2024-2025 Game 69: San Diego Gulls at Coachella Valley Firebirds

Coachella Valley, California. After continuing their below sub-par play and losing to a severely undermanned Bakersfield Condors team to officially be mathematically eliminated from playoff contention, the San Diego Gulls headed to the desert to face a team that had deliberately targeted and injured their star forward in their last meeting.

With the Gulls out of contention and Ian Moore earning a deserved look in Anaheim, Coach McIlvane picked the right time to give three-time cancer survivor Will Francis his professional debut. Inserting him as the extra defender on the 11-7 while also changing up the forward lines to try get some offense out of a team that had failed to hit the back of the net of late.

Calle Clang was given his first start in eight weeks after returning from injury the game before to back-up Oscar Dansk.

The injury list remained the same.

First Period:

It was all Firebirds from the drop of the puck and it took them just a minute and a half to open the scoring as they made the Gulls defense look as ordinary as it has been lately, holding their zone, winning races to loose pucks and finding an open man at the back door. 1-0 Firebirds.

The Gulls did come back with a response, coming close on a scramble in front of the Coachella Valley net but the play was blown dead by Officials due to a high stick. The Firebirds took the action right back the other way and lay seige to Calle Clang who did all he could to turn aside their chances as shots were 7-1 Coachella Valley at the twelve minute mark.

A tripping call to the Firebirds drawn by Will Francis sent the Gulls to the Power Play and the top-heavy first unit came close as they expertly found Yegor Sidorov in space but the sniper missed wide of an empty net as he successfully had the Coachella Valley goaltender bite on his move in close.

With play returning to five on five the pace picked up and teams exchanged chances at both ends until the Firebirds took advantage of a bad change on the Gulls defense to send a head-man pass to a man alone at their blue-line, 2-0 Firebirds.

San Diego carried forward momentum from the positive pushes they had made in the Firebirds zone prior to the breakaway goal and ended the period even on shots at ten a piece but trailing by two.

Second Period: Coachella Valley Firebirds 2 – San Diego Gulls 0

The Gulls came out strong and attempted to gain a strong hold in the Coachella Valley zone but as play came back the other way an overzealous board battle saw Captain Ryan Carpenter called for boarding.

San Diego killed the minor – giving up just the one high danger chance on a redirect pass in front but struggled to get back possession after play returned to five on five and Tristan Luneau appeared to be drunk as he fumbled the puck twice on one shift to see the Gulls hemmed in their zone while the Firebirds made changes and pressed for a third marker. Thankfully the Gulls were able to escape the imminent danger before energy levels were exasperated.

Slowly but surely the Gulls started to build momentum, looking increasingly more like their old selves as they buzzed the Coachella Valley zone on a shift featuring Sasha Pastujov, Judd Caulfield and Ryan Carpenter playing catch and dishing pucks into the crease whenever they saw a chance to.

The Gulls eventually earning a Power Play as a chance setup by Yegor Sidorov on a nice backhand pass was followed by the Firebirds sending the puck over the glass to relieve the resulting pressure afterward.

The first unit once again looked dangerous but could not find an open shooting lane despite spending the majority of the two minutes in the Coachella Valley zone and as the second unit struggled to get set with the minimal amount of time allocated to them the Gulls tried to carry momentum forward as the Firebirds returned to full strength.

San Diego was awarded another Power Play as old friend Nik Brouillard was called for cross-checking after depositing Coulson Pitre in the Firebirds zone.

Again the first unit came close – getting the puck behind the Firebirds goaltender but as it trickled through the crease with sticks frantically trying to knock it over the line, none could connect and it stayed out. Play returned to five on five and just as it felt like all of the Gulls hard work might go unrewarded a quick zone entry and passing play between Judd Caulfield and Jan Mysak saw the Czech center send a hard wrist shot clear over the Firebirds goaltender to get the Gulls on the board. 2-1 Firebirds.

Ripped it!#LetsGoGulls | #SDvsCV pic.twitter.com/TyxUJnB0H2

— San Diego Gulls (@SDGullsAHL) April 14, 2025

Tensions rose and the hitting picked up as time wound down on the period with the Firebirds shutting down lanes and zone entries into their zone to deny any further Gulls momentum but Yegor Sidorov had other ideas as he latched onto a puck in the neutral zone. Entering the Firebirds zone with speed but spotting he had three defenders in front of him and no clear lane to the net he executed a perfect spin move to shift in and then out to create an angle where he attempted a backhand shot that fooled the Firebirds goaltender. The highlight reel goal bringing San Diego into a tie. 2-2.

Hey @SportsCenter, you might want this highlight for later 🤯#LetsGoGulls | #SDvsCV | #SCTop10 pic.twitter.com/mFM6uyzMp1

— San Diego Gulls (@SDGullsAHL) April 14, 2025

San Diego making a come-back and heading to the second intermission tied up at two after taking the lead in shots 20-17 after taking a 10-7 edge in the middle frame.

Third Period: San Diego Gulls 2 – Coachella Valley Firebirds 2

San Diego pushed for a lead to start the third as they stretched the ice and looked the better team during the first five minutes of play before earning a Power Play as Justin Bailey was tripped making a pass to a streaking Roland McKeown.

Again they created chances on the resulting man advantage – and again these both featured Yegor Sidorov as the trigger man but they could not convert and despite following up the two minute extra man opportunity with some sustained pressure the Firebirds took it right back and earned a Power Play of their own as Will Francis was called for slashing while tracking his man in the Gulls zone.

San Diego managed to erase the minor despite one huge brain fart from Carsen Twarsynski wherein the former Abbotsford Canuck collected a puck down low and rather than sending it round the wall, elected to spin and send it right into the middle of the ice where it was picked off to lead to yet more Firebirds opportunities. Ryan Carpenter finished the kill by picking off a drop pass and heading in alone on the Firebirds net but his stutter step move was stopped on the backhand.

Coachella Valley took back control on the very next shift, catching the Gulls off guard and seeing them scrambling to stop sure goals off goal mouth scrambles then eventually taking the lead on the next zone entry as they spread the San Diego defenders and beat Clang with a cross-crease pass. 3-2 Firebirds.

The Gulls did not give up and kept pressing, Justin Bailey looking for a very obvious call that was not made as he was hooked coming into the Coachella Valley zone with speed looking to receive a pass in the slot.

With under two minutes left San Diego called a timeout and oped to pull Calle Clang but were unable to get set off the face-off and an errant attempt at the Gulls empty net saw them get another chance in the Firebirds zone. This time they were able to get set but with thirteen seconds left on the clock Sasha Pastujov was cross-checked from behind to give the Gulls a Power Play in the dying seconds.

A Ryan Carpenter face-off win saw a set-play completed to near perfection as the Gulls ran an interference play by passing off to the point before immediately finding Roland McKeown by the left circle, his quick low shot beating the Firebirds goaltender at the right post. 3-3 tie game with eight seconds left.

Overtime

Sensing blood in the water and with revenge on their minds the Gulls hounded the Firebirds from puck drop until they could finally get possession at the three and a half minute mark of the five minute extra frame. Cycling through two lines before the trio of Nico Myatovic, Sasha Pastujov and Stian Solberg jumped on. A strange collision by the Firebirds bench saw Solberg come away from the small pile of bodies with possession and as he and Pastujov held the puck behind the Coachella Valley goal line while Nico Myatovic took the opportunity to patiently wait by the Firebirds net. Sasha Pastujov suddenly emerged from the four player scrum with possession and spotted Myatovic. The rookie winger sending Pastjov’s quick pass by the Firebirds goaltender to give San Diego the win. 4-3 Gulls.

Nico ends it just in time to go see Post Malone tonight!#LetsGoGulls | #SDvsCV pic.twitter.com/Q2rJHl00e3

— San Diego Gulls (@SDGullsAHL) April 14, 2025

Post Game Notes:

New Faces Old Scratches

As noted in the pre-game – with Moore getting a look in Anaheim and the Gulls having nothing left to play for but pride, it was the perfect game to see how Will Francis might look in the AHL. My thoughts – he is big, very big and looked best in his own end using his frame to separate players from the puck. He looked vulnerable in open ice when the opposition were able to spread the Gulls out to execute plays, the speed of the game seemed to get the best of him at times but that is something a lot of players experience in their debut. There is no denying he is a defensive defense-man even if Aaron did note that he has a Cannon on his shot during the broadcast. He didn’t look completely out of place but I can’t see him being a regular fixture with the Gulls next season – more than likely he will start the year in Tulsa and work his way up from there.

Lautenbach made his debut in the game earlier in the week and I started to watch but did not finish that one. I like his tenacity and he started to try some things in this game – sneaky backhand passes off the boards to feed a man down-low. Will see how he goes in the final games left in the season but at the very least I can see him being an invite back to camp next year to see if he can try make the squad. So far all I can see of his game is fore-checking and attempting to force turnovers which he has been getting better at as he sees more ice time.

All of these new additions getting looks at the conclusion of the season has meant players have had to sit – namely Josh Lopina and Travis Howe. Lopina has not played since the doomed weekend trip to Iowa and in his place taking key face-offs, getting minutes on the penalty kill and centering the make-shift fourth line is Owen Lindmark. With just 13 points in 61 games Lopina is ten points below his career high set last year when he finished the year with 23 points in 69 games. This was the final year of his three year entry level deal and given the Ducks appear to be trying out some replacements it does not bode well that he will get another deal. Plus the fact that Anaheim just signed standout face-off man Tim Washe could be another indicator that Lopina is done. If I were the Ducks I wouldn’t be so hasty to let him go – I agree he hasn’t taken the step that he should have by now in becoming the next BO Groulx that I envisioned him becoming but he is still useful in the face-off circle and on the penalty kill, even if he is not as speedy as Lindmark.

Just A Thought

Watching Tyson Hinds in this game reminded me of a certain former Ducks prospect that was later converted to a forward. It’s not exactly new to see Hinds regularly playing down low in the offensive zone and leading on the forecheck but it is becoming more and more frequent. He is clearly very comfortable doing as much and he is already an accomplished zone-entry option, why not give him a go up front? The Ducks defensive pipe-line is currently in a word “jammed” and given Moore has just leapfrogged him on the depth chart, if the kid is going to ever see some regular NHL minutes he might want to consider the switch.

What Now?

San Diego has three largely meaningless games left, they next face Henderson in a battle for the “could have beens” then see Ontario and Coachella Valley again. Both teams are battling for playoff positioning but it’s really only a matter of the Reign or Canucks facing whoever limps in over the Roadrunners or the Condors. While Coachella could be facing either Calgary or San Jose. San Diego can’t really play “spoiler” much in either of these games but they can send a message heading into next season – both to their opponents and their fans. Whether or not management carries that message through and builds on it in the off-season is another question.