Apr 12, 2022
By Paige Burnell/SanDiegoGulls.com
The San Diego Gulls are back at home and set to face the Ontario Reign in the first of three straight games against their SoCal rivals tonight at Pechanga Arena (7 p.m. PT; TV:AHL TV; RADIO: Gulls Audio Network).
The Gulls are in seventh place in the American Hockey League’s Pacific Division with 58 points, sitting two points shy of clinching a berth into the 2022 Calder Cup Playoffs. San Diego could secure their spot in the postseason tonight with regulation win and Ontario is the only obstacle in the way.
“Obviously, punching in the ticket would be awesome against a good team,” Gulls defenseman Nathan Larose said. “So, we’re looking forward to it and obviously, making a push for the playoffs is great and it’s the final push of the season so it’s what we’re trying to accomplish here.”
The Gulls hold a 43-27-4-2 regular season record all-time against the Reign, including a 22-13-3-0 at Pechanga Arena. San Diego bested Ontario in their previous two matchups, outscoring their opponents 9-1 with a 4-0 shutout on Mar. 12 and a 5-1 victory on Mar. 26.
“Every game means something as you build your team to go into a playoff spot,” Gulls head coach Joel Bouchard said. “It’s like a bit of a cliché sometimes, but as a coach, everything we live in the season is to be ready for the playoffs.”
Hunter Drew paces the Gulls in production against the Reign with 6-5=11 points and a +8 rating in eight contests after posting a multi-point effort (1-1=2) on Mar. 26.
Alex Limoges and Lucas Elvenes scored on Mar. 26 as well, and the trio put up impressive showings in the team’s back-to-back losses in Abbotsford against the Canucks last weekend.
Drew scored two power-play goals (2-0=2) in a single game for the first time in his career on Apr. 9 after collecting two power-play assists the night before, earning 2-2=4 points in two games.
Limoges scored his 11th goal on the man…
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