Tag: AHL

Lavoie’s OT heroics give Condors 3-2 win over Barracuda

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Bakersfield Condors goalie Olivier Rodrigue makes a save with his left pad during the second period against the San Jose Barracuda at Mechanics Bank Arena on Friday FEB 9, 2023. (Bakersfield Condors)

by Marko Ukalovic

Rapheal Lavoie scored two goals, including the game winner in overtime as the Bakersfield Condors defeated the San Jose Barracuda 3-2 in overtime on Friday evening at Mechanics Bank Arena.

San Jose has lost three out of its last five games and are 0-8 in overtime games this season. Bakersfield has won three games in a row.

Lavoie scored the game winning goal at the 1:31 mark of the extra session with a power play goal after receiving a cross ice pass from Lane Pederson and then burying a wrist shot from the left wing. Cole Cassels was called for hooking 13 seconds into the overtime.

Bakersfield (22-13-2-2) drew first blood early in the first period with a power play goal. Pederson threw the puck out in front of the net and Lavoie fired a point-blank shot past ‘Cuda goalie Georgi Romanov for his 14th goal of the season at the 5:49 mark. Lavoie leads the Condors with eight power play goals.

San Jose (14-22-8-0) answered back with an even strength goal just past the halfway mark of the opening frame. Oskar Lindblom picked up the puck behind the Condors’ net, spun around and fired wrist shot top shelf to the short side of Condors’ goalie Olivier Rodrigue for his sixth goal of the season at the 11:10 mark. Brandon Coe received the only assist on the play.

The Condors regained the lead with an even strength goal past the halfway mark of the second period. Seth Griffin centered a pass out to Cam Dineen whose one-timer hit off the crossbar. Adam Erne cleaned up the rebound for his second goal of the season at the 12:28 mark.

The middle frame served as 20 minutes of frustration for the ‘Cuda. They outshot (19-5) and out chanced the Condors, but Rodrigue made numerous big saves including a point-blank shot from Brent Marek early in the period.

After Rodrigue stopped 36 shots in a row, San Jose broke through late in the third period with an even strength goal. Artem Guryev blasted a slapshot from the point past a screened Rodrigue for his second goal of the season at the 15:27 mark. Nathan Todd and Cassels recorded assists on the equalizing goal.

Rodrigue (10-4-4-0) stood on his head the entire game as he finished with 40 saves on 42 shots to earn his 10th victory of the season. Romanov (4-6-4-0) made 16 saves on 19 shots in the losing effort.

GAME NOTES: San Jose finished 0-for-2 on the power play. Bakersfield went 2-for-4.

Coe returned to the ‘Cuda lineup after a seven-game absence.

The Three Stars of the Game: 1) Rodrigue 2) Lavoie 3) Erne.

UP NEXT: San Jose and Bakersfield conclude their home and home series on Saturday 2/10 at 6:00pm at Tech CU Arena.

Bains late game heroics give the Pacific Division a 3-2 win over the Atlantic in AHL All-Star Challenge

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Players from the AHL’s Pacific Division celebrate their 3-2 win over the Atlantic Division in the championship game of the 2024 AHL All-Star Challenge at Tech CU Arena on Monday FEB, 5, 2024. (Titus Wilkinson-Sports Radio Service)

by Marko Ukalovic

SAN JOSE — The night belonged to the host division in the host city.

Arshdeep Bains scored the game winning goal with 12.9 seconds remaining in the first period to give the Pacific Division a 3-2 victory over the Atlantic Division in the championship game of the 2024 AHL All-Star Challenge on Monday evening at Tech CU Arena.

Bains, the Abbotsford Canucks forward, came loose on a breakaway down the right boards and beat Hersey Bears goalie Clay Stevenson with a wrist shot to the near corner for the game winning goal to send the pro-Pacific Division sold out crowd into a frenzy.

“It was fun,” said Bains regarding his first AHL All-Star experience. “When you have guys that are of this caliber and they’re competing, it gets really special. I know it a privilege to be here, so it was awesome that I was able to do it.”

Bains finished the night with two goals and three assists and earned All-Star Challenge Most Valuable Player honors, a day after travel delays had caused him to miss the Skills Competition on Sunday evening. The Surrey, BC native led all scorers with five points (two goals, three assists) in the round-robin tournament, a series of 3-on-3 games played among the AHL’s four divisions.

“You never forget your first one and to do it here (in San Jose) was special. (There were) a lot of guys I kind of knew so just being able to spend time with guys that I play against and play against guys I don’t get to play against on the other side was really nice and it’s a great city,” Bains said.

Calgary Wranglers goalie and Gilroy, Calif. native Dustin Wolf earned the victory for the Pacific Division as he recorded one saves on two shots in the final 3:04 as he subbed in for Tucson Roadrunners goalie Matt Villalta who started the championship game.

“Yeah, it was awesome,” said Wolf who had close to 10 family members and friends who watched him perform from the stands. “These are events that you look forward to coming to. It worked out, it was a Cinderella ending to give the Pacific (Division) the win on the West coast.”

San Jose Barracuda defenseman and lone representative for the All-Star Challenge Shakir Mukhamadullin had quite the night. The Russian rookie scored the tying goal against the Atlantic Division in one of the round robin games with seven seconds forcing the second shootout for the Pacific Division. He then set up Wrangler forward Matt Coronado with a spinning highlight reel back pass for the equalizer goal at the 3:38 mark of the first period in the championship game.

“It’s really good the fans love hockey; they love the players. They come to every game and get loud. It’s really nice the reaction they gave me,” Mukhamadullin said.

Other highlights of the night included, Adam Gaudette of the Springfield Thunderbirds, the AHL’s co-leader with 24 goals this season, scored three times for the Atlantic Division. The Chicago Wolves’ Rocco Grimaldi and the Manitoba Moose’s Brad Lambert recorded two goals and two assists each for the Central Division, and Angus Crookshank of the Belleville Senators led the North Division with a pair of goals.

The Iowa Wild’s Jesper Wallstedt led all goaltenders with an .833 save percentage on the evening, stopping 15 of 18 shots.

The 2024 AHL All-Star Challenge featured 24 former first- or second-round NHL draft picks, and 28 players who have skated in the National Hockey League already this season.

2024 AHL All-Star Challenge Results
Game 1 – North Division 1, Pacific Division 1 (SO, tie)
Game 2 – Central Division 4, Atlantic Division 1
Game 3 – North Division 3, Central Division 2 (SO)
Game 4 – Atlantic Division 2, Pacific Division 2 (SO, tie)
Game 5 – Atlantic Division 6, North Division 1
Game 6 – Pacific Division 4, Central Division 3 (SO)
Championship – Pacific Division 3, Atlantic Division 2

UP NEXT: The San Jose Barracuda return to action on Friday 2/9 against the Bakersfield Condors at 7:00pm at Mechanics Bank Arena.

AHL All Star Game/San Jose Barracuda podcast with Marko Ukalovic: AHL All Star Game tonight in San Jose; Mukhamadullin to represent Barracuda

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2024 AHL All Star Game/San Jose Barracuda logo

On the SJ Barracuda/AHL All Star Game podcast with Marko Ukalovic:

#1 Marko, first of all it had to be exciting for the San Jose Barracuda and the AHL to hold the 2024 All Star Game at Tech CU now in it’s second year a great opportunity for the Barracuda to showcase their home ice building.

#2 The AHL announced that the All Star Game was live streamed on AHL televised to fans worldwide.

#3 Marko you had a chance to take a look at the AHL Skills Competition tell us how that went and who were some of the fastest skaters and hardest shooters.

#4 Marko, talk about Barracuda All Star lone representative defenseman Shakir Mukhamadullin .who replaced leading scorer Danil Guschin, who had originally  been the lone representative of the Cuda’s but had to bow out due to injury. That’s why Mukhamadullin was chosen to replace him.

#5 Marko, the AHL All Star Challenge is tonight at Tech CU this is a chance for those AHL players whose dream is it to have a career in the NHL to shine tonight.

#6 Just looking ahead the Barracuda next game is on Fri Feb 9 in Bakersfield against the Condors. The Barracuda in their last two games split with the Abbottsford Canucks last Friday and Saturday. The Condors on the other hand swept the Texas Stars in Cedar Park Texas last Friday and Saturday. How do you see this two game set with Bakersfield coming up?

Join Marko for the Barracuda podcasts each Monday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Western Conference takes down Eastern Conference in AHL All Star Skills Challenge 18-13

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San Jose Barracuda defenseman Shakir Mukhamadullin acknowledges the crowd at Tech CU Arena during the Skill Challenge at the AHL All-Star Classic on Sunday FEB, 4, 2024. (Titus Wilkinson-Sports Radio Service)

by Marko Ukalovic

SAN JOSE — The West was the best in Silicon Valley.

The Western Conference defeated the Eastern Conference 18-13 in the Skills Challenge at the AHL All-Star Classic on a stormy Sunday evening at Tech CU Arena.

Despite the bad conditions outside, a packed arena witnessed the AHL’s best players showcase their skills in seven different events in a team competition where the teams were led by honorary captains; former Sharks defenseman Dan Boyle and former assistant coach Wayne Thomas.

Ontario rookie forward Brandt Clarke led the West as he beat his brother Graeme Clarke of the Utica Comets in an Inglasco Puck Control Relay heat to clinch the event for the West giving them a 5-2 lead after one event.

The Hersey Bears’ Ethen Frank won his second consecutive CCM Fastest Skater title with a time of 13.032 seconds; only his record-setting lap of 12.915 seconds in 2023 has been faster in the event’s history. Milwaukee Admirals’ Spencer Stastney came in second place with a time of 13:41. Texas Stars’ Matej Blumel had the best time for the West with a time of 13:64.

Cleveland Monsters’ goalie Jet Greaves won the Rapid Fire event as he stopped nine shots giving the East the victory in the competition. Bears’ goalie Clay Stevenson finished second with seven saves. Iowa Wild goalie Jesper Wallstedt gave the West’s best effort with six saves.

Colorado Eagles’ Riley Tufte won the CCM Hardest Shot contest with a blast of 100.9 MPH to edge out the Bears’ Dylan Mcllrath who fired a shot at 100.8 MPH. Bakersfield Condors’ Raphael Lavoie finished third with a shot of 99.7 MPH.

Clarke extended the West lead 7-4 when he went a perfect four-for-four in the Sharks Ice Accuracy Shooting event to win his second events of the evening. Clarke became the fifth AHL player ever to hit four targets in four attempts.

“My mentality at the start was not to mess up too hard. I didn’t want to go 0-for-8. I wanted to hit one, then hit the next one. Yeah, I just got into a rhythm, and it was good,” Clarke said.

The West finished off the East in the last event of the competition as they won the Upper Deck Breakaway Relay event. The highlight of the entire event, not just the relay event, for the hometown crown was the last shooter of the event, San Jose Barracuda’s Shakir Mukhamadullin scoring on his breakaway attempt to cap off a fun evening for the fans in attendance.

Mukhamadullin was not able to attend the Red Carpet or and was late to appear on the ice during the Skills Competition due to a delay in the Barracuda flying back from Abbotsford, British Colombia, Canada where they played the Canucks the night before. The ‘Cuda defenseman came on to the ice with a half hour remaining to a standing ovation from the crowd.

“It’s a good thing for me, I like when the fans get loud. I love the ‘Cuda fans and all the other fans, I thank you who came from other cities,” Mukhamadullin said.

The 2024 AHL All-Star Classic presented by Tech CU continues on Monday with the AHL Hall of Fame Induction and Awards Ceremony 11:00 am, featuring the enshrinement of Dennis Bonvie, Gordie Clark, Gerry Ehman and former Barracuda head coach, Roy Sommer, the winningest head coach in AHL history.

The league’s mid-season showcase wraps up Monday night at 6:00pm with the 2024 AHL All-Star Challenge, a round-robin tournament among the league’s four divisions played at 3-on-3.

Canucks over come two-goal deficit to upend Barracuda 3-2

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Abbotsford Canucks winger Danila Klimovich (#18) looks to shoot the puck past San Jose Barracuda forward Tanner Kaspick (#41) during the Canucks 3-2 win over the Barracuda at Abbotsford Centre on Saturday JAN 3, 2024. (Abbotsford Canucks)

by Marko Ukalovic

The San Jose Barracuda headed into the All-Star break on a losing note.

The Abbotsford Canucks scored three unanswered goals in the second period to overcome a two-goal deficit in 3-2 victory over its Pacific Division rival on Saturday evening at the Abbotsford Centre.

Abbotsford head into the break winning two of its last three games. San Jose headed into the break losing two of its past three games.

San Jose (14-22-7-0) drew first blood in the early in the first period with an even strength goal. Thomas Bordeleau’s wrist’s shot was redirected past Canucks goalie Nikita Tolopilo by Ethan Cardwell for his 13th goal of the season at the 4:55 mark.

The Barracuda doubled its lead near the halfway mark of the second period with a power play goal. Kyle Rau set up Cole Cassels from behind the net with a pass out to the slot and Cassels blasted a one timer past Tolopilo for his sixth goal of the season at the 9:15 mark.

Abbotsford (23-14-3-2) began their comeback with a 5-on-3 power play goal just over three minutes later. Linus Karlsson picked up a puck along the boards. The Swedish right winger skated in and fired a rocket past ‘Cuda goalie Georgi Romanov for his 10th goal of the season at the 12:52 mark.

The Canucks scored the equalizer late in the middle frame when former ‘Cuda defenseman Nick Cicek burned his ex-team. Arshdeep Bains found Cicek while falling down on the ice with a pass and Cicek beat Romanov with a wrist shot for his third goal of the season at the 18:32 mark.

Abbotsford made San Jose for its undisciplined play with its second power play goal with 12 seconds left in the period. Max Sasson scored a tic-tac-toe goal with a wrist shot from the slot for his 13th goal of the season.

San Jose failed to score the equalizer late in the third period as they ended the game short-handed when Ethan Frisch went to the sinbin for interference.

Tolopilo finished the game stopping 24 of the 26 shots he faced to earn the victory. Romanov made 19 saves on 22 shots in the losing effort.

GAME NOTES: San Jose finished 1-for-3 on the power play. Abbotsford went 2-for-6.

The Three Stars of the Game: 1) Karlsson 2) Sasson 3) Cicek.

UP NEXT: San Jose hosts the AHL All-Star Classic at Tech CU Arena on Sunday 2/4 with the Skills Competition and Monday 2/5 with the All-Star Game.

Barracuda hold on to win first of back-to-backs against Abbotsford 2-1

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Photo courtesy of San Jose Barracuda.

By Titus Wilkinson (@TitusWisme)

The Barracuda took on the Canucks in the first of back-to-backs on Friday night.

In goal for San Jose was Georgi Romanov who coming into this game had a 3-5-3 record with a 3.63 GAA and .889 SV%. While on the other side, it was Artūrs Šilovs who had a 13-7-5 record with a 2.86 GAA and a .901%.

A little over a minute into this one the Barracuda were given a great opportunity to get on the board due to high-sticking penalty against Abbotsford. However, the Canucks penalty kill did their job and kept them off the scoreboard.

Despite the power play not clicking San Jose would find the back of the net at 10:13 as Nathan Todd scored his 10th goal of the season.

The Barracuda continued to push and were able to extend their lead as Kyle Rau scored his third of the campaign against his former team giving them a solid two-goal lead. On the goal, Gannon Laroque got his first point of the season and only the second of his career in the AHL.

The middle frame saw neither team find the back of the net as defense and goaltending reigned supreme. There were two penalties in the period one against Ethan Frisch for hooking and the other against Jett Woo also for hooking.

Looking to hold on to their lead the Barracuda tried to clamp things down in their own end. They were able to do that until 16 minutes in when Marc Gatcomb scored his fifth of the season cutting San Jose’s lead down to one.

Things got stressful for the road team especially as Vancouver pulled Šilovs 16:56 into the period. Abbotsford was not able to do much with the extra man and San Jose held on to win 2-1 in what ended up being a very close game.

For Romanov it was a very good showing as he made 30 saves in what must have been a big confidence booster for him.

Both teams penalty kills also went perfect as San Jose killed off two while Abbotsford killed off three.

The Barracuda have to feel good about this win as historically they do not well against the Canucks as over the last five seasons they are 6-9-1-0.

This win also improves San Jose’s record to 14-21-7 while the Canucks fall to 22-14-3.

The three stars of the game were: 1st: Georgi Romanov 2nd: Tanner Caspick 3rd: Marc Gatcomb

San Jose will look to get one final win in tomorrow before they head back to San Jose for the all-star break.

That game will be on at 7 p.m. and will be against these same Canucks.

San Jose Barracuda podcast with Titus Wilkinson: Barracuda open road trip in Abbottsford against Canucks Friday night

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San Jose Barracuda forward Kyle Rau takes a fall on his back and is surrounded by Calgary Wranglers at the Tech CU Center in San Jose on Sat Jan 27. 2024 (San Jose Barracuda photo)

On the SJ Barracuda podcast with Titus Wilkinson:

#1 Things got off to a quick start in this one as just 2:28 in Ilya Solovyov scored his third of the season giving Calgary an early lead.

#2 Before the period came to a close San Jose would pull away as Thomas Bordeleau got his ninth putting the home crowd on their feet.

#3 Not only was Calgary’s power play doing well they also had a lot of chances in the period as they registered 21 shots.

#4 If there is any positive San Jose’s new acquisition Jordy Bellerive seems to be fitting in well as he scored last game and had an assist in this one.

#5 The Barracuda will have some time off before they play again on Friday against the Canucks on the road at 7 p.m.

Titus Wilkinson filled in for Marko Ukalovic for the SJ Barracuda podcast heard Mondays at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Barracuda battle but eventually fall to Wranglers 3-2

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Photo courtesy of San Jose Barracuda. Thomas Bordeleau celebrates his goal against the Wranglers (photo taken on 1/27/24).

By Titus Wilkinson (@TitusWisme)

SAN JOSE- After beating the Wranglers yesterday the Barracuda looked to repeat their success in front of their home crowd.

For San Jose this time it would be Georgi Romanov in goal while Dustin Wolf played his second game in a row as the starter.

Things got off to a quick start in this one as just 2:28 in Ilya Solovyov scored his third of the season giving Calgary an early lead.

San Jose responded even faster as less than a minute later Jacob Peterson tied it getting his fifth of the campaign.

Before the period came to a close San Jose would pull away as Thomas Bordeleau got his ninth putting the home crowd on their feet.

Special teams would play a big role in the middle frame as Calgary would take the lead on two power-play goals. One was scored by Brady Lyle while Jonathon Aspirot got the other.

Not only was Calgary’s power play doing well they also had a lot of chances in the period as they registered 21 shots.

Interestingly enough though the third ended up being sort of the inverse of that as Calgary only registered three shots in the period.

San Jose also wasn’t really able to muster much on offense leading them to drop the second of back-to-backs against the Wranglers 3-2.

With the loss, the Barracuda fall to 13-21-7 while Calgary improves to 23-13-3.

If there is any positive San Jose’s new acquisition Jordy Bellerive seems to be fitting in well as he scored last game and had an assist in this one.

Cole Cassels also registered his 22nd assist of the season on the Bordeleau goal showing once again why he is one of the better playmakers on the team.

The shots in this one favored Calgary 39-33 while San Jose went 0/3 on the power play and Calgary went 2/4.

The three stars of the game were: 1st: Ilya Solovyov 2nd: Jonathon Aspirot 3rd: Georgi Romanov

The Barracuda will have some time off before they play again on Friday against the Canucks on the road at 7 p.m.

Makiniemi makes 37 saves to secure a shutout victory for the Barracuda over Calgary 3-0

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Photo courtesy of San Jose Barracuda.

By Titus Wilkinson (@TitusWisme)

SAN JOSE- The Barracuda looked to extend their winning streak against the Wranglers on Friday night.

In between the pipes for San Jose was Eetu Makiniemi while for the Wranglers Dustin Wolf was in goal.

The first period was rather uneventful, with no goals and the Wranglers getting the most of the chances with 15 shots on goal.

The one penalty in the period was killed off by San Jose as Valtteri Pulli was called for holding.

It took a while to get a goal but 13:24 into the second Ethan Frisch got his first career AHL goal.

Then on the power play San Jose extended their lead to two as Nathan Todd got his ninth goal of the season.

The second period also saw plenty of penalties mainly taken by Calgary as they took five.

The final frame saw the home team pull away even further as Jordy Bellerive scored his fourth of the campaign.

Makiniemi was then able to secure the shutout which was his second of the season as he made 37 saves.

Neither team’s powerplay was all that notable except for the penalty kill as Calgary went 0/4 while San Jose went 1/4.

The shots in this one favored Calgary 37-21.

The three stars of the game were: 1st: Eetu Makiniemi 2nd: Ethan Firsch 3rd: Valterri Pulli

The Barracuda will look to extend this winning streak to three at home as they will play Calgary tomorrow at 6 p.m.

Barracuda snap nine-game losing streak with win over Condors 5-3

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Photo courtesy of San Jose Barracuda.

By Titus Wilkinson (@TitusWisme)

SAN JOSE- The Barracuda returned home to take on the Barracuda on Wednesday night.

Getting the start in goal for San Jose was Eetu Makiniemi while Olivier Rodrigue was in between the pipes for the Condors.

Looking to get out of this losing streak the Barracuda did not do themselves any favors going down early in this one. The first period saw the Condors strike out to a 2-0 lead thanks to goals by Carter Savoie and Ty Tullio.

Rodrigue was decently busy in the first for Bakersfield as he made 14 saves to keep San Jose off the board.

The middle frame saw quite the swing in momentum as on the power play just 5:42 in Cole Cassels scored his fifth of the season to make it 2-1.

Then on another power play not long after the Barracuda struck again with all-star Danil Gushchin potting his 14th of the campaign.

With the game now suddenly tied San Jose pushed for more and would score their third striaght goal as recently demoted Scott Sabourin capitalized on his oppurunity.

The Condors looked to be reeling heading into the final frame as Oskar Lindblom extended the home teams lead to 4-2 7:48 into the period.

Bakersfield however would not give up as Matvey Petrov scored his fourth of the season to make it a one goal game.

While the Condors would pull Rodrigue it was not enough to tie the game as Jack Studnicka scored on the empty cage to seal the deal.

The win improves San Jose’s record to 12-20-7 while the Condors fall to 18-12-1.

Of note was the Barracuda’s power play which went a perfect 2/2 while the Condors went 0/3. The shots also favored San Jose 40-38.

The three stars of the game were: 1st: Oskar Lindblom 2nd: Scott Sabourin 3rd: Danil Gushchin

Looking to continue their winning ways the Barracuda will play the Wranglers on Friday at home at 7 p.m.