PREVIEW: Gulls, Henderson Clash In Midweek Matchup
Mar 1, 2023By AJ Manderichio/SanDiegoGulls.com
The San Diego Gulls and Henderson Silver Knights meet in a midweek matchup tonight at Pechanga Arena San Diego (7 p.m. PT; TV: AHL TV; RADIO: Gulls Audio Network).
San Diego and Henderson continue their eight-game regular-season series, with the Gulls currently leading the Silver Knights 3-2-0-0. The Gulls earned two of their three shutout wins this season against Henderson, including a 7-0 win on Nov. 8 that tied the franchise’s American Hockey League record for the largest margin of victory (last: Jan. 25, 2017 at TUC). In addition, the victory marked the second time in team history the Gulls shut out the same opponent twice in the same season (2015-16; SJ on Oct. 23, 2015 and Dec. 12, 2015).
"We've said it before, and I think it's the truth - we gotta worry about us first," Gulls assistant coach Kris Sparre said. "They are hot, for sure. They're playing good hockey, but our details, our structure, the way we want to play, we got to get consistency to that. When we have that, we have a chance to win every night. When we walk away from it, we don't give ourselves the best opportunity."
Henderson enters tonight riding a three-game win streak, recently defeating the Calgary Wranglers 2-1 on Sunday in Henderson. It marked a third straight victory over one of the Western Conference’s top teams and puts the Silver Knights just nine points back of a playoff spot.
"When a team's on a high note like that, you're going to have to come out hard and strong," Gulls left wing Brayden Tracey said. "It sounds cliché but get the puck behind their d(efense), get on them, don't give them any time or space. Break up the neutral zone, try and get them to dump the puck so we know we're doing our job. Play tight defensively, cover the house. I think all those little things will really help us tomorrow."
San Diego returns to home ice riding the high over a 2-1 overtime win against the Ontario Reign on Sunday at Toyota Arena. Rocco Grimaldi recorded his second consecutive two-point performance (1-1=2), scoring his league-leading 27th goal of the season to win the game in overtime. Drew Helleson started the scoring for the Gulls at 3:43 of the opening frame, netting his fifth goal of the season. Chase De Leo posted the primary assist on the play, extending his point streak into a sixth game (4-3=7). Olle Eriksson Ek made 21 saves on 22 shots.
"In a season like we're having, when you can go into Ontario, which is a real good team in this conference, beat them in their building," Sparre said. "You know, I thought we controlled most of the game. It feels good. It was good to see the smiles on the guy's faces."
The Gulls leaned heavily on Grimaldi in February, and the right wing delivered. The Rossmoor, CA native notched 10 goals in the month, tying former Gulls captain Sam Carrick for the most goals earned over a single month (Nov. 19) in the team’s AHL history and setting a career best for goals earned in a month (previous: 9, Dec. 2017). He scored 10 of the team’s 22 goals in the month, accounting for over 45-percent of the team’s goals during the month. As of Feb. 28, Grimaldi lead the AHL with 27 goals and paces San Diego skaters in most offensive categories.
In addition, Grimaldi leads the Gulls in point production against Henderson with 3-5=8 points. Grimaldi recorded points in three consecutive games against the Silver Knights from Nov. 8 – Dec. 28, including back-to-back multi-point performances with two goals (2-0=2) on Nov. 27 and a season-high four-points (1-3=4) on Nov. 8.
De Leo continues his torrid stretch since returning from injury. The Gulls’ captain has a six-game point streak (4-3=7) and earned a point in each of his five games (2-3=5) since returning to San Diego’s lineup on Feb. 18.
The Gulls will look to lean on these top performers for the tough test ahead.
"The harder for us the better," Sparre said. "You know, we like playing the tough teams. It's a good measuring stick for us. With 18 games left, we're still trying to find our way and do it every night. You know, we played well in Coachella last week and then we go into Bakersfield and don't have our best game. So for us, it's good job in Ontario. Let's do it again."