Sports stats

San Diego Limps (Literally) Into Break, But Still In Good Position In Pacific Division

January 23, 2006 - ECHL (ECHL)
San Diego Gulls News Release


SAN DIEGO -- The San Diego Gulls, riddled with injuries, probably don't mind taking a few days off for the All-Star Break. Seven regulars are out of the lineup right now, but the Blue and Orange head into the break still in good position in the Pacific Division. Even after losing two of three last weekend, San Diego sits three points out of second place with a game in hand. Maybe more importantly, the Gulls have a 23-point cushion for the final playoff spot in the division.

WEEK IN REVIEW:

Jan. 20 vs. Las Vegas: Matt Dzieduszycki and Steve Crampton connected on three first-period scores, as the Wranglers overcame an early deficit to defeat the Gulls, 5-3 before 5,079 at ipayOne Center. The Gulls took the lead early when Richard Keyes scored a power-play goal 6:09 into the match. But Las Vegas responded with three unanswered goals in less than five minutes to take a 3-1 advantage into the first intermission. San Diego tried to come back in the second frame and again in the third, pulling within 3-2 and later 4-3 but failed to retake the lead and dropped to 0-3 against the Wranglers this season.

Jan. 21 @ Long Beach: Pierre-Luc Sleigher scored 4:21 into overtime and Tom Lawson made 39 saves, leading the Gulls to a 3-2 victory over the Ice Dogs Saturday night at the Long Beach Arena. David Walker gave the Ice Dogs a 1-0 lead 8:43 into the opening frame with his first goal of the season. Sleigher got San Diego on the board at 12:37 with his 10th goal but Long Beach answered 43 seconds later to regain its one-goal advantage. All-Star Jesse Bennefield re-tied it just 33 seconds into the second period and the score remained 2-2 at the end of regulation. It looked like a shootout was looming on the horizon, but Sleigher had other ideas, as he potted the game-winner with 39 seconds left in overtime.

Jan. 22 vs. Bakersfield: Ryan Munce stopped 37 shots, as the Condors beat the short-handed Gulls for the first time this season, 4-1 Sunday at the ipayOne Center. Mike Hofstrand added two goals to send San Diego into the All-Star break with a loss. San Diego out-shot Bakersfield 14-3 over the first 13-plus minutes, but Munce turned away each chance. Bakersfield responded with goals on back-to-back shots to turn a scoreless match into a 2-0 Condors advantage with 5:35 left in the opening period. The Gulls did get on the scoreboard when Sleigher went top-shelf to finally beat Munce at the 1:10 mark of the second period but that's all Munce would allow. Bakersfield added an empty-netter with 54 seconds left to cap the win.

Individual Notes: Sleigher has points in 10 of the last 12 games and has 18 points in that span (7g, 11a)... Bennefield has 29 points (15g, 14a) in the last 20 games... Steve Hildenbrand has 33 points (12g, 21a) in the last 27 games... Keyes has 31 points (12g, 19a) in the last 28 games... Tyler Weiman has won seven of his last 10 decisions...

Team Notes: San Diego is 17-11-4 since starting the season 1-5-0... During the last 13 games, the Gulls have killed 76 of 86 penalties (88.4 percent) and have seven short-handed goals... They are 5-1-0 vs. Bakersfield this season (outscoring them 31-15)...

San Diego will take a few days off for the All-Star break before returning to action with a pair of home games next weekend. The Gulls host the Stockton Thunder at 7:35 p.m. Friday. It will be the second "Pooch Party" of the season, which means fans can bring their dog to the game. The Stanley Cup will also be here and fans may get their picture taken with hockey's most coveted trophy. Saturday the Fresno Falcons will be in town for a 7:05 p.m. game and the first 7,000 fans will get a free Gulls T-shirt, presented by Coast-to-Coast Tax Service (this was originaly supposed to be Boxer Shorts Night).

All games can be heard on KLSD 1360AM and www.sandiegogulls.com with Chris Ello calling the play-by-play. Most games can also be viewed on the Gulls' Web site, courtesy of B2 Networks (All upcoming games CAN BE VIEWED). 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 January 23, 2006


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.

Other Recent San Diego Gulls Stories



Sports Statistics from the Stats Crew
OurSports Central