One-Goal Defeats Haunt Gulls On The Road

February 6, 2006 - ECHL (ECHL)
San Diego Gulls News Release


OVERALL RECORD: 19-18-5 LAST WEEK: 0-2-0 STANDINGS: 3rd (Pacific Division)

SAN DIEGO -- Outstanding goaltending from Bakersfield's Ryan Munce and Long Beach's Greg Hewitt served the Gulls with two straight losses to begin their six-game road trip. The Gulls took a total of 73 shots against Munce and Hewitt, but struggled with only three goals on the weekend. The Gulls now find themselves trailing the Ice Dogs by 10 points for second place, but look to come back this week as they head to Utah.

WEEK IN REVIEW:

Feb. 3 @ Bakersfield: Dave Bonk notched the game-winner short-handed midway through the second period and Munce made it stand-up, leading the Condors to a 2-1 win over the Gulls Friday night. San Diego out-shot Bakersfield by a 42-34 margin, but Munce was just about perfect. The Condors back-stop, who also beat the Gulls 4-1 on Jan. 22, has now turned away 78 of 80 shots in the last two head-to-head meetings. Tom Lawson finished the game with 32 saves, but suffered the hard-luck loss. Things started out positive for the Gulls, as Steve Hildenbrand put home a power-play goal 13:42 into the game. Former Gull Kevin St. Jacques tied it 3:58 into the second period, moments after a minor penalty to Darren Clark expired. Bonk netted the short-handed and game-winning tally at 13:39 of the second.

Feb 4 @ Long Beach: The Gulls ran into another hot goaltender Saturday night. This time it was Hewitt, as his 29 saves led the Ice Dogs to a 3-2 victory and handed the San Diego its second straight loss. Lawson (38 saves) was again solid between the pipes for the Blue and Orange, but it wasn't enough. Mike Woodford gave Long Beach a 1-0 lead 14:03 into the first period when he beat Lawson from the bottom of the left circle for his sixth goal of the year. San Diego, however, quickly tied it 34 seconds later, thanks to Rob Flynn's first marker. Sean McAslan, who scored four times against Las Vegas Friday night, got another one at the 17:06 mark with the Ice Dogs skating on the power play. It was his 15th goal of the season and ended San Diego's string of 23 straight killed penalties, spanning the last four games. Hewitt continued frustrating the Gulls in the third period and his teammates finally gave him some insurance, as Blake Robson netted his first of the year at the 8:28 mark. Robson's goal proved to be the game-winner because Martin Mandeville drew the Gulls back within one at the 15:19 mark.

Individual Notes: Lawson has dropped two of his last three decisions, but has stopped 113 of 119 shots in that span (.950 save percentage)... Five players that started the season with the Gulls are currently with Lowell of the AHL (David Svagrovsky, Tyler Weiman, Cody McLeod, Tomas Slovak and Frantisek Skladany)... Injured forward Guillaume Fournier could be back in the lineup this week in Utah... Alex Kim could return next week...

Team Notes: The Gulls have killed 28 of 29 penalties during the last five games and 101 of 112 (90.2 percent) in the last 17 games... They, however, are only 6-for-68 on the power play during the last 11 games (8.8 percent)... San Diego has scored only seven times in regulation during the last five games (1-3-1)...

San Diego's road trip continues with a pair of games in Utah. The Gulls and Grizzlies will meet at the E-Center Wednesday and Friday, with both games starting at 6:05 p.m. (PST). All games can be heard on KLSD 1360AM and www.sandiegogulls.com with Chris Ello calling the play-by-play (NOTE THAT BOTH UPCOMING GAMES IN UTAH WILL BEGIN AIRING ON KLSD AT 7 P.M. PST). Most games can also be viewed on the Gulls' Web site, courtesy of B2 Networks (BOTH GAMES IN UTAH CAN BE VIEWED LIVE). Click the B2 Networks (Watch the Game Live) link on the home page for a list of the upcoming telecasted games. To view pictures from this season, visit www.zerodogentertainment.com.



ECHL Stories from February 6, 2006


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