Gulls Halt Roadrunners In Final Regular Season Meeting
Troy Terry (2g/2a) records four-point night; Gulls tie Stockton for third in Pacific Division
Mar 11, 2020Troy Terry recorded a career high four points as the Gulls concluded their club record seven-game road trip with a 4-2 win over the Tucson Roadrunners Wednesday night at Tucson Arena.
The Gulls continue their push to lock down a playoff spot, picking up points in 26 of their last 33 contests (20-7-5-1)
Terry became the eighth player in club history to record four or more points in a single game with two goals and two assists, his second multi-goal game and fifth multi-point effort this season.. Max Comtois picked up an assist, as the Gulls improved to 15-0-2-0 when he records a point.
Sam Carrick netted a goal, moving him one point away from tying Corey Tropp (157) as the Gulls all-time points leader. Chase De Leo scored to reach the 10-goal mark for the fifth consecutive season. Kevin Boyle stopped 28-of-30 shots to earn his 10th win and improve to 7-2-1 with a 2.38 goals-against average and .926 save percentage his last 10 games.
As Boyle and Tucson netminder Adin Hill matched up between the pipes for the second straight night, it was the Roadrunners’ Michael Bunting who had the first real scoring chance midway through the period on a breakaway opportunity. Boyle shut down Bunting’s shot with a pad save to keep the game scoreless.
Tensions carried over from last night’s game as the two teams continued to engage in post-whistle scrums as Brendan Guhle and Jeremy Gregoire were each sent to the box for offsetting roughing minors. Gregoire was given an extra penalty for holding as San Diego went on the power play.
Terry capitalized on the man advantage at the 15:18 mark of the first frame for his sixth goal of the season. The Roadrunners attempted to clear the zone, but Comtois lifted the stick of Dysin Mayo as Terry stopped the clearing attempt and pushed into the slot. After nearly pushing through nearly all four penalty killers, the second-year forward fired a backhanded shot on net while off-balance to beat Hill for the power-play goal.
Shortly after, another post-whistle argument escalated and rookie Antoine Morand tossed the gloves in his first professional fight, squaring up with veteran forward Andy Miele. As the first frame came to a conclusion, another scrum resulted Josh Mahura and Kelly Klima each receive a 10-minute unsportsmanlike penalty. San Diego led 1-0 on the scoreboard and in 13-6 in shots after 20 minutes of play.
Tucson tied the game up at one goal apiece 7:52 into the middle period when Tyler Steenbergen got the Roadrunners on the board. Blake Speers took the puck behind the net, fighting off pressure and getting a pass to the slot where Steenbergen tallied a goal.
The Gulls came out of the gates strong in the final frame as Carrick found the back of the net just 22 seconds into the third period. Terry got the initial shot off, but the puck hit a Roadrunner defenseman and bounced to Carrick who tapped the puck into the net for his team-leading 23rd goal of the season. Defenseman Brendan Guhle picked up an assist, giving him points in four of the last five games (1-3=4).
Terry scored his second goal of the contest 3:39 into the third, giving the Gulls a 3-1 lead. A missed pass by Tucson gave Chris Wideman the puck at the point and the blueliner wasted no time getting the puck to Terry who was waiting by the net uncovered. After reading the goaltender’s positioning, Terry beat Hill short side with a wrist shot for the eventual game-winning goal.
Tucson cut into the Gulls lead with a power-play score midway through the third. As Simon Benoit’s penalty was expiring, the Roadrunners cycled the puck until Capobianco used a one-timer to make the score 3-2 at the 9:34 mark of the period.
Chase De Leo sealed the game with 55 seconds remaining in the contest as Terry contributed once again as he fired a shot on net that bounced to the open ice where De Leo was able to tap it in for the score.
The Gulls would hold on for the 4-2 win to create a four-point cushion over fifth placed Ontario for the final Pacific Division playoff spot. San Diego is now tied with Stockton but the Heat hold third place due to two less games played, equaling a higher points percentage. San Diego has the first postseason tiebreaker, a greater number of regulation wins.
The Gulls will return home to host the San Jose Barracuda on Friday, Mar. 13 at Pechanga Arena San Diego (7 p.m.) in their first home contest in a 20-day span.