2023-2024 Game 16: San Diego Gulls vs Chicago Wolves

Having set a club record with their thirteenth straight loss, the San Diego Gulls tried again to break the skid in a rematch with the Wolves the very next night.

Captain Chase De Leo made his return to the line-up and slotted in on the top line with Nesterenko and Agozzino which allowed Regenda to join Gawdin with Perreault on the second line. Brayden Tracey also returned from injury and slotted in on the third line with the successful combo of Gaucher and Caulfield. Jaxen Wiebe also returned to the line-up with Sasha Pastujov, Ben King and Travis Howe coming out.

Tomas Suchanek was given his first AHL start with Calle Clang backing up.

First Period:

The Gulls looked instantly better with their Captain back as both he and Nesterenko came in on a two on one right off the puck drop but Nesterenko deferred to his captain with the extra pass that he likely would have been better to pull the trigger on.

Similarly Tomas Suchanek made his presence known with a nice two on one stop going the other way.

A consistent and tenacious Gulls attack throughout the first frame was finally rewarded as Judd Caulfield broke through on a great individual effort, taking the puck at the blue line, controlling it and weaving through traffic on a play we have seen him try to make several times before but never been able to finish. This time the big Grand Forks native made good and snuck the puck around and by the Wolves netminder. 1-0 Gulls.

Chicago attempted a response but Suchanek was solid in denying any and all chances, including an egregious high slot turnover by Glen Gawdin.

A flagrant and abusive display of violence by the Wolves Dominic Franco on the much smaller Andrew Agozzino behind the Gulls net resulted in a San Diego player jumping the boards and teams skated at four on four for the remainder of the frame. The Gulls taking a narrow but deserved 10-9 shot advantage and 1-0 lead to the first intermission with the shot map showing that although neither team really had any high danger chances in front that perhaps the Gulls might be turning a corner.

Second Period: San Diego Gulls 1 – Chicago Wolves 0

Starting the frame at four on four for thirty seconds the Gulls went right back on the attack once play returned to five on five and as they started to gain momentum through consistent unrelenting pressure from all four lines it felt like another goal for the home team might be coming.

But just as Jacob Perreault had the puck bounce over his stick after a sure-goal-set-up in the slot from Glen Gawdin at one end, the Wolves countered via a breakaway pass at the other and Rocco Grimaldi showed true skill as he beat Suchanek with a sharp edge to edge move. 1-1 tie game.

The pace picked up as both teams traded scoring chances, Olen Zellweger with a rare snafu as he caught an edge and fell while the last man back but Thomas Suchanek bailed him out on the resulting breakaway while at the other end Trevor Carrick did his best Pavel Mintyukov impression as he weaved himself into the high slot and wired his shot off the goal post.

Chicago enjoyed the majority of possession for the next few minutes or so, out-muscling and forcing the Gulls into making terrible break-out attempts that were immediately countered. All the while Tomas Suchanek was the difference as he deflected shot after shot after San Diego made turnover after turnover in their own zone.

With the Hockey gods finally seeming to be smiling on the Gulls – lead by Chase De Leo the first line entered the Chicago zone after a timeout and a one-touch pass from Andrew Agozzino to a trailing Robert Hagg blew past the Wolves netminder Adam Scheel. 2-1 Gulls. His first of the season.

San Diego took back momentum after the goal and were awarded a Power Play in the final minute and a half of the period as the Wolves were caught with too many men on the ice.

A much more potent looking Gulls man advantage held the puck in the Chicago zone (thanks in part to a diving effort from Olen Zellweger) for almost the entire tenure and generated two high danger chances including the third goalpost connection of the middle frame.

As the period came to a close the Gulls took a 2-1 lead and a narrow 9-8 disadvantage to the second intermission with shots equaling an even 18 a piece overall. The shot map showing just how important Suchanek had been to the Gulls campaign for the last twenty minutes.

Third Period: San Diego Gulls 2 – Chicago Wolves 1

Starting the period on the Power Play for thirty seconds the Gulls once again gave the Wolves everything they could and looked the better of the two teams through the next six minutes of action after play returned to five on five.

The pace was frantic and saw time flow by before a good shift from Blake McLaughlin and the fourth line draw a penalty as the former University of Minnesota Golden Gopher was high-sticked after a great take-away near the Chicago blue-line. The Wolves killed the minor through some extremely aggressive penalty killing (the same we saw cause the Gulls significant issues the night before) but as play returned to five on five we saw San Diego firmly in the drivers seat in looking to close out the win.

With the Wolves pulling their net-minder in the final two minutes a skillful yet hopeful attempt from Josh Lopina via a lobbed shot from his own end slowly made its way toward and eventually into the Chicago net to help the Gulls odds of victory as Pechanga Arena erupted at the prospect of finally breaking the losing streak.

Some concerted effort from the Gulls and namely Drew Helleson on defense kept the Wolves at bay and the added bonus of a high sticking call to Chicago defenseman Owen Headrick allowed San Diego to play out the final twenty seconds of time with the man advantage and close out the victory for their rookie goaltender in his first AHL start. Gulls win 3-1.

Post Game Notes:

De Ja Vu?

I seem to remember a young unheralded netminder making his first AHL start and getting his first AHL victory in the midst of a Gulls losing slump last year. Of course that was closer to the end of the season last year but it is somewhat of a humorous coincidence. I am pretty sure Chase De Leo was coming off his long-term injury in the same game last season as well.

I Need A Nickname For Suchanek

Dolstal was the Bakery (Dough-Stahl) what can I came up with for Suchanek? No Panic Suchanek? FYI the guys on the broadcast were not quite saying it right. It should be Soo – Han – Ek. You dont say the “c” before the “h”. Maybe his nickname should be something Han Solo related? Long time readers or those that know me are well aware that I have been suggesting the Ducks draft Suchanek as an overager for the last two drafts now – ever since he burst onto the scene at the World Juniors two years ago. I can only imagine he was passed over multiple times because of a combination of his size and aggressive style. It’s almost old school Hasek-like in that he relies a lot on his reads and reactions to make a stop if he gets caught coming out too far to challenge a play. I did notice in the first period that he came out almost to the low slot to challenge a two on one that could have gone very badly but at the same time I get that it would also throw a lot of shooters off that don’t expect a goaltender to challenge so far out and so quickly when the percentages would normally dictate they retreat and look for the cross-crease stop. No doubt Suchanek will get the next start so this will be a good story to follow with earnest but I would also temper expectations.

Start Of Turn Around? Or Temporary Reprieve?

The Gulls round out their November schedule with a visit from the Texas Stars who currently sit atop the Central Division with a 9-4-2-1 record but have just dropped their most recent game. Tonight’s game was no where near perfect and there are still a lot of things for the Gulls to work on but it is progress and they have been looking better and better lately. The addition of De Leo definitely helps a lot, as does getting Tracey back. I don’t agree with the lines as they currently are though. I’d put Regenda back on the top line and place Nesterenko with Caulfield and Gaucher, reuniting Perreault and Tracey with Gawdin in the middle. To me the top three lines should look like:

Regenda – Agozzino – De Leo

Tracey – Gawdin – Perreault

Nesterenko – Gaucher – Caulfield

For those crying foul over having Nesterenko on the “third line” let me explain – Gaucher and Caulfield have been the most consistent and dangerous forwards over the last five or so games. Adding Nesterenko to their dynamic only exemplifies that. This also locks all three lines up and leaves only room for the spares to come in and out on the forth line. Where Lopina is most definitely locked in as he has come back into his own as an ace in the face-off circle where he has big Groulx sized shoes to fill. Which leaves the wings to be fought over by McLaughlin, Wiebe, Pastujov and Howe. At this point I think it would be best for Pastujov to be sent to Tulsa to get some confidence and consistent game time. He isn’t the type of player to be found on the fourth line and hasn’t really shown much with his opportunities thus far. Wiebe and McLaughlin on the other hand have quietly impressed me with their hustle and tenacity. Wiebe is a real pest and you can tell it doesn’t takes long for him to get under opposing teams skin.