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Bulls Lose In Overtime to Steelheads 3-2

Published on October 23, 2013October 23, 2013 by kahlilnajar7Leave a comment

By Kahlil Najar

BOISE, Idaho –

The San Francisco Bulls lost a tough one to the Idaho Steelheads, 3-2, in overtime. Chris Crane and Dale Mitchell scored for the Bulls, while Tyler Beskorowany stopped 39 shots in the loss.

Both teams were quiet through two periods and waited until the third period to get themselves on the board. In the third period Idaho got a power-play goal from William Rapuzzi at 1:25. The Bulls answered back with a power-play goal of their own when Chris Cane took a shot from the faceoff circle at 8:25. Less than 5 minutes later, Dale Mitchell scored on a one-timer from the slot and made it a 2-1 lead for the Bulls. On another power play and with an empty net, Anthony Nigro found the back of the net with only 18.6 seconds left on the clock. In overtime, Nigro was the hero again as he put the puck past Beskorowany to give the Steelheads the victory.

The Bulls head to Utah to take on the Grizzlies this Friday at 6:05pm.

San Francisco Bulls add 6’8″ Riley Emerson to lineup

Published on October 22, 2013October 22, 2013 by kahlilnajar7Leave a comment

By Kahlil Najar

SAN FRANCISCO – The San Francisco Bulls announced today the signing of forward Riley Emmerson. At 6-foot, 8-inches, he becomes the tallest player in Bulls history. The Vancouver, British Columbia native spent last season with the Missouri Mavericks of the Central Hockey League. There, he ranked second on the team with 95 penalty minutes in 55 games, adding five goals and an assist.

“Riley adds a whole new dimension to this team” said SF Bulls President and Head Coach Pat Curcio. “At 6-8, he can use his size in front of the net effectively and will be a physical force on the ice.”

Emmerson was drafted in 2005 by the Minnesota Wild and since then he has been a bit of journeyman playing in the ECHL three times, the AHL twice and the WHL and CHL each for one season.

Check out some highlights from his 2012 season with Toledo Walleyes.

(Bonus points for the fan in the stands with the Dino Cicarelli Minnesota North Stars jersey!)

Sharks extinguish the Flames 6-3

Published on October 20, 2013October 20, 2013 by kahlilnajar7Leave a comment

by Kahlil Najar

SAN JOSE – Joe Pavlelski scored a pair of power play goals and Patrick Marleau, Brent Burns and Scott Hannan each notched a goal a piece as the San Jose Shark (7-0-1) stayed unbeaten at home and beat the Calgary Flames (3-2-2) 6-3. Newly crowned Assistant Captain Logan Couture also contributed with a goal and an assist.

“There’s a lot of leaders in the locker room but those two (Couture and Pavelski) right now deserve the opportunity,” said Sharks Head Coach Todd McLellan. “It can go to Stuart, it can go to Hannan, it can go to Vlasic, I could go on an on. As we go into Detroit, we may pick someone else.”

“It’s pretty cool,” Couture said. “I know there are a lot of guys in this room who are leaders, veterans, and it could have gone to a lot of guys, so for the coaching staff to put it on my jersey was pretty cool.”

Brent Burns got the Sharks on the board with less than a minute into the first period when he beat Calgary goalie Karri Rämö from right in front of the goal on a nice pass from the corner boards from Pavelski. That goal marked the fourth time in eight games that the Sharks have scored a goal in the first minute. Scott Hannan made it 2-0 with only 53 seconds left in the first period when he took a shot from the blue line that deflected off of former Shark TJ Gallardi and into the back of net to make it a 2-0 lead at the end of one.

The second opened up for the Flames when after a Tommy Wingels penalty for hooking, Sean Monahan scored his fifth goal of the year and make it a 2-1 game. Pavelski and Marleau contributed with the next two Sharks goals, both on power plays to bring the score 4-1 at the end of the second period. Pavelski got great positioning on Brodie of the Flames and was able to take the pass from Marleau and sneak it by Rämö. On Marleau’s goal, Pavelski was able to find Marleau camping out in the front of the goal with no one on him and make it impossible for Rämö to stop him.

The Flames made it interesting in the third when they scored a pair of goals within the first five minutes of the period but Pavelski got his second goal of the night and Couture netted an empty netter to seal the victory for the Sharks 6-3.

Both teams combined for 15 penalties and the Flames ended up going 1-for-6 while the Sharks went 3-for-9. “It was huge tonight getting three on the power play ,” said Thornton. “That was huge. Especially in the third when they got those two quick goals on us, to come back and respond and get that fifth goal was huge.”

The Sharks head out East to take on Detroit this Monday at 4:30pm PST.

San Francisco Bulls announce Opening Day roster

Published on October 17, 2013 by kahlilnajar7Leave a comment

by Kahlil Najar

SAN FRANCISCO –

The San Francisco Bulls announced today their Opening Day Roster. The new roster consists of two goaltenders (Tyler Beskorowany and J.P. Anderson), seven defensemen (Kyle Bigos, Andrew Eastman, Josh Kidd, Dylan King, Damon Kipp, Scott Langdon and Steven Tarasuk) and 11 forwards (Kris Belan, Chris Crane, Brett Findlay, Luke Judson, Mark Lee, Ryan McDonough, Dale Mitchell, Jordan Morrison, Christian Ouellet, Dean Ouellet and Brett Parnham).

There is some veteran leadership coming back as there are seven players returning for the Bulls: King, Langdon, Belan, Findlay, Morrison, C. Ouellet and D. Ouellet. Last years top goal scorer Peter Sivak is not on this years roster as he signed with the Alaska Aces this off-season and will face off against his former team in the first game of the season this Friday in Anchorage.

Bulls lose to Condors 4-3, winless in preseason

Published on October 13, 2013 by kahlilnajar7Leave a comment

By Kahlil Najar

BAKERSFIELD – In their final preseason game, the San Francisco Bulls lost to the Bakersfield Condors, 4-3. Jordan Morrison, Brett Parnham, and Josh Kidd had goals for the Bulls and J.P. Anderson was able to turn away 28 shots.

The Condors got on the board first with a goal from Gary Steffes at 5:35.The Bulls answered back as Jordan Morrison scored his first goal of the preseason on a nice tip-in play with assists going to Rowe and Belan. Parham contributed his goal of the night when he beat Bunz stick-side with 10:21 gone in the first and made it a 2-1 Bulls lead. Not to be outdone the Condors scored less than two minutes later on a Brett Lutes goal to tie it up at 2-2 at the end of 20 minutes.

Forty seconds into the second period, Nicholas Tremblay gave Bakersfield the lead with an unassisted goal bringing the score to 3-2. After some roughhousing on both sides, the Bulls Josh Kidd tied the game on a liner from the blue line for a score of 3-3. With just over three minutes remaining, Tyler Brenner scored the game winner with a little over three minutes left in the second to make it a final score of 4-3.

The regular season begins next weekend on October 18 in Alaska, where the Bulls will take on the Aces for the first of a two-game set.

Bulls lose to rival Thunder in shootout 4-3

Published on October 13, 2013October 13, 2013 by kahlilnajar7Leave a comment

by Kahlil Najar

SAN FRANCISCO –

The San Francisco Bulls renewed their fierce rivalry with the Stockton Thunder tonight and came up short losing in a shootout, 4-3. Ryan McDonough scored twice for the Bulls and Curcio stand-out Dale Mitchell contributed with his first goal of the preseason.

Stockton jumped on the board first when Alex MacLeod put the puck past Beskorowany with assists coming from Escobedo and Noble. The Bulls answered back when Dale Mitchell tipped in a shot that Captain Scott Langdon launched from the blue line. The Thunder retook the lead on a Corey Trivino goal that went in right after a Bulls penalty had expired to make it a 2-1 Stockton lead. With only 2.2 seconds left in the first period Bulls Center Ryan McDonough found the back of the Thunder goal after receiving a pass from Forward Chris Crane to tie the game at 2-2 going into the first intermission.

The second period saw both teams score a goal a piece to get the game tied at three. James Henry of the Thunder scored on a power-play goal early in the period and Ryan McDonough tied the game on his second goal of the night when he received a nice pass from returning All-Star Dean Ouellet.

After a heated third and overtime period which saw both teams grinding and putting bodies into the boards, the game headed into a shootout. Trivino and Henry were able to score for the Thunder while only Brett Parnham was able to put one past Milner and gave the Thunder the 4-3 victory.

“I hate losing when you play like that. You get 40 shots and you go into the shootout. This team has to find confidence in order to put teams away,” said Head Coach Pat Curcio on the loss.

Even with the loss, the Bulls found new players like Dale Mitchell and Ryan McDonough coming through and shinning for the team as well as vets like Dean Ouellet and Jordan Morrison. On Ouellet and Morrison, Curcio said,”It was nice to have people you’ve trained for a while to come in and make a difference. You need those gamers, they’re going to be great for us.”

“I think we played good as a team and we did a lot of the stuff Coach wanted us to do. We’re moving forward pretty well,” said McDonough on the team tonight. Addressing the rivalry, he said, “I haven’t had a rivalry like this since junior league. It’s pretty exciting.”

Dean Ouellet, who played in Kazakhstan this off-season said “It feels good to be back. It was a good fit for me to be back and I feel really happy to be here. Our team this year is going to be a really good and the boys are hanging out together and getting along.”

The Bulls play their final preseason game on Sunday when they travel to Bakersfield to take on the Condors at 4 pm.

Late goal sinks the Bulls, Condors win 3-2

Published on October 10, 2013October 11, 2013 by kahlilnajar7Leave a comment

By Kahlil Najar

SAN FRANCISCO –

The San Francisco Bulls started off their second year in the ECHL with a tough preseason loss against the Bakersfield Condors 3-2. The Condors scored the their third and deciding goal with less than 30 seconds left when Gary Steffes put a rebound in after a tilt-a-whirl shot from Nick Wheeler was stopped by J.P. Anderson.

“You try to do everything you can to end up winning but you can’t. We made a lot of mistakes and so did they but we’re just going to learn from it.” said Head Coach Pat Curcio on tonight’s loss. “We wanted to give some of the young guys a chance and it’s a process and that’s the way it goes. You start slow.”

Returning players Dylan King and Kris Belan scored for the Bulls and OHL alum J.P. Anderson was between the pipes and was able to turn away 30 shots against an active Condor offense.

Defenseman Dylan King got the Bulls on the board first when he received a nice pass from Christian Ouellet from behind the next and he was able to beat Condor’s goalie Tyler Bunz top shelf. A little over 30 seconds later, Kris Belan was able to get a nice shot past Bunz from in between the circles in the Condors zone and make it a 2-0 Bulls lead. The Condor’s answered back with two consecutive goals in the second by Daniel Sobotka and Blair Maccaulay to tie the game at two a piece. The second goal being a short-handed masterpiece by the Condors stellar penalty kill line. The Condors sealed the victory with a nice rebound goal by Gary Steffes who shoved the puck under the sprawling Anderson.

The Bulls have a 22 man roster and a lot of them are young guys trying to earn a shot on the team. On putting the young players in the game, Curcio said “We want to see what their abilities are and who can do what.” Curcio continued and called out the play of Right Winger Dale Mitchell and said that he was” very good tonight. He’s going to be a good player for us.”

Also on the roster tonight was Anthony Taylor who earned a spot on the roster after wowing Curico and the Bulls staff at last month’s Open Tryout’s at the Cow Palace. “It was a great experience and it was very good hockey. I really liked the fans, they seemed really cool” said Taylor on stepping onto the Cow Palace ice for an official game. Curcio commented on Taylor’s and gave us a look into his future, “I thought he’s done a good job through training camp. We’re going to get him assigned to a Southern Professional team or Central League team where he can get his feet wet. He’s a young player and if he does well, we’ll give him another opportunity.”

The Bulls return to action on Saturday to host the Stockton Thunder at 7:30 pm at the Cow Palace.

Raiders unplug the Chargers in late-night contest, win 27-17

Published on October 7, 2013October 7, 2013 by kahlilnajar7Leave a comment

by Kahlil Najar

OAKLAND –

In the latest West Coast game in NFL history the Oakland Raiders (2-3) beat the San Diego Chargers (2-3) 27-17 in what was one of the most dominating performances of the defense in years. The Raiders defense forced the Chargers into five turnovers including three interceptions, a fumble recovery for a touchdown and a loose ball recovery on a muffed punt. On offense, Terrelle Pryor threw for 221 yards on 18 for 23 passing including two touchdowns – a 44 yard bomb to Rod Streater to start the game and a two yard pass to Denarius Moore.

On his deep pass on the first play from scrimmage, Terrelle Pryor said, “We practiced that play a lot in practice this week. In week one against the Colts I was picked off but me and Coach Olson talked about it last night and he said if I saw him (Streater) get open I should try and get him the ball.”

Pryor’s confidence was obvious to other teammates before but now it was on display for everyone to see. “You can just see his swag back there, he’s playing with a lot of confidence” said Rod Streater who ended the night with three catches for 56 yards including the 44-yard pass to start the game. Pryor completed ten straight passes and said that it “builds (my) confidence and my tempo is right. I’m excited when we start fast.” In face, that touchdown was the first time the Raiders have scored in the first two minutes of a game since week 3 of 2011 against the Jets.

“It’s exciting to see Pryor out there,” said Raiders Head Coach Dennis Allen, “He can create those plays and it gives the team confidence.”

The Raiders defense got the game started for the Raiders when on the third play of the game for San Diego, Philip Rivers threw a high floating pass that looked like a punt and landed in the hands of Usama Young for his first interception of the year. On the Raiders very first play from scrimmage, Offensive Coordinator Greg Olson dialed up the 44-yard deep pass to Rod Streater that got the Raiders on the board 7-0. The Raiders next drive saw them go 88 yards in 8 minutes on a nifty play from Pryor who rolled out to the right after his initial check downs were covered and found Denarious Moore in back of the end zone after he stopped on a dime and Chargers Corner Richard Marshall fell out of bounds to give the Raiders a 14-0 lead with a little over a minute left in the first quarter.

The Chargers started the second quarter with the ball on their side of the field and matriculated the ball all the way down to the Raiders ten yard line. After a a run and a passing play, the Chargers decided to go for it on a fourth and one on the goal line and linebacker Kevin Burnett stuffed Danny Woodhead to turn the ball over to the Raiders in their own zone. After a couple first downs the Raiders were forced to punt to the usually reliable Eddie Royal but he muffed the punt and the Raiders special team recovered the ball and gave the Raiders a first down on the Chargers 37-yard line where Sebastian Janikowski was able to convert on a 47-yard field goal attempt to give the Raiders a 17-0 lead into the half.

The third quarter saw Charles Woodson join the ranks of the elite safeties in the NFL.

After a lengthy drive by the Chargers and a field goal by Nick Novak to put them on the board and a quick three-and-out by the Raiders, the Chargers handed history to Woodson in a bag. On second-and-five from the San Diego 35 yard line, Kevin Burnett caused Danny Woodhead to fumble to ball and it landed in Charles Woodson’s hands. With the ball in hand and only Rivers to beat, Woodson leaped into the end zone to give the Raiders a 24-3 lead but also gave him a career total of 13 defensive touchdowns to tie him for the most defensive touchdowns in a career in the history of the NFL with the great Darren Sharper and former Oakland Raider Rod Woodson.

When learning of him tying Rod’s record, Woodson said, “Cousin Rod, I’m coming for you! Nah, it just means that I’m on e of the greatest to ever play the game but the win was what’s most important.”

Philip Rivers, who ended the night with 411 yards passing and two touchdowns, got hot late in the game with touchdown passes to Woodhead and Cal alum Keenan Allen was then stifled again when D.J. Hayden had his first pick of his career in the end zone which looked to seal the deal for the Raiders. However after another quick three-and-out from the Raiders, the Chargers got the ball back with 1:16 left in the game losing by only 10. After a deep pass to Allen for 30 yards, Rivers threw deep again this time in the middle of the field looking for Eddie Royal but Charles Woodson was able to get in front of the ball and get his first interception of the game to lock it up and put the Raiders into Victory formation.

“It was a great team win. All three phases contributed,” said Allen. “It was outstanding the way we started, and we kept competing all the way to the end. The goal line stand was a critical point in the game.”

The love for Pyror could be heard in the stands as well in the locker room. On his roll out capabilities and extending broken plays, Allen said, “That’s what that kid brings to us. When things aren’t right, he has the ability to make plays.” Charles Woodson echoed the Coaches sentiments saying that, “He’s showing his progress and he can lead this team.”

Terrelle Pryor and Raiders head to Kansas City next week to take on the undefeated Chiefs at Arrowhead stadium. It’ll be a tough game for the Raiders however if they are able to bring this momentum from the game into Arrowhead, the Raiders can prove that they shouldn’t be a forgotten team in the AFC West.

Game Notes:

The Chargers, who ranked No. 2 in the NFL in third down efficiency (50%), were 4-for-11 tonight. San Diego also came into the game averaging 27.0 points per game, seventh in the league, and was held to 17.
The Raiders continue to not have allowed a first half rushing touchdown, stopping the Chargers on fourth-and-1 in the second quarter. With 27 rushing yards in the first half, the defense is equally stringent, allowing (204) rushing yards in the first half this season, an average of 40.8 (No. 11 in the NFL prior to tonight)
It was the second-straight week that the Raiders have not allowed a first-half touchdown.
QB Terrelle Pryor is still No. 2 in rushing among quarterbacks behind Michael Vick following 31 yards tonight. He now has 228 on the season.

Morrison and Ouellet back with the SF Bulls

Published on October 2, 2013October 6, 2013 by kahlilnajar7Leave a comment

By Kahlil Najar

SAN FRANCISCO – The San Francisco Bulls announced today that forwards Jordan Morrison and Dean Ouellet have agreed to terms. Morrison and Ouellet join last season’s other core members, Scott Langdon, Kris Belan, Dylan King and Christian Ouellet.

“It’s great news for the organization and the fans to get Jordan and Dean back for this season,” said SF Bulls President and Head Coach Pat Curcio. “Their return from Kazakhstan shows their desire to reach the next level in North America. Dean is an all-star and Jordan is a proven leader.”

Calling Ouellet an All-Star isn’t just a euphemism, it’s a fact. Last year, Dean Ouellet was the lone Bulls player to represent San Francisco in the ECHL All-Star game. Jordan Morrison on the other hand, may not have been voted an All-Star but he was definitely deserving of the title. Not only did he contribute 16 goals and 25 assists but he was one of the key players to help get the Bulls into the first round of the playoffs. In the playoffs, Morrison played in all five games and had two goals an assist.

On returning to the Bay Area, both players are looking forward to being back and bring the same kind of intensity to the ice that they did last year.

Dean Oulette said, “Coming back to the Bulls this season feels really good. San Francisco is like a second home for me. It’s going to be a great season.”

“It’s good to see so many familiar faces back with the Bulls,” said Morrison. “San Francisco became a home away from home last season. There were great fans and it was a great city. I’m looking forward to a productive season and doing better than last year.”

Defenseman Steven Tarasuk Assigned by Worcester To SF Bulls

Published on September 28, 2013November 27, 2013 by kahlilnajar7Leave a comment

By Kahlil Najar

SAN FRANCISCO – The San Francisco Bulls announced today that their AHL affiliate, the Worcester Sharks, assigned defenseman Steven Tarasuk to the Bulls. He’s the first Sharks prospect to be assigned to San Francisco this season.

Tarasuk, 23, enters his fourth season as a professional having spent last year with the Lausitzer Foxes in Germany, totaling 32 points in 43 games. Tarasuk has skated in 135 games in the ECHL with the Kalamazoo Wings, Ontario Reign, and Idaho Steelheads, recording 63 points and has also played three games in the American Hockey League with the Bridgeport Sound Tigers.

The Bulls seem to be on a roll of stacking up on big bodied Defensemen this off-season as they just added Andrew Eastman a few weeks ago. With this addition, the Bulls appear to be almost ready for the season to begin as they have already addressed their need for some solid forwards with some new signings and getting some veterans back in the mix.