Gulls dominate Barracuda in 4-1 win; sweep two-game series

Photo credit: @sjbarracuda

By Marko Ukalovic

SAN JOSE — The San Diego Gulls (26-17-1-0) came from behind once again, scoring four unanswered goals in a convincing 4-1 win over the San Jose Barracuda (21-19-2-3) Sunday afternoon at the SAP Center. They swept the two-game series against San Jose and won their season best sixth win in a row.

It didn’t take the Barracuda long to get the bad taste of yesterday’s loss out of their mouth when defenseman Jacob Middleton scored his second goal on the season just 24 seconds into the game. Forward Adam Helewka’s shot hit off the pads of Gulls goalie Reto Berra (11-6-0) and Middleton crashed the net and was able to slam home the rebound past Berra.

“I’m used to being in front of the net in my own defensive zone,” said Middleton about scoring his goal. “It was an opportunity. I kinda just shoveled it toward the net and fortunately it went in.”

Antoine Bibeau (14-9-2) was busy earlier on having stopped two breakaway attempts by San Diego in the first three and a half minutes into the game, including one by Devin Sideroff.

San Jose had a golden opportunity to extend their lead when they had a 5-on-3 power play for 1:48 midway through the period when Sam Carrick and Mike Limabas went into the sin bin 12 seconds apart from each other. However, the Gulls penalty kill would keep the game at a one goal deficit.

The Gulls would answer back when Nic Kerdiles was able to tip in Andy Welinski’s shot from the point past Bibeau. The Gulls had sustained pressure inside the Cuda zone as Kerdiles was able to set up shop in front of Bibeau to deflect the puck in the back of the net for his ninth goal on the season at the 16:15 mark of the first period.

Kalle Kossila, who had his two-game goal streak snapped yesterday, gave the Gulls a 2-1 lead with 8.5 seconds left in the first period when he received the puck at center ice and was able to use his speed to skate around three Cuda defenders before putting a pretty backhander past Bibeau for his 13th goal of the season.

“The guy kinda goes through everybody and tucks it in,” said head coach Roy Sommer. “I think that was the biggest thing, the real back breaker.”

Dennis Rasmussen extended the Gulls lead to 3-1 on a nice give and go with Steven Olesky. Rasmussen skated into the Cuda zone, passed it over to Olesky on the right wing and Olesky gave it right back to Rasmussen who was able to fire a shot past Bibeau top self in the left corner of the goal for his fourth goal of the season and second consecutive game with a goal against San Jose at the 6:41 mark of the second period.

San Diego would keep pouring it on when a keep in at the blue line set up a tic-tack-toe goal by Eric Fehr. Fehr gathered the puck, passed it over to Kevin Roy who quickly sent it back to a wide open Fehr who slapped it into an open net for his team leading 15th goal on the season for a 4-1 lead at the 17:33 mark of the second period.

The Cuda were only playing with nine forwards throughout the game due to injuries and call up. Fatigue could have caught up to San Jose in trying maintain an offensive attack.

“As far as trying to keep any heat on, you know get a sustained pressure on the forecheck,” said Sommer about playing with a limited lineup. “I think that gets you a little bit.”

Berra stopped 33 of the 34 Cuda shots for the victory. Bibeau made 24 saves on 28 Gulls shots in the losing effort.

GAME NOTES: The power play blues continued for San Jose as they went 0/6 on the power play and 0/10 in the two game series. San Diego was 0/4.

“You gotta get pucks through and I didn’t think we were very good on our flanks. Never really got a lot of second chances on the PP,” said Sommer.

Emerson Clark thought he had a power play goal at 7:01, but the referee waved it off and video review confirmed no goal. Bibeau made a big save on Kerdiles six minutes into the second period. Fehr has seven points in five games against San Jose this season.

Forward Marcus Sorensen missed the game due to an upper body injury he sustained yesterday. He is currently listed as day-to-day.

The announced attendance was 3,863.

San Diego is currently in second place in the Pacific Division with 53 points. The Cuda sit in seventh place with 47 points just one ahead of last place Bakersfield.

UP NEXT: San Jose host the Pacific Division leading Tuscon Roadrunners on Valentine’s Day 2/14 to conclude the five-game home stand. Face off is scheduled for 7 pm PT.

Gulls respond with three unanswered goals in 3-2 overtime win over Barracuda

Photo credit: @sjbarracuda

By Marko Ukalovic

SAN JOSE — Dennis Rasmussen scored the game-winning goal with over two minutes left in overtime as the San Diego Gulls (25-17-1-0) completed a 3-2 comeback victory over the San Jose Barracuda (21-18-2-3) Saturday afternoon at the SAP Center.

After successfully killing off a Barracuda power play that transferred over from the third period, Rasmussen was able to skate down the left wing on a 2-on-1 opportunity and was able to beat Cuda goalie Troy Grosenick (5-8-3) with a wrist shot just inside the left post at the 2:41 mark of overtime. It was Rasmussen’s third goal on the season.

There wasn’t much offense generated in a penalty-filled first period that saw neither team convert on their power play chances. The Barracuda had a four-minute advantage when Corey Tropp went into the sin bin for a double-minor high-sticking penalty.

However, an interference penalty by Tim Heed negated Tropp’s penalty. Both combined for only nine shots on goal.

The Barracuda would strike first after a clean faceoff win by Alex True, defenseman Paul Martin sent a shot in from the point that deflected off the skate of Gulls defenseman Steven Olesky right on to the body of Emerson Clark and into the back of net past Gulls goalie Kevin Boyle (14-8-1) for his fifth goal of the season at the 11:15 mark of the second period.

Brandon Bollig gave the Cuda a 2-0 lead when he tapped home a rebound of a Jon Martin shot for his eighth goal on the season. The goal came on a 2-on-1 opportunity created by Martin at the Gulls blueline at the 16:52 mark of the second period. Michael Brodzinski received the secondary assist.

“It’s been a long time coming,” said Bollig, after ending his long scoring draught. “Droughts like that are gonna happen. Unfortunately, it lasted a little longer than I would’ve liked. We could use that extra scoring and that’s what I’m looking to keep going.”

San Diego wouldn’t go quietly into that good afternoon as Kevin Roy would cut the lead early in the third period when the Cuda turned over the puck in the neutral zone. Sam Carrick was able to feed Roy open along the left boards and he was able to skate in and rifle a shot past Grosenick for his ninth goal of the season at the 3:08 mark.

The Gulls would tied the score just 87 seconds later as Carrick skated into the Cuda zone and his shot deflected off a skate right into the hands of Eric Fehr, who buried it past Grosenick for his 14th goal on the season at the 4:35 mark.

“A two minute burst, they score a couple of goals,” said Cuda head coach Roy Sommer. “We kinda were back on our heels a bit.”

Things would get nasty when Mike Liambas landed a vicious elbow to the upper body of an unsuspecting Marcus Sorensen five and half minutes into the third period. Sorensen would leave the ice under his own power. The hit lit a spark under the Cuda as the hitting picked up by both teams in the final 10 minutes of the third period.

The Cuda had scoring chances late in the third period and early in the overtime, but were the victims of bad luck as they hit two posts with a puck rolling just past the goal into the corner.

“We had some point blankers,” said Sommer. “We hit a cross bar, hit two posts. Hey I liked the way we played. I wish we had a better outcome. We play like that, we’re going to win a lot more (games) than we lose.”

Boyle had a busy afternoon making 37 saves on 39 shots for the victory. Grosenick, arguably the most hard luck goaltender in the AHL, made 21 saves on 24 shots in the losing effort.

GAME NOTES: Both teams were 0/4 on the power play.

San Diego came into the game with the best power play in the AHL at over 24%, with a 38% success rate against San Jose.

The announced attendance was 3,162.

UP NEXT: San Jose looks for revenge Sunday afternoon against the San Diego Gull at SAP Center. Face off is scheduled for noon PT.

San Jose Barracuda Podcast with Marko Ukalovic: Bibeau faces lots of shots in Roadrunners loss but developing in goal nicely

photo by sjbarracuda.com

By Marko Ukalovic

SAN JOSE–It was one of those games where Tucson Roadrunners and the San Jose Barracuda in their last game on Feb 5th played great hockey in a game that ended up in a shootout win for the Roadrunners 4-3.  The Roadrunners scored three goals in a five and half minute span in the second period and your thinking “oh well” it’s going to be one of those games.

The last goal the Roadrunners scored in that second period was a battled up goal it just squeaked by Barracuda goalie Antoine Bibeau and went into the goal. You have to think at that point momentum is down but all of a sudden they get the late goal. At then end of the third period the Barracuda made their own come back down 3-2 and then they get a goal from John Martin to tie it to send it into overtime.

Catch Marko with coverage of the San Diego Gulls and San Jose Barracuda this Saturday and Sunday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

 

Roadrunners overcome Barracuda’s comeback, win 4-3 in a shootout

Photo credit: @sjbarracuda

By Marko Ukalovic

SAN JOSE — In a wild game that saw the Tuscon Roadrunners (25-14-2-1) cough up a three-goal lead, only to save face in the shootout with a 4-3 victory over the San Jose Barracuda (21-18-1-3) on Monday evening at SAP Center.

Lane Pederson scored the game winner in a long shootout period to give the Pacific Division leaders the two points in a game that saw each team score three unanswered goals after the first 20 minutes of play.

The first period featured each team getting a power play opportunity, but neither team could score as San Jose’s Antonie Bibeau (14-8-2) and Tuscon’s Adin Hill (10-10-1) were able to keep the puck out of their own respective nets. Scoring chances were few, far and between for both teams. The period featured only 14 total shots, with San Jose outshooting Tuscon 8-6.

The Roadrunners broke through early in the second period when Michael Bunting was on the receiving end of a pretty give and go with Tyler Gaudet. Bunting passed it over Gaudet from the right slot with Gaudet returning the favor right back to an open Bunting who slammed the puck into an empty net for his 13th goal of the season and a 1-0 lead at the 3:14 mark. Dysin Mayo received the secondary assist.

Bunting would get his second goal of the evening just a minute and a half later when he was able to tip in a Kyle Wood shot from the middle of the slot past Bibeau for a 2-0 lead. Bunting’s 14th goal of the season was also assisted by Conor Garland at the 5:55 mark of the second period.

Tuscon would get a lucky break that resulted in a power play goal at the 8:29 mark when Lawson Crouse was able to somehow get his stick on the puck that rolled past Bibeau into the net. After a shot from the point by Dakota Mermis was blocked away by Bibeau, a mad scramble ensued on the rebound with Crouse getting credited for his eighth goal on the season. Mike Sislo received the secondary assist on the goal.

“A power play goal, a tunrover and a quick play they make to the net, you’re down 3-0,” said head coach Roy Sommer. “It happens. But I liked the way we battled back.”

The Barracuda finally got on the board at the 10:55 mark of the second period when Nick DeSimone blasted a shot past Hill from the right point. The power play goal was DeSimone’s fifth goal on the season. Brandon Mashinter received the only assist on the goal.

Captain John McCarthy pulled the Barracuda to within one goal on the power play with just 38 seconds remaining in the period. He was able to tip in a shot past Hill from defenseman Julius Bergman, who launched the puck from the right point. Adam Helewka was also credited with an assist on McCarthy’s seventh goal of the season.

“We responded. It’s good to see the way we came back like we did,” said McCarthy on his team’s resiliency. “It would’ve been nice to get both points, but it was a good response by us.”

Bibeau kept the Cuda in the game midway through the third period when he stopped a point-blank tip attempt by Artur Tyanulin just as the tripping penalty by McCarthy had come to an end.

Jon Martin tied the game up at 3-3 when he was able to bury home the puck past Hill after receiving a great feed from Emerson Clark who had skated in from the left boards to feed a wide-open Martin at the left slot for his fourth goal of the season at the 9:48 mark of the period.

Both teams traded odd man rushes in overtime, but neither team could finish off their chances to win it in the extra session sending the game into the shootout.

“If we had any kind of scorers at all,” Sommer said jokingly. “We haven’t been too lucky in the shoot outs, but hey I’ll take the point.”

Hill made 35 shots on 38 shots to even his record for the victory, while Bibeau made 24 saves on 27 shots in the losing effort.

GAME NOTES: San Jose went 2/4 on the power play while Tuscon was 1/4.

The shootout went seven rounds before Pederson’s goal and San Jose’s Manny Wiederer’s failed attempt ended it. This was captain John McCarthy’s last game with the Barracuda for the next couple of weeks as he will head off to Pyeongchang, South Korea, to join his Team USA hockey teammates for the XXIII Winter Olympics.

UP NEXT: The Barracuda will face off against Pacific Divison rival San Diego Gulls for a weekend series starting on Saturday, February 10 at 1:15 pm PT at SAP Center.

Heat rebound in second game of home-and-home series with 4-2 win over the Barracuda

Photo credit: @sjbarracuda

By Marko Ukalovic

SAN JOSE — The Stockton Heat (21-16-2-3) enacted revenge against the San Jose Barracuda (21-18-1-2) after suffering a defeat in their own building 24 hours earlier, thanks to a rookie goaltender, earning his first professional victory in a 4-2 victory on Friday evening at the SAP Center. 

Stockton’s Tyler Parsons (1-1-0) making only his second start of the season, played on top of his head on Friday night stymieing a Barracuda attack that put 34 shots on goal. His outstanding play in the net frustrated San Jose throughout the night.

Both teams traded chances in the first period, but neither team could get the puck in the back of the net, thanks to great goaltending by both San Jose’s Troy Groesnick (5-8-2) and Parsons. Parsons stopped four scoring chances early in the period by the Barracuda while Grosenick stoned a one-on-one opportunity by Oleg Yuvenko five minutes into the game. The best scoring chance for the Barracuda came with a minute left when defenseman Jacob Middleton sent a shot off the boards that floated out in front of the crease past Parsons but no one in a teal jersey was able to get their stick in to tap home the puck into an empty net.

“I thought we had opportunities, their goalie was good,” head coach Roy Sommer said about Parsons’ play.

Austin Carrol broke the deadlock just a 1:07 into the second period when he skated in from the right point, made a maneuver around defenseman Paul Martin to skate in all alone on Grosenick and was able to put a nice backhander into the back of the net for a 1-0 lead. It was Carrol’s third goal of the season. Morgan Klimchuk and Rasmus Andersson received assists on the goal.

Julius Bergman tied the game up on the power play when he received a feed from Calvan Fitzgerald and was able to skate in from the right point and rifle a shot past Parsons who was screened out in front by Barracuda forward Alex True. Bergman’s sixth goal on the season came at the 7:31 mark. Adam Helewka received the secondary assist.

“We’re just trying to get pucks to the net,” said defenseman Calvan Fitzgerald on the blue liners contributing more on offense. “We’re just trying to create more offense as much as we can.”

Before the fans could sit down after Bergman’s goal, Stockton regained the lead when a bad turnover by Barracuda forward Emerson Clark led to Stockton’s Rod Pelley finding a wide open Emile Poirier at the blue line and he was able to skate in on a breakaway and sneak the puck past Groesenick for his fourth goal of the season just 66 seconds later.

The Cuda almost tied it up with under 30 seconds left in the period when Helewka skated in on Parson after taking a nice feed from Rudolfs Balcers on a 2-on-1 chance. Helewka’s backhand attempt was stopped by Parsons and the rebound was cleared away by the Stockton defense. San Jose out shot Stockton 13-11 in the 2nd period.

Grosenick kept the Barracuda in the game to start the third period as he was able to stop a Spencer Foo shorthanded breakaway attempt and a few minutes later a 3-on-1 where he was able to rob back to back point blank chances by the Heat.

“It’s not really fair to him, he’s been playing great.” said captain John McCarthy on the hard luck season for Grosenick. “It would’ve been great to get him a win tonight. He kept us in it till the end. It’s unfortunate, but we do recognize that he’s been playing very well (for us).”

Stockton extended their lead at the 15:56 mark when Carrol skated in from the right boards and sent a shot toward the net that was initially saved by Grosenick. but the rebound trickled out to a crashing Morgan Klimchauk who tapped home his 13th goal of the season for a 3-1 lead. Carrol slammed awkwardly into the boards as a result of the play, got hurt, but was able to walk off the ice back into the locker room under his own power.

Marek Hrivik completed the scoring for Stockton with under two minutes left when the Barracuda pulled Grosenick for an extra attacker and he was able to knock home his 11th goal of the season short handed into an empty net.

San Jose’s McCarthy was able to tip home a Fitzgerald shot from the point on the power play with 43 seconds left for his sixth goal of the season. However, it was too little too late for the Barracuda’s comeback attempt.

Parsons made 32 saves on 34 shots for the victory, while Grosenick made 30 saves on 33 shots in the losing effort.

GAME NOTES: San Jose went 2/4 on the power play while Stockton 0/1.

Even there were many scrums after the whistle, there were no official fights between the teams tonight unlike the game in Stockton that featured four of them.

With the win, Stockton leap frogs over San Jose to sixth place in the Pacific Division with 47 points. The Cuda are currently in seventh with 45 points.

UP NEXT: The Barracuda will face the Pacific Division leading Tuscon Roadrunners on Monday evening at SAP Center at 7 pm PT.

Barracuda cool down the Heat with 3-0 shutout victory

Photo credit: @sjbarracuda

By Marko Ukalovic

The San Jose Barracuda (21-17-1-2) scored two goals in 25 seconds early in the second period and received superior goaltending from Antoine Bibeau to take down the Stockton Heat (20-16-2-3) 3-0 in a shutout victory on Friday evening at Stockton Arena.

The Barracuda are on a two-game winning streak. They went 4-1-1 to complete their six-game road trip.

San Jose would draw first blood with just five minutes remaining in the first period when Rudolfs Balcers scored his team-leading 11th goal on the season. He was able to clean up a rebound amid a mad scramble in front of the net after a shot from the point from defenseman Julius Bergman. The All-Star gathered the puck and put it past Stockton goalie Jon Gillies (13-12-4) inside the right post. Captain John McCarthy also assisted on the goal at the 15:03 mark of the first period. The Barracuda outshot the Heat 9-7.

The Barracuda didn’t waste any time extending their lead in the second period. Just 46 seconds in, Balcers put the Barracuda up 2-0 with his second goal of the night and 12th on the season. McCarthy was able to feed Balcers before the blue line and he raced down the left wing side and sniped a shot past Gillies inside the left post. Adam Helewka also assisted on the goal. This was Balcers’ third multi-goal game on the season.

25 seconds after that Flilip Sandberg back handed in a rebound for his seventh goal of the season to give the Barracuda a commanding 3-0 lead at the 1:11 mark. Bergman sent an innocent-looking shot toward the goal that Gillies couldn’t handle and Sandberg made Gillies pay for his mishap. Gillies was chased out of the game on three goals on just 11 shots. Tyler Parsons replaced him just over a minute into the second period.

Brandon Bollig got the best of Oleg Yevenko with a spirited fight midway through the second period. Bollig took exception to a hit by Yevenko on Barracuda forward Jon Martin. Parsons came up huge on a Brandon Mashinter breakaway chance just under three minutes left in the frame.

Stockton had two chances on the power play in the third period, but couldn’t generate any good scoring chances, thanks to the tight penalty kill of the Cuda and Bibeau. The Heat outshot San Jose 9-3 in the period.

Bibeau (14-8-1) stoppped all 30 shots he faced, including some big saves in the second period where one deflected off of his mask, to earn his third shutout victory of the season. Parsons made nine saves in relief in the losing effort.

GAME NOTES: Adam Helewka returned to the lineup after missing the last game against San Antonio with an injury.

The Heat were without their leading scorer Andrew Mangiapane, who was promoted up to the Calgary Flames. Stockton has lost their past 3 homes games.

Balcers has three goals in the past two games. Balcers’ seven points (three goals, four assists) is tied for the most points (Danny O’Regan) against Stockton this season.

Gillies is now 5-6-1 all time against San Jose.

San Jose went 0/2 on the power play while Stockton was 0/4.

NO LOVE LOST BETWEEN THESE TWO TEAMS: Things got chippy in the first period with a pair of fights between Austin Carrol and Jacob Middleton midway through and also Tanner Glass and Emerson Clark right at the of the period.

UP NEXT: The Barracuda return to SAP Center on Saturday evening as they complete the home-and-home series with the Stockton Heat. Face off is at 7 pm PT.

San Jose Barracuda Podcast with Marko Ukalovic: Barracuda back to work Friday after five day rest

photo by sjbarracuda.com

On the SJ Barracuda Podcast with Marko:

1 Nothing like having a few days off the San Jose Barracuda took five days rest since their last game Sat Jan 27th in San Antonio in a 5-1 win

2 In San Antonio the Barracuda got off to a fast start with some quick offense and taking a impressive 4-0 lead into the third period

3 The Cuda had dominated in Sat’s game a 4-0 lead after two periods of play they got goals from Rudolf Balcers, Jacob Middleton, Emerson Clark, and Calvin Fitzgeral

4 Another great defensive effort by the Cuda’s goalie Antoine Bibeau surrendering just on goal to the Rampage in the third period

5 Friday the Barracuda conclude their road trip in Stockton for a home at home series with the Stockton Heat

Marko does the San Jose Barracuda Podcasts each Wednesday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

 

Barracuda split weekend series with 5-1 win over Rampage; enter AHL All-Star break on positive note

Photo credit: @sjbarracuda

By: Ana Kieu

The San Jose Barracuda played in their final game before the AHL All-Star break against the San Antonio Rampage Saturday night at the AT&T Center. Prior to the minor league hockey matchup, San Jose was on a two-game losing skid, while San Antonio shutout the road team 3-0 the night before.

The Barracuda jumped out to an early 1-0 lead on Rudolfs Balcers’ goal. Assists were provided by Tim Clifton and Radim Simek.

San Antonio received an elbowing call, which gave San Jose their first power play of the game. Then, Barracuda’s Jon Martin had a heated moment and went to the box for roughing alongside Rampage’s Andrew Agozzino. After the penalties expired, the game reverted back to 5-on-5 hockey.

The Barracuda played a solid first period and headed into the intermission with a 1-0 lead over the Rampage.

San Jose grabbed an early 2-0 lead to start the second period, thanks to Jacob Middleton. Assists were provided by Balcers and Nick DeSimone.

The Barracuda didn’t just stop there. Just a little less than five minutes later, Emerson Clark scored a goal to give San Jose a 3-0 lead.

The Rampage almost got a goal, but they got a slashing call first. No goal for San Antonio. The Barracuda held onto a 3-0 lead midway through the period.

The Barracuda then went on a few power plays following a few penalties committed by the Rampage. San Jose was able to capitalize on one of those power plays as Cavan Fitzgerald snapped a shot into the net during the 4-on-3 man advantage to make it a 4-0 game.

The Barracuda carried a 4-0 lead to the locker room after two periods of play.

Barracuda’s Brandon Bollig got a holding call early in the third period and San Jose headed to the penalty kill for the first time tonight. Balcers then struck again for his second goal of the game and third overall point for a 5-0 lead. Assists were provided by O’Regan and DeSimone.

The Barracuda’s perfect lead was eventually snapped by the Rampage. Andre Mironov apparently said “no shutout in my house” as he fired the puck past Parker Gahagen to reduce the deficit to 5-1 late in the game.

After being blanked last night, the Barracuda got revenge in tonight’s match against the Rampage with a 5-1 win.

Notes
3 stars of the game
1. Rudolfs Balcers
2. Jake Middleton
3. Antoine Bibeau

Barracuda’s starting lineup: Rudolfs Balcers, Danny O’Regan, John McCarthy, Jacob Middleton, Nick DeSimone and Antoine Bibeau.

Up Next
The Barracuda return to action as they take on the Stockton Heat on February 2 at 7 pm PT.

Strong first period allows Rampage to dominate in 3-0 shutout win over Barracuda

Photo credit: @sjbarracuda

By Marko Ukalovic

The San Antonio Rampage (23-16-4-0) scored three goals in the first period and never looked back as they dominated the San Jose Barracuda (19-17-1-2) with a 3-0 shutout victory at the AT&T Center on Thursday night.

San Antonio took control of the game from beginning to end. Rocco Girmaldi scored his 13th goal of the season just 85 seconds into the game. His shot sailed past Barracuda goalie Antoine Bibeau (12-8-1). Klim Kostin and Chris Butler assisted on the goal.

Kostin was awarded a penalty shot at the 5:48 and made the most of his one-on-one chance beating Bibeau for a 2-0 lead. The unassisted goal was his fifth on the season.

Samuel Blais completed the scoring in the frame when he scored his 10th goal on the season at the 16:48 mark. Jessie Graham and Jean-Christophe Beaudin assisted on the goal.

The Cuda had a chance to get back in the game with four minutes left in the second period when Rampage forward Felix Girard went to the sin bin for tripping. However they could not put the pack behind Rampage goalie Ville Husso (10-6-1).

The Cuda had two power play opportunities within the first five minutes of the third period but couldn’t capitalize on the man advantage and ended up frustrated at the end of the night despite outshooting San Antonio 13-10 in the period.

Husso saved all 29 shots from Cuda sticks to earn the shutout victory. Bibeau suffered the loss despite a strong game with 38 saves on 41 shots.

GAME NOTES: The power play woes continued for San Jose as they ended the night 0/3 while San Antonio was 0/1 on their only power play opportunity.

Marcus Sorensen was recalled by the San Jose Sharks due to the injury to Joe Thornton.

Rudolfs Balcers will be joining his goalie Antoine Bibeau in Utica, New York next week as he was selected to participate in the AHL All-Star Classic.

UP NEXT: San Jose will take on the San Antonio Rampage on Saturday evening at AT&T Center at 5 pm PT.

Stars upend Barracuda 3-2 in overtime

Photo credit: @sjbarracuda

By Marko Ukalovic

Forward Brian Flynn was the hero for the Texas Stars (23-15-4-2) as he scored the game-tying and game-winning goals for his team to snap the San Jose Barracuda’s (19-16-1-2) two-game winning streak with a 3-2 overtime victory at the H-E-B-Center at Cedar Park on Tuesday night.

Flynn set up the dramatic win when he scored the game-tying goal with 1:26 left to go in the third period. His 11th goal on the season came on the power play when the Stars pulled their goalie for a 6-on-4 advantage. Flynn was able to redirect a shot from the point past Antoine Bibeau (12-7-1).

In overtime, Flynn would complete the comeback and sent the 4,580 fans home happy with his 12th goal of the season when he steered a zone-entry pass from Justin Dowling top-shelf over Bibeau’s left shoulder, handing San Jose its first overtime loss of the season.

There was no scoring in the first period, but there were plenty of scoring chances on both sides. Both goalies came up big with Bibeau making 13 saves and Landon Bow making 10 saves, respectively.

The Barracuda drew first blood in the second period when Alexander True scored his sixth goal on the season when at the 2:41 mark when Jon Martin found the rookie forward uncovered in the low slot from below the goal line as True was able to bury the puck past Stars goalie Landon Bow (15-8-3).

The Stars would come back to tie it on the power play when Roope Hintz snuck a shot from below the right circle through Bibeau’s five-hole for his 13th goal on the season at the 12:58 mark.

San Jose would regain the lead late in the period when Marcus Sorensen scored his seventh goal of season by following up his blocked shot and beat Bow on the left side with 1:40 left to take a 2-1 lead into the second intermission. Rudolfs Balcers received an assist on the goal.

Bow finished the night with 28 saves on 30 shots for the victory. Bibeau suffered the loss with 30 saves on 33 shots.

GAME NOTES: The Cuda are 2-1 on the current 6 game road trip. San Jose were 0/1 on the power play while Texas was 2/3. There were no penalties called on either team in the 1st period.

UP NEXT: San Jose continues their tour of the Lone Star State when they travel to San Antonio to open a two-game series with the Rampage on Thursday night at 5 pm PT.