Gulls, Barracuda Conclude Three-Game Set In San Jose

Mar 9, 2021

The San Diego Gulls (9-5-0-0) and San Jose Barracuda (4-3-2-0) face off in the rubber match of their three-game series tonight at Solar4America Ice in San Jose. It's the third meeting in a five-day span for the Pacific Division rivals.

The teams split the first two games in a back-to-back set this past weekend in Irvine, including an overtime thriller on Saturday, Mar. 6. The game was largely decided by goaltender Olle Eriksson Ek, wo picked up his first career American Hockey League win in his first ever game. The Swedish netminder stopped 39-of-41 shots to become the second-youngest goaltender to win a game for San Diego.

“It was just like a normal game, you’re always a little bit nervous,” said Eriksson Ek on getting his first start. “It helps you focus, but nothing crazy. If you feel good about yourself, you play good as well – it’s important.”

After ending regulation tied at two, Andrew Agozzino found the back of the net for the game-winning goal in overtime. It marked his fourth consecutive game with a goal (4-0=4), one short of matching his career high.

It was a big night for the rookies as well, as Benoit-Olivier Groulx earned a goal and an assist to mark his first career multi-point game (1-1=2). Maxim Golod recorded two assists (0-2=2) for his first career AHL points.

“It was the energy. It was a good bounce back game and a lot of it was the speed that we generated through the neutral zone and it takes a lot of energy to play that way,” said assistant coach David Urquhart on what needs to be matched from last game heading into tonight’s contest. “When you want to get in on the forecheck or you want to transition the puck quickly, you have to have good energy so we’d like to see that [tonight] as well.”

The Gulls aim to come out of the gates strong and match the energy from just a few nights ago. San Jose remains in hot pursuit of the Gulls, sitting at 10 points with five games in hand due to scheduling quirks at the start of the season.

Alexi Melnichuk is one of three netminders on San Jose’s roster that could see the net tonight. Melnichuk earned the start for both games this weekend, helping the team grab three of a possible four points.

Another player to watch in tonight’s contest is Maxim Letunov. On Saturday, Letunov lit the lamp for his first of the year. The third-year pro led the Barracuda in scoring (40) and assists (28) a year ago, earning team Most Valuable Player honors. He also skated in five games with the Sharks, netting his first NHL goal.

Following the game, San Diego will visit Bakersfield on Wednesday, Mar. 10 (6 p.m.) at Mechanics Bank Arena.