Preview: Gulls Ring in February Against Roadrunners
Feb 2, 2024By Morgan Korovec/SanDiegoGulls.com 
For the San Diego Gulls, their recent road campaign was full of major strides as they left their mark on the Midwest.
Tonight, San Diego gears up to make the most of the momentum gained on the road in a matchup against the Tucson Roadrunners at Pechanga Arena San Diego. (7 p.m. PST; TV: AHLTV; Radio: Gulls Audio Network).
Coming off of their third straight win after an impressive sweep over the Iowa Wild, the Gulls carried energy into their most recent matchup on Tuesday, as they put up a hard fight against the Western-conference-leading Milwaukee Admirals, though San Diego’s streak ultimately ended after falling short 4-3 in overtime.
"I think we learned that we can play with the best team in the Western Conference," head coach Matt McIlvane said. "That was a tight game all the way through… Definitely didn’t play a perfect game, but it was so competitive from us. And in the end, the difference is so marginal. Could have gone the other way, but I’m proud of our guys."
"Our group dug deep," Gulls captain Chase De Leo added. "Proud of the way we responded coming up against a tough opponent and thought we honestly were right there with them."
In Tuesday’s spirited bout, De Leo gathered his 94th assist as a Gull, moving him into second place for most helpers in franchise history. With one more helper, the captain will move into a tie for the most assists in Gulls AHL history alongside Sam Carrick.
The road trip was a testament to San Diego’s undeniable growth as Tuesday’s game saw more than one San Diego skater build on their goal-scoring success. Sasha Pastujov notched his first career goal streak (4-1=5), netting his fourth goal in two games. For Pavol Regenda, his scoring stretch continued to blaze across a fourth game (5-1=6), earning his team-leading 15th goal of the season.
San Diego has earned 14 of 18 possible standing points over their last nine games (6-1-2-0) and their overall record now stands at 15-17-7-0.
"Keep our foot on the gas," McIlvane added. "Our objective is to go in and be able to find ways to win games and get points and just keep improving as a group. I think that it just reinforces our growth with a game like this. We’ve got to get ready for one more big push this weekend."
Defenseman Olen Zellweger, the Gulls representative at the 2024 All-Star Classic in San Jose, joins the San Diego roster heading into Friday since returning from the Anaheim Ducks. In Anaheim, Zellweger recorded one assist (0-1=1) with a +2 rating in four games and returns to the rink at San Diego with 8-17=25 points.
As they look to take down Tucson, who rank second in the Pacific Division, for their first meeting of the new year on Friday, the Gulls will also keep the playoffs on their radar as they continue to respond to tough opponents and set the tone for wins in the month ahead.
"It’s exciting. Our goal is the playoffs," De Leo said. "I think that we’re showing that every single day, whether it’s a practice day, or a game. I think that we’re digging deep right now. We’re rolling top to bottom. Our young guys are playing awesome. There’s tons of growth in this group."
The Gulls will return to the rink at Pechanga Arena San Diego tomorrow night, Saturday February 3rd as they take on the Colorado Eagles for Mexican Heritage Night (6 p.m. PST).