Teams have begun to create some space between themselves through the opening three weeks of play in the 2016-17 CIF-Metro Conference season. Teams will now resume play following the winter break.
Week 2: Broncos, Falcons remain undefeated
The Rancho Bernardo Broncos, holding the No. 1 preseason ranking, rolled to a 4-0 start, while the Scripps Ranch Falcons engineered a 3-0 start in part by handing defending Kiwanis Cup champion Westview its first loss of the season.
Cathedral Catholic, last season’s Kiwanis Cup finalist, compiled a 3-1 record in its first four games while Westview and Escondido Charter both sported 2-2 records. Poway and conference newcomer Patrick Henry both were still looking for their first wins with 0-3 records.
The Broncos and Falcons led the North County League standings with 3-0 league records.
Meanwhile, Otay Ranch and Eastlake appeared to be the class of the nine Sweetwater district teams with strong starts.
Otay Ranch defeated the Hilltop Lancers, 18-5, to face off Mesa League play on Dec. 2 while Eastlake topped the Bonita Vista Barons by a score of 14-3 on Dec. 8 to also face off league play 1-0.
The Mustangs, playing with a shorthanded roster, dropped an 11-1 non-league game to Escondido Charter in a game played Dec. 7 at Castle Park High School, but made amends for that by defeating Mar Vista, 15-0, in a cross-over game on Dec. 9.
At 3-1 overall, Otay Ranch has the best record among Mesa League teams to start the new season.
“We’ve been pretty efficient so far in what we’re doing,” Mustang first-year head coach John King explained. “But have some inexperienced. We have four players who have not played before. The faster we can get our experience level up to par, we’ll be a stronger team.”
Otay Ranch continues to be braced by an explosive offense. Sophomore superstar Sean Devaney led the Mustangs with 25 points (16 goals, nine assists) through the team’s opening four starts. Other players with fire sticks included Aaron Marientes with 21 points (18 goals, three assists), David Mendez with 19 points (12 goals, seven assists) and Paul Chavez with eight points (five goals, three assists).
Mendez (six goals, two assists) and Devaney (five goals, three assists) each racked up eight points in the win over Hilltop while Marientes recorded a hat trick.
Mendez (five goals, one assist) and Devaney (three goals, three assists) each collected six points in the win over Mar Vista while Marientes tallied four goals and one assist and Chavez contributed one goal and one assist.
Marientes had the lone goal in the loss to Escondido Charter. Goaltender Ryan Strodtman recorded the shutout win against Mar Vista.
Eastlake faced off its season with a lop-sided non-league loss to Rancho Bernardo but won its next two games in convincing fashion by out-dueling Sweetwater and Bonita Vista by a combined score of 26-7.
With a load of novice players, the Titans’ focus has been on increasing the learning curve of its young players as fast as possible.
“I’m seeing more contribution from our novice players,” EHS head coach Ron Cole explained. “This gives the opportunity to play a more well-rounded game.”
Ironically, the catalyst of the Titans this season has been a freshman. Braden Mayer has added his name to the scoring column on a regular basis after picking up a assist in his varsity debut game.
He collected six points on four goals and two assists in 12-4 win over Sweetwater and tacked on four goals and one assist in the win over Bonita Vista.
Mayer is the younger brother of all-time conference scoring leader Aaron Mayer, who is now in his second season playing ice hockey for San Diego State University.
The younger Mayer stated his goal is to eclipse the record numbers posted by his older brother. In his first three games, the younger Mayer (who has played ice hockey since he was 3) has chalked up eight goals and four assists for 12 points to top the team in scoring.
“I like ice hockey because there’s a lot of responsibilities (when you’re on the ice) and it has a fast pace,” Braden explained. “I like playing roller hockey for my school because it’s fun to play with your friends. It’s fun to show off your skills.”
Cole said he appreciates Braden’s team play as he gets going in what could be a blockbuster roller hockey career.
“He’s passed up some scoring chances to make passes to his teammates,” the EHS coach explained. “That’s true team spirit. That’s what I like to see.”
Other contributors in the early going for the Titans include returners Sean Layton (eight goals), Jake Powell (five goals, two assists) and Luke Killeen (four goals). Percilla Mayer, Braden’s older sister, returns to help anchor the team defensively. She has contributed a pair of assists to the team’s scoring ledger to face off the season.
Cole said the presence of experienced players on the team has helped the younger players get into the flow faster. That novice group includes Karla Navarrete, Marco Macias, Jonathan McCormick and Nathan Prosapio.
“I’m impressed with how quickly they are learning,” the EHS coach said.
Sweetwater, Castle Park and defending league champion Chula Vista seem to have an early edge on the rest of the competition in the South Bay League.
The Spartans opened defense of their league title with a 4-1 win over Mar Vista on Dec. 2 and followed that with victories against Southwest (3-0 on Dec. 7) and Castle Park (5-3 on Dec. 9) to compile a 3-0 league start.
Hector Garcia, last season’s South Bay League Player of the Year, is off to a hot start with 10 goals (and 11 points) in three games.
The heroes in the win over Castle Park were defender Allison Smith and goaltender Gio Cimmino. Smith (with a goal in the game and two goals on the season on offense) proved difficult to get past on defense despite repeated attempts while Cimmino flashed signs of brilliance despite just learning the position after making the switch from defense last season.
“The first two games he didn’t have a lot of shots because we had possession more, but against Castle Park, we got to see what he can do,” CV coach Matt Diaz said.
Sweetwater has picked up two league wins to start the season. The Red Devils defeated Mar Vista, 9-3, on Dec. 6 to earn its first win of the season and bested Southwest, 9-1, on Dec. 9 to double its win total. The Red Devils’ lone blemish during Week 2 was a 12-4 non-league loss to Eastlake.
Adrian Kercher, Phillip Brandon and Marco Salazar each scored three goals in the win over Mar Vista while Kercher and Salazar each scored two goals and Armando Rivera added a goal and assist in the win over Southwest. Salazar tallied two goals in the loss to Eastlake while Brandon and Kercher each scored once.
Castle Park shut out Southwest, 7-0, on Dec. 2 to pick up its first win of the season. Eleazar Cruz led the Trojans (1-2) with four goals while teammate Adolfo Medina collected three goals and one assist. Cruz scored all three goals in the loss to Chula Vista.
Mar Vista (0-2) and Southwest (0-3) are still searching for their first wins of the season. The Raiders are led by goaltender Mariana Cornel, whose quick moves have thwarted opposing players continually this season.
Hilltop defeated Mar Vista, 5-1, in a non-league game full of newcomers for both teams on Dec. 8. Veteran Danny Godinez led the Lancers with two goals while Trevor Fune added a goal and two assists. Oscar Casillas and Caleb Macias each scored one goal for Hilltop. Anthony Rodriguez scored the lone goal for the Mariners.
Victor Guzman picked up the Lancers’ first goaltender win of the season.
Hilltop has nine freshmen on its roster this season.
Bonita Vista recorded its first win of the new season by stopping Southwest, 6-1, in non-league action on Dec. 6. Bo Santos and Matt Custodio led the Barons with three goals and one assist each.
“I’m very happy to have a solid core of returners,” BVHS head coach Keith Quigley said. “Within that group of returners there’s a group of four or five who have some good hockey experience.”
Custodio picked up all three goals for Bonita Vista in the loss to Eastlake.
Southwest coach Jerry Nestlerode also serves as the liaison to the sponsoring Sweetwater school district. He thinks the season is off to a good start, especially in the South Bay League.
“I think we’re off to a good start to our 17th season,” he said. “I’m particularly excited for the South Bay League since Southwest is in it. I think the South Bay League will be very competitive. Chula Vista is still the defending champion until someone can show otherwise.
“They have been involved in some close games so far that should set up some exciting rematches. I’d like to believe that we’re in it – they beat us by three goals.”
Angel Bonilla leads the Raiders in scoring with two goals.
Falcons stun defending Kiwanis Cup champions
ESCONDIDO SPORTS CENTER, Dec. 7 — The reloaded Scripps Ranch Falcons came from behind by scoring three consecutive goals in the third period to stun the defending CIF-Metro Conference champion Westview Wolverines, 5-3, in a North County League game.
The Wolverines took a 3-1 lead midway through the second period on two goals from Keisi Takaya and one from Kyle Bucholitz. The Falcons caught fire late in the second period, sparked by a goal by Matt Gauthier. In the third period, freshman Cody Ayers tied the game and fellow freshman Kyle Fraser scored to give the Falcons the lead.
Gauthier then iced the game for the Falcons, 5-3. The Falcons received strong defensive play from Justin Nakagawa, Leo Gaffrey and London Peters.
The Falcons were led by Gauthier withtwo goals, Kyle Fraser and Liam Baird each with one goal and one assist, and Cody Ayers with one goal. Jacob Ayers recorded the win between the pipes.
The Falcons play Rancho Bernardo on Monday, Dec. 12, in the battle of the unbeaten teams in the North County League.
CIF-Metro Conference Standings
(Through Dec. 9)
North County League
Rancho Bernardo 3-0, 4-0
Scripps Ranch 3-0, 3-0
Cathedral Catholic 3-1, 3-1
Westview 2-2, 2-2
Escondido Charter 1-2, 2-2
Patrick Henry 0-3, 0-3
Poway 0-3, 0-3
Mesa League
Otay Ranch 1-0, 3-1
Eastlake 1-0, 2-1
Bonita Vista 0-1, 1-1
Hilltop 0-1, 1-1
South Bay League
Chula Vista 3-0, 3-0
Sweetwater 2-0, 2-1
Castle Park 1-1, 1-2
Mar Vista 0-2, 0-4
Southwest 0-3, 0-4
CIF-Metro Conference Scoreboard
Week 1
Monday, Nov. 28
North County League
Scripps Ranch 6, Escondido Charter 2
Rancho Bernardo 9, Cathedral Catholic 3
Westview 12, Poway 1
Wednesday, Nov. 30
North County League
Westview 13, Patrick Henry 1
Scripps Ranch 10, Poway 5
Cathedral Catholic 13, Escondido Charter 1
Non-league
Otay Ranch 21, Castle Park 5
Rancho Bernardo 16, Eastlake 2
Friday, Dec. 2
South Bay League
Castle Park 7, Southwest 0
Chula Vista 4, Mar Vista 1
Mesa League
Otay Ranch 18, Hilltop 5
Week 2
Monday, Dec. 5
North County League
Rancho Bernardo 18, Patrick Henry 0
Escondido Charter 8, Poway 2
Cathedral Catholic 6, Westview 0
Tuesday, Dec. 6
Non-league
Sweetwater 9, Mar Vista 3
Bonita Vista 6, Southwest 1
Wednesday, Dec. 7
North County League
Scripps Ranch 5, Westview 3
Rancho Bernardo 17, Poway 0
Cathedral Catholic 19, Patrick Henry 2
South Bay League
Chula Vista 3, Southwest 0
Non-league
Eastlake 12, Sweetwater 4
Escondido Charter 11, Otay Ranch 1
Thursday, Dec. 8
Mesa League
Eastlake 14, Bonita Vista 3
Non-league
Hilltop 5, Mar Vista 1
Friday, Dec. 9
South Bay League
Sweetwater 9, Southwest 1
Chula Vista 5, Castle Park 3
Non-league
Otay Ranch 15, Mar Vista 0
Metro-Conference Scoring Leaders
(Through Dec. 9)
Sweetwater district teams
Sean Devaney (Otay Ranch) 16 goals, 9 assists – 25 points
Aaron Marientes (Otay Ranch) 18 goals, 3 assists – 21 points
David Mendez (Otay Ranch) 12 goals, 7 assists – 19 points
Braden Mayer (Eastlake) 8 goals, 4 assists – 12 points
Eleazar Cruz (Castle Park) 10 goals, 1 assist – 11 points
Hector Garcia (Chula Vista) 10 goals, 1 assist – 11 points
Marco Salazar (Sweetwater) 8 goals, 1` assist – 9 points
Sean Layton (Eastlake) 8 goals, 0 assists – 8 points
Adrian Kercher (Sweetwater) 7 goals, 1 assist – 8 points
Paul Chavez (Otay Ranch) 5 goals, 3 assists – 8 points
Phillip Brandon (Sweetwater) 6 goals, 1 assist – 7 points
Matt Custodio (Bonita Vista) 6 goals, 1 assist – 7 points
Jake Powell (Eastlake) 5 goals, 2 assists – 7 points
Adolfo Medina (Castle Park) 5 goals, 1 assist – 6 points
Trevor Fune (Hilltop) 2 goals, 3 assists – 5 points
Luke Killeen (Eastlake) 4 goals, 0 assists – 4 points
Donovan Lazo (Otay Ranch) 3 goals, 1 assist – 4 points
Bo Santos (Bonita Vista) 3 goals, 1 assist – 4 points
Armando Rivera ( Sweetwater) 1 goal, 3 assists – 4 points
Week 3: Cathedral Catholic building momentum
The final week before winter break faced off Monday, Dec. 12, with a pair of non-league games at the Castle Park rink. In the first game, Sweetwater rolled past Castle Park, 5-4, while Cathedral Catholic upended Bonita Vista by a score of 24-0 despite playing with an iron man roster.
Sweetwater and Castle Park battled to a 1-1 standoff through the opening period before the Red Devils built what seemed like a comfortable 5-2 lead through two periods. But the Trojans rallied with two goals in the third period while managing to shut down the SuHi offensive machine.
Jared Fuentes scored both CP goals in the final period. However, the Trojans could not get any closer on the scoreboard.
The Devils improved to 3-1 overall while Castle Park dropped to 1-3 on the season.
Cathedral Catholic, braced by a big 6-0 shutout win over North County League rival (and defending Kiwanis Cup champion) Westview on Dec. 5, played all three quarters with four skaters backed up by goaltender Patrick Henson. The Dons got a lot of production from what they had.
The win, the fourth consecutive for the Dons, raised their record to 4-1.
“It’s been positive since that opening game loss to Rancho Bernardo,” Cathedral coach Luke Storno explained. “We got a late start to the season. It’s been coming together for us since then. That was a good win over Westview.”
Cathedral Catholic led 9-0 after the first period and took a 19-0 lead into the final period against Bonita Vista.
Sam Angeles was involved in 14 goals with 10 goals and four assists. Sam Lathus collected seven goals and three assists for 10 points, Jon Montgomery had two goals and five assists and Charley Pape collected five goals and one assist.
Henson, who scored a goal while playing out in the game against Westview, made five saves to record the shutout win.
The Dons, Kiwanis Cup finalists in each of the past two seasons, have to be considered one of the teams favored to challenge for this season’s Kiwanis Cup championship.
“There’s a lot of games left in the season and some very good teams like Rancho Bernardo, Scripps Ranch and Westview to get through,” Storno said.
Pape led Cathedral with three goals in the win over Westview while Jake Belland, Angeles and Lathus each scored one goal.
Westview rebounded from the loss to the Dons by defeating Escondido Charter, 13-1, in a North County League game at the Escondido Sports Center on Monday, Dec. 12. Jacob Groll led the Wolverines (3-2 overall) with five goals while Josh Groll scored four times for the winners.
Mesa League play resumed on Tuesday, Dec. 13, and both Otay Ranch and Eastlake improving to 2-0 in league play after recording lop-sided wins over Bonita Vista and Hilltop, respectively.
Otay Ranch improved to 4-1 overall by stopping the Barons 13-2; Eastlake tamed longtime nemesis Hilltop by a score of 10-1.
Aaron Marientes led the victorious Mustangs with six goals and one assist while David Mendez rocketed in five goals and Paul Chavez chipped in with one goal.
Bo Santos and Costas Dopulos each scored single goals for the Barons (1-3 overall).
Marientes moved into the Otay Ranch scoring lead with 24 goals and four assists for 28 points. Mendez ranks third with 17 goals and seven assists for 24 points – one point behind Sean Devaney (16 goals, 25 points).
Scoring was spread between eight players in Eastlake’s win over Hilltop. Freshman Braden Mayer scored two goals to boost his team-leading total to 10 goals and 14 points.
In a non-league game on Tuesday, Chula Vista sped past Mar Vista, 9-2, in a non-league encounter. Hector Garcia led the undefeated Spartans with six goals while Angel Valadez contributed two goals and one assist. Allison Smith collected a goal and assist to buttress the victory.
In games on Wednesday, Dec. 14, Chula Vista fended off a late rally by Sweetwater to hang onto undisputed possession of first place in the South Bay League standings with a 6-5 win while Castle Park shaded Mar Vista in similar fashion by the same score in another South Bay League game.
Sweetwater was all over Chula Vista to start the game but was repeatedly denied by Spartan netminder Gio Cimmino. The Red Devils did eventually poke one puck in – the first of five goals in the game by SuHi’s Phillip Brandon – but Chula Vista held a 2-1 lead by the end of the opening period.
CV’s Garcia proved too difficult to contain by racking up four goals and two assists. His breakaway goal off a steal at midcourt hiked the Spartan lead to 6-2 midway through the second period.
That’s when Sweetwater began its rally. Brandon scored a pair of goals to narrow the score to 6-4 with 3:46 to play in the game. He made it 6-5 on another goal with 3:01 to play.
The Red Devils received a big break when Garcia was penalized with 2:19 left in regulation play. However, Sweetwater could not take advantage of the situation as the Spartan defense repelled several scoring opportunities in front of the crease.
The win raised Chula Vista’s record to 5-0 on the season while the Devils fell to 3-2 overall.
Goaltending once again proved critical to the Spartans’ success as Cimmino was credited with 30 saves in the game.
“We actually practice a lot with our defense on the penalty kill, so we were prepared for the last minutes in the game,” CVHS coach Matt Diaz explained. “In fact, we played defense about 70 percent of the game.
“Our goaltender came up big once again for us. At the start of the season he told me he could play the position, so I told him to prove it. He’s proven it.”
Castle Park got out to a 5-1 lead, then was outscored 4-1 over the balance of the game by a young but improving Mar Vista team. Eleazar Cruz led the Trojans (2-3 overall) with three goals in the game while Martin Mari collected two goals and one assist. Cristian Marquez had the other CP goal.
Jake Dilliott scored the final three goals for the Mariners to make the game close. Dilliot notched his last goal with five seconds to play in the game to draw Mar Vista to within one goal on the scoreboard. Dilliott finished the game with four goals.
Games on Thursday, Dec. 15, and Friday, Dec. 16, were postponed due to wet grounds.
In a match-up of 0-3 teams in North County League play, Poway shaded Patrick Henry, 7-6, in a game played Monday, Dec. 12, at Skate San Diego in El Cajon.
“It was our first win of the season but I feel we could have played better,” explained Poway defenseman Jeff Bauer, who scored one goal in the contest.
Matt Russell led Patrick Henry with five goals in the game while younger sister Jenny Russell scored one goal.
Expect the Poway-Patrick Henry rivalry to go down to the end of the season.
North County League play resumes Jan. 2 at the Escondido Sports Center while games at the Castle Park High School rink resume Jan. 9.
CIF-Metro Conference Scoreboard
Week 3
Monday, Dec. 12
North County League
Rancho Bernardo 12, Scripps Ranch 3
Westview 13, Escondido Charter 1
Poway 7, Patrick Henry 6
Non-league
Sweetwater 5, Castle Park 4
Cathedral Catholic 24, Bonita Vista 0
Tuesday, Dec. 13
Mesa League
Eastlake 10, Hilltop 1
Otay Ranch 13, Bonita Vista 2
Non-league
Chula Vista 9, Mar Vista 2
Wednesday, Dec. 14
North County League
Scripps Ranch 17, Patrick Henry 2
Rancho Bernardo 7, Escondido Charter 2
Cathedral Catholic 12, Poway 1
South Bay League
Chula Vista 6, Sweetwater 5
Castle Park 6, Mar Vista 5
Thursday, Dec. 15
Mesa League
Hilltop vs. Bonita Vista, postponed (wet grounds)
Otay Ranch vs. Eastlake, postponed (wet grounds)
Friday, Dec. 16
South Bay League
Castle Park vs. Sweetwater, postponed (wet grounds)
Southwest vs. Mar Vista, postponed (wet grounds)
Non-league
Hilltop vs. Chula Vista, postponed (wet grounds)
CIF-Metro Conference Standings
(Through Dec. 14)
Mesa League
Otay Ranch 2-0, 4-1
Eastlake 2-0, 3-1
Hilltop 0-2, 1-2
Bonita Vista 0-2, 1-3
South Bay League
Chula Vista 4-0, 5-0
Sweetwater 2-1, 3-2
Castle Park 2-1, 2-3
Southwest 0-3, 0-4
Mar Vista 0-3, 0-6
Metro-Conference Scoring Leaders
(Through Dec. 16)
Sweetwater district teams
Aaron Marientes (Otay Ranch) 24 goals, 4 assists – 28 points
Sean Devaney (Otay Ranch) 16 goals, 9 assists – 25 points
David Mendez (Otay Ranch) 17 goals, 7 assists – 24 points
Hector Garcia (Chula Vista) 20 goals, 3 assists – 23 points
Eleazar Cruz (Castle Park) 13 goals, 1 assist – 14 points
Braden Mayer (Eastlake) 10 goals, 4 assists – 14 points
Phillip Brandon (Sweetwater) 11 goals, 1 assist – 12 points
Marco Salazar (Sweetwater) 8 goals, 2 assists – 10 points
Sean Layton (Eastlake) 9 goals, 0 assists – 9 points
Paul Chavez (Otay Ranch) 6 goals, 3 assists – 9 points
Jake Powell (Eastlake) 6 goals, 3 assists – 9 points
Adrian Kercher (Sweetwater) 7 goals, 1 assist – 8 points
Matt Custodio (Bonita Vista) 6 goals, 2 assists – 8 points
Adolfo Medina (Castle Park) 5 goals, 1 assist – 6 points
Percilla Mayer (Eastlake) 4 goals, 2 assists – 6 points
Allison Smith (Chula Vista) 4 goals, 2 assists – 6 points
Trevor Fune (Hilltop) 3 goals, 3 assists – 6 points
Jake Dilliott (Mar Vista) 5 goals, 0 assists – 6 points
Bo Santos (Bonita Vista) 4 goals, 1 assist – 5 points
Seiya Hagiya (Eastlake) 4 goals, 1 assist – 5 points
Luke Killeen (Eastlake) 4 goals, 1 assists – 5 points
Martin Mari (Castle Park) 2 goals, 3 assists – 5 points
Donovan Lazo (Otay Ranch) 3 goals, 1 assist – 4 points
Angel Valadez (Chula Vista) 3 goals, 1 assist – 4 points
Armando Rivera ( Sweetwater) 1 goal, 3 assists – 4 points
North County League Leaders
North County League Standings
Rancho Bernardo 5-0, 6-0
Cathedral Catholic 4-1, 5-1
Scripps Ranch 4-1, 4-1
Westview 3-2, 3-2
Escondido Charter 1-4, 2-4
Poway 1-4, 1-4
Patrick Henry 0-5, 0-5
Rancho Bernardo 6-0 record
Top goal-scorers:
Bailey Ridout 26 goals
Nik Thomas 11 goals
Alex Pang 7 goals
Team goals scored: 79
Team goals allowed: 10
Scripps Ranch Falcons 4-1 record
Top point-scorers:
Matt Gauthier 13 goals, 7 assists – 20 points
Liam Baird 7 goals, 7 assists – 14 points
Kyle Fraser 4 goals, 3 assists – 7 points
Cody Ayers 5 goals, 1 assist – 6 points
Justin Nakagawa 4 goals, 2 assists – 6 points
Wesley Rim 3 goals, 2 assists – 5 points
Patrick Henry Patriots 0-5 record
Top goal-scorers:
Matt Russell 8
Jenny Russell 1
Clinton Allen 1
John Miller 1
Hot on ice: Gulls spin magical ending in OT thriller
While the Gulls’ second season has not produced quite the magical start as the first one did, the Gulls did reach back for some of that magic in posting a 4-3 overtime win over the visiting Bakersfield Condors on Dec. 6.
Trailing by a goal while being out-played by the Condors for the better part of two periods, the Gulls somehow rallied to tie the game with 9.3 seconds to play and then captured a valuable two points by potting the game-winning goal with 1:35 left in the three-on-three overtime period.
The Gulls received a standing ovation from the 5,556 in attendance. It was just like old times.
“As always our guys refused to roll over,” Gulls head coach Dallas Eakins said. “We challenged them tonight between the second and third periods and they responded. Our ability to stay with it tonight was impressive.”
Bakersfield had entered the game red hot after recording back-to-back shutout wins (3-0 over the Charlotte Checkers on Dec. 2 and 5-0 over the Tucson Roadrunners on Dec. 3). But the Gulls served notice they were ready to protect their next by scoring just 1:28 into the game to take a 1-0 lead.
Kalle Kossila got the game’s jump goal, his fifth of the season, assisted by Jordan Samuels-Thomas and Nick Sorenson. The goal snapped 128:23 of shutout hockey by Bakersfield starter Laurent Brossoit.
But the Condors, longtime rivals of Gulls’ teams past and present, quickly showed why they have begun a climb up the American Hockey League’s Pacific Division standings. Greg Chase evened the score at 9:54 of the first period passes from Griffin Reinhart and Joey Benik. Chase’s goal came with the Gulls’ Corey Tropp sitting in the penalty box.
The Gulls took a 2-1 lead at the 11:02 mark of the first period on a power play goal of their own when Brandon Montour notched his fifth goal of the season, assisted by Kossila and Keaton Thompson.
Bakersfield scored the lone goal of the second period when Ben Betker beat Gulls netminder Dustin Tokarski with 2:48 left in the frame to put the Condors in a 2-2 standoff with the hosts. The goal was Betker’s first career AHL goal.
After two periods, Bakersfield had out-shot the hosts 19-17 after building a decisive 12-6 edge in the middle period.
A defensive turnover by the Gulls allowed the Condors to score a gift goal at 2:05 of the third period to take a 3-2 lead. Tokarski attempted to field a loose puck behind his own net. Instead, he inadvertently placed the puck on the stick of Bakersfield’s Josh Currie, who promptly parked the puck into an open net for his fourth goal of the season.
The Gulls began their miraculous comeback from the dead in the very waning stages of the game as they drew repeated face-offs deep in the Bakersfield zone. The Condors netminder made five saves in the third period, though the most important stop of the game evaded him when Gulls’ Stefan Noesen floated a knuckler from the top of the face-off circle that Brossoit swiped at but missed.
The crowd, which had steadily built in intensity, erupted in a roar.
The goal was Noesen’s third of the season. Assists went to Kevin Roy and Montour.
“We’re a very resilient group, we like to face adversity,” Noesen said. “Nobody was panicked on the bench at that point. The play we drew up worked and we were fortunate enough to execute it and take the game to overtime.”
The game proceeded to the AHL overtime tiebreaker: five minutes of sudden-victory action with each team skating three-on-three. The winner would pick up two points in the standings while the loser would earn a point.
If the OT session proved scoreless, the game would proceed to a shootout.
Tokarski made one save in the overtime period (29 in the game) to keep his team in position to pull off the come-from-behind victory.
Bakersfield seemed cautious on line-up shifts, passing back to Brossoit before putting fresh legs on the ice. The Gulls were aggressive on their chances, knowing they were assured of no worse than a point in the standings. The winner came on a long shot by Welinksi that Chris Wagner deflected past Brossoit.
Gulls fans aired out their lungs in appreciation once again.
“It’s always fun to come back like that,” said Wagner, who arrived earlier in the day on assignment from the NHL Anaheim Ducks, Gulls’ parent club. “We didn’t play our best game, but we found a way to win. That’s what good teams do.”
Social media went bonkers, with Gulls fans asking days later if the outcome of the game really happened.
It did.
The win was the team’s ninth in 10 games and the sixth consecutive on home ice to tie a team record.
Andy Welinski (one assist) earned top star of the game honors, while Kossila (one goal, one assist) received second star billing and Noesen (one goal) picked up third star honors.
Tokarski (9-3-0) made 28 saves to earn his seventh win in his last eight starts (compiling a .917 save percentage and 2.43 goals-against average during that span).
With the win, the Gulls improved to 11-6-1. The Condors saw their record dip to 8-8-2.
Noesen also earned a call-up to the NHL Anaheim Ducks and scored his first NHL goal on Dec. 8.
The Gulls returned to the win column after having their club-record eight-game winning snapped over the weekend in Stockton. The Gulls doused the Heat, 3-2 in a shootout, on Dec. 2, to notch their record win but fell, 4-0, the next day to the Heat to end their winning streak.
GULLS TO HOST SECOND ANNUAL TEDDY BEAR TOSS DEC. 17
The Gulls will host their second annual Teddy Bear Toss on Saturday, Dec. 17, against the Stockton Heat (7 p.m.) at Valley View Casino Center.
Fans are encouraged to bring a new, wrapped teddy bear to the game and toss their bears onto the ice when the Gulls score their first goal of the game. All bears will be donated to the San Diego Regional Law Enforcement Teddy Bear Drive to benefit Rady Children’s Hospital.
The Gulls will offer fans the ability to purchase a stuffed Gull for $15 at all merchandise stands (limited while supplies last). Fans who cannot wrap their bear in a plastic bag prior to the game will receive one upon entry from San Diego Law Enforcement Teddy Bear Drive volunteers. Doors open at 5:30 p.m.
For more information on Teddy Bear Toss, please visit SanDiegoGulls.com/toss.
SAN DIEGO GULLS LAUNCH GULLIVER’S KIDS CLUB
The Gulls have launched Gulliver’s Kids Club, the official Kids Club of the San Diego Gulls. In its inaugural season, the 2016-17 Kids Club will be captained by Gulls mascot Gulliver. Children ages 2-14 will have the opportunity to join the exclusive club for $25, receiving a kit that features brand new items, tickets, merchandise and more.
“We’re thrilled to launch the inaugural Gulliver Kids Club program and create an opportunity for young fans to become more involved with the San Diego Gulls,” said John Rozak, director of marketing for the Gulls.
A Gulliver Kids Club membership costs $25 and includes a kit that is valued at more than $100. Children will enjoy a variety of benefits, including one Gulliver’s Kids Club t-shirt, Gulliver’s Kids Club membership button, a 4×7-inch puzzle featuring Gulls defenseman Jaycob Megna, one arena concession voucher good for one 32 oz. drink and regular size popcorn, one complimentary ticket voucher for a pair of tickets to a Gulls game during Hockey Weekend Across America (Feb. 24 or 25), a 10-percent discount at in-arena merchandise stands when wearing your Kids Club shirt or button (child must be present to use discount), and invitations to exclusive Kids Clubs events and promotions.
Kids Club kits can be purchased by visiting SanDiegoGulls.com/KidsClub or in person outside of Section 3 at Valley View Casino Center during all Gulls games beginning Dec. 16.
