Gulls End Regular Season with 6-4 loss to Firebirds
Apr 18, 2026
By Ashley Rubin/SanDiegoGulls.com
The San Diego Gulls fell to the Coachella Valley Firebirds in their final game of the regular season tonight at Pechanga Arena San Diego, 6-4.
It was an entertaining and physical game all the way through. The Gulls took the momentum in the first, but the Firebirds caught up in the second. San Diego will enter the postseason on a three-game losing streak and hope to regain some momentum as they begin the first round of playoffs.
Tomas Suchanek took over between the pipes in the first after Calle Clang departed the game early. Suchanek played a pivotal role in the game, saving 25-of-30 shots.
Sam Colangelo opened the scoring with a power play one-timer at the 12:20 mark in the first period. Colangelo has found 2-8=10 points in his past 10 contests and has put up 12-24=35 points in his 49 total games played with San Diego this season.
The Gulls took a two-goal lead when Justin Bailey went five-hole to record his 25th goal of the season. Bailey has led all Gulls skaters in goals for a majority of the season and ranks in the top 25 in all AHL skaters for most goals scored this season. He ended the night with his 10th multi-point game this season as he later tallied an assist.
Matt Basgall cut the Firebird’s second period lead to one as he recorded his first career AHL goal. Tonight marked the defensemen’s fourth career AHL game and the goal marks his second professional point as he found an assist in his AHL debut.
The game was tied back up when Stian Solberg netted one in the third. Solberg has tallied 12-12=24 points this season and will end the regular season on a four-game point streak. The defenseman has found 2-3=5 points in his past four, the longest streak he has held this year.
Captain Ryan Carpenter tallied three assists tonight, the most he has tallied in a single game this season. Matthew Phillips, Ryan Carpenter, Nikita Nesterenko, and Cal Burke picked up an assist each as well.
San Diego will next begin their 2025-26 Calder Cup Playoff run with a best of three series against the Colorado Eagles starting Wednesday, Apr. 22 at Blue Arena (6:05 p.m. PDT).