had trouble generating offense off of that.”

The Gulls will look to bounce back from the narrow defeat, taking a playoff mentality into the final two games of the regular season.

“[Our desperation level] needs to be high,” Agozzino said. “I think everyone knows that and every team is going to have that same mentality, so I think we all know where it has to be.”

Dineen added the Eagles’ tenacity and aggressiveness will serve as a good test for the postseason.

“I give credit where it’s due,” Dineen said. “We looked like a team that did a little travel lately and wrapped up a playoff spot. I don’t think you can play this game without a level of desperation.”

Despite the setback, the Gulls successfully eliminated all five Colorado power plays. San Diego ranks third in the American Hockey League on the penalty kill (148-for-175. 84.6%). The Gulls are one of four AHL clubs to rank in the top 10 on both special teams units. 

With Wednesday’s win, Colorado (.516) jumped San Jose (.500) for fourth place in the Pacific Division as the teams fight for positioning in the play-in tournament. The Eagles earned back-to-back wins while the Barracuda have dropped four straight games (0-4-0-0). 

T.J. Tynan, who did not play in Wednesday’s contest, is the heartbeat of the Colorado offense this season, pacing the club in points (8-27=35) and assists. Tynan leads the AHL in multi-point games (11) and ranks third in points per game (1.40, min. 10 GP).