The San Diego Gulls can leave the opening weekend with a clean sweep if they can back up Saturday’s statement win when they meet the San Jose Barracuda again today at Tech CU Arena. Puck drop is set for 3 p.m. PDT, with the game available on AHLTV on FloHockey and on the Gulls Audio Network.
San Diego wasted no time setting the tone in the season opener, rolling to a 5-1 win and getting first points from eight different skaters. Matthew Phillips, James Hamblin, Nico Myatovic and Stian Solberg each finished with multi-point nights.
Phillips, Hamblin and Myatovic all posted a goal and an assist, while Solberg delivered one goal and two assists for his first career three-point performance. Roger McQueen also scored his first point, and Ryan Carpenter, Anton Wahlberg and Sean Farrell each chipped in with assists.
"I think we have a really good group of guys," Phillips said. "I think we already get along really well and enjoy playing and working with each other, so that's a huge part of it.
I think we've done a lot of five-on-five drills in practice, and just drills that help us work as a unit. I think that helped us just kind of turn the brains off and play today."
The win gave San Diego back-to-back season-opening victories and marked Dave Manson’s first as head coach of the organization. Manson has spent the past few weeks working with the new team and coaching staff ahead of this moment, and Hamblin said the players are eager to keep building on it.
"I'm super excited for him," Hamblin said. "I think we all are.
He is just so down to earth. He's a guy that you want to play for.
I feel like everyone here feels like they'd want to run through a wall for him. So, we're super excited.
You know we want to get more wins for him."
Special teams played a big role in the opener, too. The Gulls went 2-for-4 on the power play with goals from Phillips and McQueen, and they finished 1-for-1 on the penalty kill.
"I mean we're rolling right along, and we had a two-man advantage," Manson said. "San Jose did a real good job on the kill, and then kind of built some momentum off that, and so we kept plugging, kept working, and were able to draw a couple more, and then capitalize on them. So anytime you know your special teams can contribute like that, and it's huge."
San Diego will try to carry that momentum into the rematch, knowing San Jose is likely to push back harder in the second game of the series.
After today, the Gulls return to action Friday, Oct. 9 against the Coachella Valley Firebirds at Acrisure Arena at 7 p.m. PDT. Their home opener follows on Saturday, Oct. 10 at Pechanga Arena.