San Diego Gulls Report for the week of April 10-16

The San Diego Gulls’ first order of business last week was to get a single point. They needed only one overtime loss or a win of any kind to clinch their third straight playoff berth in their third season.

The Playoffs

Jim Mora came out of retirement to comment on what happened to the San Diego Gulls’ playoff aspirations last week. The Gulls pulled off a feat that, if they tried ten more times, they wouldn’t be able to repeat. They lost all three games in regulation.

There was still nothing to fear, right? The Gulls only needed both the San Jose Barracuda (San Jose Sharks affiliate) and the Stockton Heat (Calgary Flames) to lose one game each in three tries. Thanks go out to Stockton for losing a single game. But San Jose won all three games.

If your mouth just hit the table, just know you read that all correctly. The Gulls choked away a playoff berth needing only one point in their last three games. Apparently living in San Diego isn’t vacation enough for these guys.

How in the Heck Did that Happen?

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The three games were all played against the division-leading Tucson Roadrunners (Arizona Coyotes). That team is stacked. And their Canadian goaltender, Adin Hill, not only stands 6’6″, but he is really good. The Gulls couldn’t solve him in their final home game Wednesday, losing 4-0. They finally got two goals against Hill Friday in Tucson. But the Roadrunners scored three goals of their own. On Saturday, with Tucson resting not only Hill but a few of their higher quality players, the Gulls still lost 6-3.

The Gulls battled all season while their parent club, the Anaheim Ducks, decimated them early in the year with injury call-ups. When it came down to it, they had no heart left. If you’re watching the Ducks’ playoff series against the San Jose Sharks, you can see the Gulls are preparing perfectly to fit in with the big club.

Standouts

Ugh! Ok, let’s do this tallest midget contest. 25-year-old Finnish left wing Kalle Kossila has led the team in scoring all year. He’s a solid player with skill. He’ll be with the Ducks one day soon. Last week he was again the best player on the ice for the Gulls. He scored two goals and had an assist without taking any penalties. Come to think of it, maybe he should have been with the Ducks this season. It couldn’t have hurt.

In Net

Reto Berra played two games and Kevin Boyle played one. Between them, they had a 3.77 goals against average and a .878 save percentage. You’ll forgive me if I don’t select a top stopper this week. 11 goals on 90 shots when your team needs a point does not qualify you for the playoffs, or for recognition.

Do You Have Any Good News?

I really do have good news. San Diego lost their ECHL team in 2006. They didn’t move. They folded. After years of financial losses, the team released all of their players to free agency after finding no buyers. Hockey in San Diego took a sabbatical for nearly a decade.

Then the Anaheim Ducks finally brought a team back to San Diego in 2015. One of the questions the sports world had was: Could a town that can’t seem to make their NHL franchise happy draw for minor league hockey after sending a team into bankruptcy?

We got our answer the first season. San Diego was second in attendance in their first season with 8.675 fans per game. In their second season, the Gulls fell to third in attendance. But they grew their average attendance to 8,876.

Next: Where are the now? Ilya Bryzgalov

This season San Diego became a hockey town. The team led the league in attendance. That sleepy little Southern California neighborhood town full of military bases, beaches, and bars led the 30-team AHL in attendance. The Gulls increased their average attendance to 9,305 this season. Let’s hope they can continue to grow their fan base. This town needs a break when it comes to their professional teams.

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