Taking Care of Business

Published on March 4, 2003 under ECHL (ECHL)
San Diego Gulls News Release


SAN DIEGO –– There are no "gimmies" in the West Coast Hockey League, but the better teams beat the ones lower in the standings. The Long Beach Ice Dogs have struggled mightily lately and The San Diego Gulls came into the three-game weekend set seeing a golden opportunity to gain six points. Well... that's exactly what they did.

San Diego (35-18-3) defeated its So. Cal rival 5-2 Friday, 3-1 Saturday and 3-2 (in a shootout) Sunday, but barely gained ground on the Bakersfield Condors, chasing the Blue and Orange for second place. That's because while the Gulls were taking care of business against the fifth-place Ice Dogs, the Condors were beating up on the last-place Anchorage Aces.

With 15 games left to go, San Diego leads Bakersfield by two points for second place. Whichever teams finishes with the second seed will have home-ice advantage in the first round of the Taylor Cup Playoffs.

NOTES: The Gulls officially clinched a playoff berth with Saturday's victory... Cris Classen is 9-3-0 since Trevor Koenig went down with a knee sprain... Koenig has been cleared to play and has dressed the last three games... Mark Pederson has 23 points in the last 12 games (12g, 11a)... The Gulls have beaten Long Beach 11 straight times and 13 of 14 this season... Associate coach Martin St. Amour played Saturday and Sunday. He recorded two assists and 32 penalty minutes...

TRANSACTIONS: Dennis Purdie was activated from injured reserve... R.J. Enga was placed on the 14-day IR for the first time in his career... Mike McGhan, Ashlee Langdone and Cory Cyrenne are each still suffering from concussion-like symptoms... Mike Garrow (ankle), Dean Tiltgen (leg) and Samy Nasreddine (back) also remain out with injuries... Rob Voltera still remains with the American Hockey League's Hershey Bears...

COMMUNITY UPDATE:

Wednesday: Mike Garrow and Dean Tiltgen will be at John Marshall Elementary School's 10th annual Career Day. Garrow and Tiltgen will read a book to a class and discuss the value of reading.

Friday: Trevor Sherban and Mike McGhan will take part in a live shot with KUSI, explaining the Gulls' efforts in youth-oriented programs, which also helps the Police Athletic League and Star Pal programs.

Saturday: The Gulls, in conjunction with Sharp Healthcare's "Sharp on Survival" program, are holding a special pre-game presentation for B.J. MacPherson. San Diego's former team captain had his career ended by a neck injury, suffered May 2001. Before the Gulls – Fresno Falcons game, MacPherson will speak about his injury and, more importantly, his recovery.

Saturday: Join your favorite Gulls in the Arena Club after the game for live music and great specials on Moosehead Lager.

Sunday: Come out to Dick's Last Resort for Tip-A-Gull 2003, when your favorite Gulls serve your every need as bartenders, waiters and auctioneers! You'll find skills contests, games and goodie bags for the kids! To top it all off, all proceeds will benefit United Cerebral Palsy. So be sure to join us at Dick's Last Resort in San Diego's Historic Gaslamp District, at 345 4th Avenue!

RECAP:

GULL 5 @ Ice Dogs 2: Friday, Feb. 28: San Diego jumped out to a three-goal lead and never looked back, cruising to another victory over Long Beach. Sandro Sbrocca had three points (1g, 2a) while Clayton Read potted a pair of goals. David Neale sealed the win with his goal late in the third period. Pederson added an empty-netter.

GULLS 3 @ Ice Dogs 1 Saturday, March 1: The Gulls clinched a playoff spot with another relatively easy win against the Ice Dogs. Marc Busenburg nailed his first goal in a San Diego uniform in the first, Purdie got one in the second and Neale salted it in the third. Long Beach got on the board midway through the final frame but it was too little too late.

Ice Dogs 2 @ GULLS 3 (SO): Sunday, March 3: Long Beach jumped out to a 2-0 lead but the Gulls tied it in the third and won it in the shootout. Purdie cut the lead to one midway through the second and Busenburg tied the game midway through the third. In the extra frame, San Diego scored three times to Long Beach's two.

THIS WEEK:

The Gulls continue their homestand with a pair of games next weekend against the Fresno Falcons, both starting at 7 p.m. Friday is the fourth of six "McDonald's Nights" and Ashlee Langdone beanie dolls will be given to the first 5,000 fans. On Saturday, the first 5,000 fans will receive a B.J. MacPherson bobble head doll, courtesy of San Diego Fitness and Racquet Center. MacPherson will also give a pre-game speech at center ice, starting at 5:45 p.m. All games can be heard live on 1130AM-KSDO with Chris Ello calling the play-by-play. The Gulls' Internet radio show broadcasts live every Tuesday from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m. on wsradio.com with Tera Black and Jeremy Zager hosting.

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