LIVE: Gulls Take Down Barracuda
Jan 18, 2022By AJ Manderichio/SanDiegoGulls.com
The San Diego Gulls defeated the San Jose Barracuda 4-2 in tonight's game at SAP Center.
Alex Limoges scored the game-winning goal late in regulation and Benoit-Olivier Groulx led the Gulls wiith 1-1=2 as San Diego earned its fifth win over the Barracuda this season. The Gulls have won all three games at SAP Center and recorded a standings point in four of the last five games (3-0-1-0).
Goaltender Francis Marotte picked up a second consecutive win, stopping a season-high 38 shots.
Jake McGrew and Joachim Blichfeld scored for San Jose, who dropped its second consecutive game. Goaltender Sam Harvey allowed three goals on 22 shots.
Third Period Recap
Harvey kept the game tied with a stellar glove save on Danny O'Regan at 6:23 of the period.
Limoges gathered a loose puck behind the net, finding an open O'Regan right in front. The center tried to sneak his shot glove side, but Harvey aggressively came to the top of the crease and snatched the shot with an emphatic glove save.
San Diego's penalty kill stepped up in the third period, killing an extended 5-on-3 San Jose power play. The three-man unit of Groulx, Bryce Kindopp and Nikolas Brouillard limited the Barracuda chances while Marotte made three key stops to keep the score tied at two.
San Jose - who scored on an earlier 5-on-3 chance - is just 1-for-5 on the man advantage.
Limoges would eventually find the game-winning tally, scoring his sixth goal of the season with 3:39 left in the final frame.
Greg Printz fooled everyone, faking a dump-in at the San Jose blue line before carrying the puck intothe offensive zone. He fed the puck to a streaking Limoges, who patiently worked the puck around a charging Sam Harvey and into the back of the net for game-winning goal.
Groulx would ice the victory, hitting the empty net with just three seconds left.
Second Period Recap
Trevor Carrick pulled San Diego even with his third goal of the season at 5:35 of the middle frame.
On an extended shift in San Jose's zone, Groulx pulled the puck from his forehand to his backhand, drawing the attention of three Barracuda players. He slide a cross-ice pass through their sticks, finding a wide-open Carrick as he snuck down from the point. The former Barracuda wound up and fired a slap shot past a screened Harvey for the equalizer.
Carrick now has goals in back-to-back games and three points (1-2=3) in his last two games.
Kindopp put San Diego ahead at 6:59 of the period.
Hunter Drew went to one knee at the blue line, keeping a clearing attempt in the San Jose end. He worked the puck to Lucas Elvenes, who cut toward the middle of the ice. Kindopp swung in behind him and the center found him, pushing the puck toward his teammate as he fell to the ice. Kindopp worked around his defenseman and across the crease, putting his shot through the legs of a sliding Harvey for his fourth goal of the season.
Drew continues his torrid scoring pace, collecting his fourth point (3-1=4) in his last five games.
Blichfeld tied the game, converting on a 5-on-3 power-play with 10 seconds left in the middle frame.
The Barracuda right wing controlled the puck at the point, attempting to sneak his shot through the Gulls penalty kill. Groulx blocked his first attempt, but the puck went right back to Blichfeld, who floated one from the point past Marotte and into the top of the net for his 12th goal of the season.
Jayden Halbgewachs, who earned an assist on the goal, moved into a tie with Nick Cicek for the team lead with 13 helpers. Both players currently lead San Jose in scoring against the Gulls, with each recording five points in the season series.
The Barracuda will begin the third period with just over a minute left on a power-play chance.
First Period Recap
Jake McGrew opened the scoring with his fifth goal of the season at 9:26 of the opening frame.
A Evan Weinger shot went wide of the net, where Zachary Gallant crashed and collected the puck. He came to the side of the net and fed an open McGrew in front, who tapped the puck past Marotte for the game's first goal.