LIVE: Gulls End Winless Skid With Win Over Tucson
Apr 23, 2022By AJ Manderichio/SanDiegoGulls.com
The San Diego Gulls defeated the Tucson Roadrunners 3-1 in tonight's game at Pechanga Arena San Diego.
The Gulls scored three times in the final 5:06 of regulation to complete a come-from-behind victory, snapping the team's seven-game winless streak. Brent Gates Jr., Jacob Perreault and Greg Printz (ENG) led the charge offensively while Lukas Dostal stopped 22-of-23 shots.
Third Period Recap
Josh Lopina came within inches of tying the game, hitting the post on an odd-man rush at 6:16 of the final frame.
Buddy Robinson carried the puck into Tucson's end, finding Printz at the blue line. The forward cut down from the point before hitting the streaking Brogan Rafferty. The defenseman found an open Lopina in the shot, who beat Tucson netminder Rasmus Korhonen with a shot to the blocker side. The rookie center couldn't get the friendly bounce, as his shot hit iron and came back out.
Gates Jr. did break through, tying the game at one with 5:06 left in regulation.
Brayden Tracey collected a loose puck in his own end and quickly transitioned from defense to offense, leading a 3-on-2 rush up the ice. His centering pass found Hunter Drew, who sent a hard wrist shot on Korhonen. The Tucson goalie made the save but lost track of the puck, dropping a rebound between his feet. Gates Jr. saw his opportunity and pounced, poking home the rebound for his 11th goal of the season.
Perreault gave the Gulls their first lead minutes later, pushing them ahead with 3:37 remaining in regulation.
The rookie wing battled a puck loose along the side boards, finding Bryce Kindopp as he cut toward the slot. With two defenseman converging on him, he played the puck back to the trailing Perreault, who quickly one-timed a puck to the top shelf for his 14th goal of the season.
Printz iced the game with an empty-net tally with 32.6 seconds remaining.
Second Period Recap
Colin Theisen opened the scoring, finishing off a 2-on-1 rush with Oliver Chau for his fourth goal of the season.
Chau started the play with a good defensive play, forcing a Gulls turnover at his defensive blue line and carrying the puck up the ice. He drew the attention of both defenders before dishing a backhand pass to Theisen, who beat Dostal to the glove side for the game's first goal.
First Period Recap
Dostal made an early stop to keep the game scoreless, shutting down a Cedric Lacroix bid just after the two-minute mark of the opening period. The left wing won a footrace for a loose puck, gaining possession between the hash marks. He took a stride and shot low, but Dostal met the bid with his pad and denied his follow-up chance from the side of the net.
The San Diego goaltender followed up with another save later in the frame, denying Cameron Hebig on a breakaway chance to keep Tucson off the board with 5:12 remaining in the period.
Dostal finished the opening frame with nine saves. Korhonen stopped five shots.