LIVE: Gulls Fall To Canucks 5-1
Jan 14, 2022By AJ Manderichio/SanDiegoGulls.com
The San Diego Gulls fell to the Abbotsford Canucks 5-1 in tonight's game at Pechanga Arena San Diego.
Michael DiPietro made 23 saves – including a dazzling sliding stop late in the second period – to collect his fourth win of the season.
John Stevens led Abbotsford with 1-2=3 points, recording his first multi-point game of the season. Phil Di Giuseppe, Tristen Nielsen, Justin Bailey (ENG) and Danila Klimovich also scored for Abbotsford, who snapped a four-game losing streak.
Lucas Elvenes scored in his Gulls debut, and Brent Gates Jr. pushed his point streak to a career-tying three games. Francis Marotte, making his Pechanga Arena debut, stopped 17 shots in the loss.
Third Period Recap
Elvenes scored in his San Diego debut, recording his first Gulls goal at 9:46 of the final frame.
Gates Jr. started the play, poking the puck away from a streaking Bailey at center ice. Elvenes grabbed the puck and turned it the other way, driving into the Abbotsford zone with speed. He collected the puck into his body and fired a wrist shot past the glove of DiPietro for his third goal of the season.
Gates Jr. extended his point streak to a career-high tying three games (1-2=3).
Bailey would atone for his turnover, scoring an empty-net goal with 3:38 remaining in regulation. John Stevens earned the assist, recording his third point of the game (1-2=3).
Abbotsford would add on, with Kilmovich scoring off the rush with 1:47 remaining in regulation.
Second Period Recap
Nielsen extended the advantage with his third goal of the season with under four minutes left in the middle frame.
Devante Stephens sent Abbotsford in on an odd-man rush from his own zone, with Nielsen leading the charge. The center held the puck at the faceoff dot before picking his spot, snapping a shot to the far corner for the goal.
Greg Printz nearly broke the ice for the Gulls, forcing DiPietro to make a highlight-reel save with just 23 seconds left in the period.
With San Diego shorthanded, Bryce Kindopp grabbed the puck at the blue line and sped into the Abbotsford zone. He turned at the side boards, feeding a driving Alex Limoges. He found Printz with a cross-ice feed, and the forward wasted no time one-timing a low shot toward the net. A sliding DiPietro trapped the puck underneath him just before it crossed the goal line, with Printz raising his arms in disbelief (and checking around the net) following the whistle.
DiPietro stopped all 13 San Diego shots in the middle frame and the 17 he's seen through the game's first 40 minutes.
Marotte has 14 saves on 17 shots for San Diego.
First Period Recap
Di Giuseppe opened the scoring, netting his sixth goal of the season at 3:03 of the opening frame. The veteran center converted on a loose puck in front, slamming home the rebound from a Noah Juulsen shot past Marotte to break the ice.
Stevens extended the lead, scoring his fifth goal of the season at 7:12 of the first. The center finished an odd-man rush, snapping a one-timed shot past the sliding Marotte to give Abbotsford a two-goal cushion.
With an assist on the earlier goal, Stevens collected his first multi-point game of the season. The Springfield, MA native has four points (3-1=4) in his last five games.