Gulls Ready for Crucial Matchup vs. Roadrunners
Apr 1, 2026
By Ashley Rubin/SanDiegoGulls.com
The race to playoffs is in full force tonight as the San Diego Gulls take on the Tucson Roadrunners in a must-win matchup at Pechanga Arena San Diego (7 p.m. PDT; TV: AHLTV on FloHockey; Radio: Gulls Audio Network).
San Diego and Tucson are divided by just one point in the Pacific Division standings. The top seven teams in the division will secure a playoff berth and the Gulls currently hold the last spot. If Tucson pulls out a win tonight, the Gulls will drop to eighth place and must fight even harder to receive their playoff spot.
"We’ve played a lot of good hockey this year," head coach Matt McIlvane said. "I think when you're getting the big moments, it's good to have trust in what you've done and what we're capable of doing. We know that when our group gets really focused on something, we've seen some great responses and great performances. So, its keeping faith, keeping positive, keeping our belief, and I think that our play will go out and take care of itself."
The Gulls have gone 4-0-1-1 against the Roadrunners this season, picking up points in each game and sweeping the road series. Tucson has gone 6-3-1-0 in their past 10 games and is coming off a win over the division-leading Ontario Reign. The Gulls have gone 5-5-0-0 in their past 10 contests and are coming off back-to-back losses against the Abbotsford Canucks.
Saturday’s contest saw late efforts from the Gulls but not enough to finish against the Canucks. Justin Bailey and Judd Caulfield put up a goal each in the last four minutes, giving the team hope. Abbotsford regained momentum and took the win after netting two more themselves late in the game. Sunday’s contest was closer throughout, but another late push by the Canucks gave them the two points. Sasha Pastujov capitalized on the power play, netting two goals on the advantage. Despite the loss it was a memorable night for Drew Elliott as he scored his first career AHL goal.
"We weren't happy with the first game on Saturday, but we did a lot of things right on Sunday," captain Ryan Carpenter said. "Still didn't get the result we wanted. So, it's just that time of year where you got to flush the bad results. We went over some film today, things we could work on in the D-zone, some tactical things, some effort things, but we thought we improved. If we play the game like we did on Sunday, we think we'll get more wins than we will losses, but at the same time, at this time of the year we need points, and so we're looking to kind of flush that feeling."
After tonight’s matchup the Gulls will take a day off before returning on Friday to finish out their season series with the Bakersfield Condors at Pechanga Arena San Diego (7 p.m. PDT).