2025-2026 Game 20: San Diego Gulls vs Texas Stars

San Diego, California. After dropping a close fought but undeserving loss in overtime the San Diego Gulls looked to bounce back and find the win column.

Despite the close fought loss from two nights previous the coaching staff elected to leave all lines and pairings intact.

The only change coming in net as Calle Clang took to the crease for the first time since his leave of personal absence taken in mid November.

Travis Howe and Roman Kinal were the only healthy scratches.

First Period:

Starting with the Mysak line the Gulls came out with jump early and drew a call as Mysak himself was tripped chasing a loose puck into the Texas zone.

The man advantage looked perhaps the best it has looked all season, sending fast and crisp passes around the zone to create chances down low.  They did not convert but you got the sense that this was a much more focused unit.

San Diego kept up the strong play and drew another call as Stian Solberg was spun by a clear and intentional kneeing.

The Gulls more lack lustre version of the Power Play re-emerged as they struggled to get set and managed only two shots – neither of which were from dangerous spots.

Texas used the kills to try take some momentum back but the Gulls were clearly on a mission to play a heavier game and maintained possession purely through punishing the Stars anytime they dared touch the puck.

With just under six minutes left in the period another rush created by Sasha Pastujov connecting on a perfect break-out pass to a streaking Justin Bailey saw the speedy winger feed his center man coming down the left side. Mysak sending a low hard shot that beat the Stars goaltender to open the scoring. 1-0 Gulls.

San Diego continued to pour it on – sending rush after rush into the Texas zone as their speed game was allowed to flourish through a minimally trapped neutral zone. Yegor Sidorov and Nathan Gaucher skated in on a two on one minutes after the goal but Sidorovs corner-marked wrist shot was snagged.

Nathan Gaucher drew a hooking call moments later and the Gulls Power Play looked again – much better as it saw a lot of movement and players shifting in and out of positions to create seams and opportunities. Yegor Sidorov, Sam Colangelo and Matthew Phillips unlucky to convert on three different chances.

The Gulls taking a 1-0 lead into the first intermission but looking more comfortable while absolutely dominating in shots 15-2. The shot map was in a word self-explanatory.

Second Period: San Diego Gulls 1 – Texas Stars 0

Texas came with some pressure to start but the Gulls diffused the attack before sending play back the other way and the start of the second became a game of back and forth including a Power Play awarded to the Stars as Tristan Luneau was called for hooking.

The kill was unorthodox and saw San Diego players looking a little pee-wee as they chased the puck around their zone which at one point allowed the Stars to set up an open man at the left circle but Calle Clang was there to make the stop and as play returned to five on five San Diego turned things around once again.

Line after line from the Gulls created chances in the Texas zone and the Stars did all they could to get in lanes and sacrifice the body to limit the amount of rubber their goaltender saw.

It was all San Diego for the final five minutes of the period creating chance after chance and tiring the Stars as they collapsed in front of their goaltender shift after shift while fighting to get back possession under the Gulls slew of chances.

A scoreless period finishing with San Diego still looking very much in control but only carrying the slim 1-0 lead into the second intermission while adding another fourteen shots to their total to bring it to 29 but allowing the Stars to generate another ten of their own.

Third Period: San Diego Gulls 1 – Texas Stars 0

San Diego carried over their strong play to start the third – relieving concerns of their inconsistent play of late and after nearly six minutes of play a double minor drawn by Matthew Phillips as he took a stick up high driving to the Texas net saw the Gulls head to a four minute man advantage.

It took over a full minute for San Diego to create some chances but when they did it came thick and fast – culminating in Tim Washe getting to a rebound first after a Justin Bailey quick slap shot from the high slot. 2-0 Gulls.

The Gulls continued to press for the remaining time on the lengthy advantage but could not get another despite some very good looks on a Power Play that suddenly looked more dangerous than it has all season.

As play returned to five on five the lines continued to roll and as always the Mysak lined looked the most dangerous with all three players in sync as they buzzed the Texas zone and sent pucks in front to waiting team-mates.

Sasha Pastujov created his own two on one break by deflecting a point to point pass at his own blue line and as he collected the puck with the Stars defense on his back he waited until just the right moment before releasing short side to beat Texas goaltender Remi Poirier. 3-0 Gulls.

Play started to get somewhat chippy as a clearly frustrated Stars squad started to throw the body, San Diego served it right back. The result was a Stars Power Play after a very dubious call to Judd Caulfield who had his stick held on a play where he used his strength to roll the Texas player off him to which another Stars player took exception. Somehow Caulfield ended up with the only penalty after the interaction – because AHL officiating.

Texas pulled their goaltender to make it a six on four advantage in a bold move with just under six minutes remaining. The move proved redundant as Tim Washe forced a turnover at his own blue line and sent a long bouncing shot on the empty net. 4-0 Gulls.

A defensive breakdown in the San Diego zone after a weird bounce gifted Texas an opportunity that Clang could not stop and they broke the shut-out. 4-1 Gulls.

Texas continued to pull their goaltender but only really succeeded in keeping the Gulls from getting another empty net tally – that is until Matthew Phillips hustled to a loose puck and fired it back out in front to Nico Myatovic. 5-1 Gulls.

As the final horn sounded Calle Clang pointed to the sky as his team-mates came to congratulate him for his first win after returning to the team.

Post Game Notes:

Ketchup Bottle Baby

It is frustrating that the Ketchup bottle did not stay unstopped but today’s game shows that should it become clogged up again – it IS only a matter of time before it unblocks. The coaching staff could be more efficient in doing so though…

Let Them Cook

All it took was a simple hockey play for the Gulls to score their first Power Play goal in five games – throwing the puck on net and looking for the rebound. It begs the question – given the player in question to score the goal – why they don’t just do that more often? Tim Washe is a net front pest/master/garbage man and the Gulls should be playing to his strengths.

Yegor Sidorov thrives off speed and space but also requires some competent finishers on the same page as him…

Sam Colangelo has a blistering shot that he can release from all angles but he needs a play-maker to feed him…

Matthew Phillips needs to stay on one line long enough to development the chemistry required to take advantage of some of the sublime play-making ability he is capable of.

Judd Caulfield is at his most dominant when playing alongside a fellow play driving high energy forward – right now the Mysak line is deadly with Justin Bailey in his place; but Caulfields talent is also being wasted right now – I think he and Myatovic could possibly be a good fit.

Individual Observations

Just some small things I have noted that I will do my best to remember for the end of year player grades:

Stian Solberg is a tough kid – I swear it happens every other game now; he took a knee on knee hit early on in this game but came back on the very next shift. He blocked a shot later on and immediately went off but came back on his next shift without any signs of ailment. He limped off against Tucson last week but came back moments later. With how injuries have really had some significant impact on the Ducks club overall these last few seasons it is good to see that Solberg is built right.

Sam Colangelo is back to his old self. If you are reading this Sam – I am sorry for being so harsh in my assessment a few games back. It is great to see him buzzing the zone, looking for opportunities and connecting with his patented one-timer from the left-side boards.

Wu Clang Aint Nothing To Funk With

It is good to see there are no lasting effects from Calle Clang’s personal absence and he looked his this-season sharp self in tonight’s action. He is on a level just slightly below Husso in terms of game stealing ability this season and I hope he stays with the team long enough to stay their incumbent number one. Ofcourse Buteyets earned the recall in his absence but I am sure the Ducks would rather have the more experienced Clang – especially for any back to backs. Lukas Dostal was seen on the ice at a recent practice so that does suggest he is close to returning…