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San Diego Pulls Within Two Points Of Third-Place Bakersfield

February 27, 2006 - ECHL (ECHL)
San Diego Gulls News Release


SAN DIEGO --After starting off the week with a tough loss to Utah at home, the Gulls rallied behind goaltenders Tom Lawson and Tyler Weiman to pick up convincing victories against Phoenix, Utah, and Stockton. Along with top-notch goaltending, the Gulls got plenty of offense when it mattered last week. The trio of Mark Wires (3g, 5a), Steve Hildenbrand (5g, 2a), and Jesse Bennefield (1g, 6a) combined for 22 points to lead the team.

WEEK IN REVIEW:

Feb. 22 vs. Utah: Ryan Kinasewich and Colt King each had a goal and two assists, leading the Grizzlies to a come-from-behind 5-4 win against the Gulls Wednesday at the ipayOne Center. Offense was the name of the game in the first period, as teams combined for six goals. San Diego got four of the goals, thanks to a pair of tallies from Wires and one each from Patrick Levesque and Taj Melson. Bennefield assisted on three of the first-period scores. The Gulls took a 4-2 lead into the first intermission but the could not contain the Grizzlies for much longer as Matt Craig and Kinasewich both beat Tom Lawson in the second period to tie the match. Chad Starling notched the game-winner with a shot from the left point that sailed past a screened Lawson.

Feb. 24 @ Phoenix: Lawson stopped 30 shots for his second shutout of the season and the Gulls picked up a much-needed road victory, 3-0 over the Roadrunners Friday night. It was a battle of the goaltenders all night long. In the opening period, Ryan Cyr made 16 saves while Lawson turned aside 10 to keep the match scoreless at the first intermission. It was more of the same in the second, until Hildenbrand finally figured out how to get a shot past Cyr with 7:08 left in the frame. He did it again 50 seconds into the third by beating Cyr with a slap shot and Pierre-Luc Sleigher capped the victory with an empty-netter with eight seconds remaining.

Feb. 25 vs. Utah: Hildenbrand scored with 23.5 seconds remaining in overtime, giving the Gulls a 2-1 victory over the Utah Grizzles before 12,358 at ipayOne Center. The crowd was the eighth-largest in Gulls history, surpassing the 12,240 mark set one week earlier against Victoria. Sporting bright pink jerseys for the first time ever - for "Pink in the Rink" night to benefit the Mary Kay Ash Foundation - the Gulls got another solid game from Lawson. The goaltender stopped 32 shots, including six in overtime. It looked like a shootout was looming on the horizon until Melson fed Hildenbrand, who buried a shot top-shelf from the left-wing circle.

Feb. 26 @ Stockton: It was the third game in less than 48 hours for the road-weary Gulls, but it was Stockton who looked like the tired team, as the Gulls stormed to a 5-2 victory Sunday in the first-ever match-up at the Stockton Arena. The Gulls line of Hildenbrand, Wires and Bennefield was the story, as the trio combined for four goals and 12 points. R.J. Enga, playing in his second game this season and second since the 2002-03 season, also scored on a one-timer 1:24 into the game. Aaron MacInnis tied it at 3:53 but Hildenbrand, Wires, and Bennefield took over in the second period and gave the Gulls their third victory in a row.

Individual Notes: Bennefield has 13 points (4g, 9a) in his last eight games... Hildenbrand has 13 points (6g, 7a) in the last eight games... Wires has eight points (3g, 5a) in the last four games... The trio combined for four goals and eight assists Sunday in Stockton... Lawson was 2-1-0 last week, allowing six goals on 96 shots (.938 save percentage)...

Team Notes: San Diego has killed 91 of 100 penalties in the last 17 games (91 percent), including 24-of-25 last week... The Gulls have scored power-play goals in five of their last six games... Nine of their last 13 games have been decided by one goal... The Gulls are in a stretch of eight games in 11 days, including four this week...

The Gulls play in Stockton again Tuesday at 7 p.m. before opening a four-game homestand Wednesday against the Long Beach Ice Dogs at 7:05 p.m. San Diego will then host the Las Vegas Wranglers Friday at 7:35 p.m. and Saturday at 7:05 p.m. Friday is Military Appreciation Night with a sleeveless T-shirt giveaway. Saturday is Disco Night and special "Fro" wings will be handed out. 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. Click the B2 Networks (Watch the Game Live) link on the home page for a list of the upcoming viewable games. To view pictures from this season, visit www.zerodogentertainment.com.

OVERALL RECORD: 23-23-5

LAST WEEK: 3-1-0

STANDINGS: 4th (Pacific Division)



ECHL Stories from February 27, 2006


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