Busy Gulls continue to rack up the points

January 3, 2005 - ECHL (ECHL)
San Diego Gulls News Release


SAN DIEGO -- The San Diego Gulls finished off another busy week, gaining points in all three games. As of Monday, they sit five points out of first place and only four points out of second place. And with games in hand on divisional foes and another busy week ahead, the Blue and Orange could very well pick up more ground.

San Diego started the week with a tight one-goal victory in Alaska, only to drop on overtime thriller Friday night against the Aces. The Gulls came home Sunday to open the 2005 calendar year with a shootout loss against the Bakersfield Condors.

WEEK IN REVIEW:

Dec. 29 @ Alaska: Sean O'Connor scored both goals and Mathieu Chouinard made 33 saves, leading San Diego to a 2-1 win against the Aces. O'Connor gave the Gulls a 1-0 lead with his first tally of the night 15:48 into the second period, banging in a rebound past Alaska netminder Peter Aubry. Then Chouinard took over, only allowing B.J. Young's goal later in the second period. O'Connor, however, gave the Gulls the lead for good with this second goal of the game 30 seconds into the third period.

Dec. 31 @ Alaska: Chris Minard netted a pair of goals, including the game-winner in overtime, leading Alaska to a come-from-behind 5-4 win on New Year's Eve. The Gulls carried a 3-1 lead early in the third period, but the Aces scored three straight to go ahead 4-3. Brian Gornick, however, tied the game dramatically with just 7.3 seconds left in regulation.

Jan. 2 vs. Bakersfield: Yutaka Fukufuji stopped all four San Diego shooters in a shootout, as his Condors rallied to beat the Gulls 3-2. Gornick gave San Diego an early 1-0 lead before Bakersfield's Todd Alexander tied it in the first period. That's how it stayed until a red-hot O'Connor lit the lamp seven minutes into the third period, regaining the Gulls' one-goal cushion. Lars Peder Nagel tied the game with just under five minutes left in regulation and Fukufuji did the rest in the shootout.

PLAYER NOTES: O'Connor has 17 points (12g, 5a) in his last 13 games... He has four goals in his last five games... Gornick has seven points (4g, 3a) in his last seven games... Goaltender Eddy Ferhi was re-assigned by the American Hockey League's Cincinnati Mighty Ducks... Trevor Koenig (sore elbow), Andrew Canzanello (bruised spleen) and Sean Murphy (broken thumb) were all placed on the injured list. Jonathon Shockey remains on the injured list with a separated shoulder, while Evgueni Nourislamov is out with a knee injury... Mark Pederson, who missed three games with a sore back, was activated from the injured list Saturday...

TEAM NOTES: San Diego is 11-3-2 in its last 16 games, outscoring its opponents 55-41 during that span... The Blue and Orange have outscored their opponents 64-31 in their 15 wins, but have been outscored 42-21 in their 11 losses (which includes two overtime and two shootout loss)... San Diego has played 10 straight one-goal games, going 6-2-2 in those contests... The Gulls are 8-3-4 overall in one-goal games this season... San Diego is 10-2-2 at home and 5-6-2 on the road...

The Gulls start another busy week Tuesday in Las Vegas, with game-time against the Wranglers set for 7:05 p.m. San Diego comes back home Wednesday to face the Peoria Rivermen, also at 7:05 p.m. It will be another "Wacky Wednesday," featuring "American Idol - Gulls Style." The Gulls will then play in Fresno Friday night before hosting the Falcons Saturday, which is Golf Night. The first 8,000 fans in attendance Saturday will receive special Gulls golf balls.

All games can be heard live on KLSD 1360AM and www.sandiegogulls.com with Chris Ello calling the play-by-play. All home games and many road games can be viewed on the Gulls' web site, courtesy of B2 Networks. Click the B2 Networks link on the home page for a list of the upcoming telecasted games. To view pictures from this season, visit www.sdgullsphotos.com and www.zerodogentertainment.com.



ECHL Stories from January 3, 2005


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

OurSports Central