Tag: AHL

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

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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

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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.

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

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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

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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

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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.

Barracuda sweep weekend series vs. Gulls with 2-1 win

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Photo credit: @sjbarracuda

By: Ana Kieu

The San Jose Barracuda and San Diego Gulls sequel was released Saturday at the Valley View Casino Center. In case you missed it, San Jose fended off San Diego’s comeback and escaped with a 3-2 victory last night.

The Barracuda’s starting lineup consisted of Rudolfs Balcers, Danny O’Regan, Marcus Sorensen, Jacob Middleton, Nick DeSimone and Antoine Bibeau.

The Barracuda’s Twitter account had some fun before the game. San Jose tweeted, “The national anthem is way more exciting when the audio and video don’t match up. #PregameThoughts.”

Former NHL player and first black NHLer, Willie O’Ree, did a spectacular job on his ceremonial puck drop.

It didn’t take long for the Barracuda to draw first blood, as DeSimone scored an early goal, just one minute into the opening period. Middleton and Filip Sandberg collected the assists on DeSimone’s goal.

The Gulls quickly responded with a game-tying goal from Nic Kerdiles. Kerdiles stood on the door step and banged in Dennis Rasmussen’s rebound for the equalizer.

The Barracuda-Gulls rivalry was in full effect, as Brandon Mashinter and Jaycob Megna dropped the gloves with each other for an action-packed fight.

Both teams were tied at one apiece after 20 minutes of play.

The Barracuda were apparently ready to rock in the second period. Meanwhile, the Gulls announced a scoring change: Rasmussen got credit for their first goal; the with assist came from Deven Sideroff.

Bibeau made a noteworthy save in the period, but did you expect anything less from this Barracuda goaltender?

The Barracuda took back their lead, 2-1, on the power play. Julian Bergman scores on a shot from the point. Sorensen and O’Regan collected the assists on Bergman’s go-ahead goal.

The Barracuda led the Gulls 2-1 after 40 minutes of play. Shots were 25-22 in favor of San Jose.

Bibeau came up big in the third period. Also, the Barracuda were a perfect 3-for-3 on the penalty kill. The Gulls guessed Bibeau was going to the AHL All-Star Game or something after witnessing Sam Carrick being denied on the breakaway.

The Barracuda had a huge opportunity on what turned out to be a wild power play. John McCarthy’s shot was denied and then Eric Fehr was denied on the other end.

The crowd in San Diego was reportedly loud and looking for a tie. In other news, O’Regan spent some time showing off his silky smooth handles behind the Gulls’ net.

The Gulls pulled their goalie Kevin Boyle for an extra attacker with 1:40 left in regulation. But their change didn’t help them out as the Barracuda escaped with a 2-1 win. The Sharks also beat the Penguins 2-1. That being said, it was a great day for both San Jose hockey teams.

Three Stars of the Game
1. Bibeau (28 saves)
2. DeSimone (1 goal)
3. Bergman (1 goal)

Notes
The Sharks recalled goaltender Troy Grosenick from the Barracuda.

SD Ducks Sled Hockey came out to the Gulls’ Diversity Night.

San Francisco 49ers assistant coach Katie Sowers attended the game.

Up Next
The Barracuda return to action when they host the Texas Stars Tuesday at 7:30 pm CT.

Barracuda snap losing streak against Gulls with 3-2 victory

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Photo credit: @sjbarracuda

By Marko Ukalovic

The San Jose Barracuda (18-16-0-2) were finally able to take some revenge in their house of horrors known as the Valley View Casino Center as they escaped with a 3-2 victory over the San Diego Gulls (20-16-1-0). They snapped their nine-game losing streak in San Diego. It was their first regular season regulation win in San Diego since November 14th, 2015.

After allowing San Diego to score two unanswered goals in the third period to tie the score, the Barracuda didn’t take long to regain the lead. The tie would last just 16 seconds as Brandon Mashinter would get a gift from San Diego’s Brian Cooper whose backhanded attempt to clear the puck went right to Mashinter and he fired a shot in one motion past Gulls goalie Reto Berra (9-6-0) who wasn’t expecting the shot. The unassisted goal was his seventh goal on the season at the 5:38 mark to give the Barracuda a 3-2 lead.

San Jose took control of the first period as they outshot San Diego 18-8. Captain John McCarthy created one of the many scoring chances for the Barracuda when he created a turnover in the Gulls zone, but his shot was stopped by Berra. Barracuda goalie Antoine Bibeau (11-7-0) matched Berra a short time later making a nice save on a point blank shot attempt by Nic Kerdiles.

The Barracuda would cash in when Danny O’Reagan blasted a shot on goal that was stopped by Berra that created a rebound and a mad scramble in front of the net. Defenseman Redim Simek raced in from the blue line and scored his third goal on the season on a bang bang play snapping a shot past Berra at the 8:15 mark. Simek got off a big schneid as that was his first goal in the last 23 games. Filip Sandberg also received an assist on the play. It was the first time San Jose had a lead at the Valley View Casino Center this season.

In the second period, the Gulls controlled play as they put pressure on the Barracuda early in the period. Bibeau made a brilliant save on Kerdiles five minutes into the frame. San Diego forced the Barracuda in taking consecutive penalties just moments before the midway point through the period.

However, Marcus Sorensen would turn the tables on the league-leading Gulls power play when he scored a short-handed goal on a 2-on-1 break with O’Reagan. Simek joined the play and took a pass from O’Regan, but his shot attempt was blocked. Sorensen was able to corral the puck and snipe it past Berra for his sixth goal of the season at 8:49 mark of the second period for a 2-0 lead.

In the third period, the Gulls would breakthrough early as they were able to keep the puck inside the Barracuda zone after a failed clearing attempt. Kevin Roy came on a fresh line change and was able to snap home a shot past Bibeau for his seventh goal of the season at the 3:26 mark. Dennis Rasmussen and Julius Nattinen assisted on the goal.

Roy would score again just under two minutes later and tied the game on the power play at the 5:22 mark after putting home a rebound off a mad scramble in front of the net after a shot hit off the crossbar. Roy was able to beat Barracuda defenseman Paul Martin to the puck and net his eighth goal of the season.

The Gulls had a goal waved off by Kalle Kossila with 3:50 left in the third period as the referees ruled the puck never crossed over the line. They had a chance to tie the game late in the game when Simek went into the sin bin for tripping with three minutes left and had a 6-on-4 advantage when they pulled Berra for an extra attacker, but could not get the equalizer.

Bibeau earned his 11th victory of the season on 27 shots on 29 shots. It was his third straight win. Berra took the loss on 43 saves on 46 shots.

GAMES NOTES: The game was chippy throughout the game with lots of post whistle scrums. San Jose’s Brandon Bollig and San Diego’s Ryan White exchanged fisticuffs in the first period. San Jose went 0/3 on the power play, while San Diego was 1/5.

UP NEXT: The two teams will do it all over again on Saturday night from Valley View Casino Center. Faceoff is at 7pm.

Heat demolish Barracuda in 2-0 shutout win

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Photo credit: @sjbarracuda

By Marko Ukalovic

SAN JOSE, Calif. — Jon Gillies was rock-solid in the net and Andrew Mangiapane provided the offense for the Stockton Heat (19-12-2-3) shutout the San Jose Barracuda (17-16-0-2) 2-0 at SAP Center on Wednesday night.

The first period saw no one light up the red lamp. but both teams had plenty of scoring chances. The Barracuda had two opportunities to score on the power play, but weren’t able to get the puck past Gillies (12-8-4). San Jose had a 2-on-0 break in Stockton’s zone with three seconds left in the period but weren’t able to get a shot off in time. The Heat had their own opportunity on the power play, but thanks to a stifling penalty kill led by goalie Troy Grosenick (5-7-2) the teams headed into the first intermission scoreless. San Jose out shot Stockton 15-8.

Andrew Mangiapane broke the deadlock in the 2nd period when he scored his 15th goal on the season from the right slot. A bad turnover by the Cuda gave Mike McMurty a wide open scoring chance that went through the crease and found Mangiapane alone to bury the puck past Grosenick just over a minute into the period.

The Heat kept the ice tilted in their favor for the majority of the period. They out shot San Jose 10-7. The Cuda’s Rudolfs Balcers had a late scoring chance off a nice cross ice pass from Marcus Sorensen but the puck bounced over Balcers stick to keep the lead 1-0 for Stockton at the second intermission.

Mangiapane capped off the scoring with his second goal of the game with an empty netter with 38 seconds left in the game. His 16th goal on the season was assisted by Ryan Lomberg.

San Jose–who outshot Stockton 10-4 in the third period–had a chance to tie the score just 30 seconds into the period when Tyler Wotherspoon went to the sin bin for hooking, but the Barracuda couldn’t create enough traffic in front of Gillies to get the equalizer.

“It’s just a shame to lose a game like that tonight,” said head coach Roy Sommer. “We just didn’t make a lot of plays, we didn’t get a lot of second chances.”

Gillies earned his seventh shutout of the season and second consecutive shutout, stopping all 32 San Jose shots. Grosenick took the hard luck loss with 20 saves on 21 shots.

“We gave him (Grosenick) no offensive support tonight”, said Sommer. “Which sucks for him. It’s too bad when’s he been in there, we haven’t had any goals for him.”

GAME NOTES: This was the first game back for San Jose defenseman Paul Martin who cleared the NHL waivers yesterday and was assigned to the Barracuda. Martin is now healthy after being hampered by a lower body injury at the beginning of the season.

“It felt good. It’s something to be said playing some games, it’s been a while, it’s fun,” said Martin after the game.

Both teams went 0/3 on the power play.

With the loss, San Jose dropped to the bottom of the Pacific Division standing with 36 points. San Jose is now 3-2 against Stockton on the season.

UP NEXT: San Jose makes it second trip of the month down to San Diego, where they play two games over the weekend versus the Gulls. First game will be on Friday night at 7 pm PT at the Valley View Casino Center.

San Jose Barracuda Podcast with Marko Ukalovic: After getting overtime win past Bakersfield Barracuda looking to take on feisty Heat Wednesday

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On the San Jose Barracuda Podcast with Marko on Wednesday, Jan 17, 2018:

1) The San Jose Barracuda (17-15-0-2) Nick Desimone scored the game winning goal on Monday night as the Barracuda got a big win past the visiting Bakersfield Condors (16-15-6-0) 3-2 in overtime.

2) Condors goalie Laurent Brossoit (2-2-0) stopped Desimone’s shot, but Desimone got the rebound and shot it for the game-winner. This pretty much tells us about some of the close games the two teams play against each other.

3) How about Jacob Middleton’s pass to Emerson Clark for a goal at 2:01 in the first period?

4) In the second period, no scoring but plenty of action with the score tied 1-1 both goalies the Barracuda’s Antoine Bibeau (10-7-0) and Brossoit stopped all second period shots.

5) It’s the Stockton Heat at SAP Center on Wednesday night for Hockey Night in San Jose the Barracuda looking to get a home victory against a Heat team who gives them fits every time they visit.

Marko Ukalovic does the SJ Barracuda Podcasts each Wednesday and does all home and away games and Ana Kieu on away weekend Barracuda games at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

 

 

Nick DeSimone gets late goal in overtime to give Barracuda a 3-2 win over Condors

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Photo credit: @sjbarracuda

By Marko Ukalovic

SAN JOSE — Nick DeSimone scored the game-winning goal with five seconds left in overtime to give the San Jose Barracuda (17-15-0-2) a 3-2 victory over the Bakersfield Condors (16-15-6-0) in a Monday matinee on Martin Luther King Jr. Day at the SAP Center.

DeSimone was able to punch home his own rebound when his one-timer was initially stopped by Condors goalie Laurent Brossoit (2-2-0), but couldn’t freeze the puck as it trickled to the right of the crease and DeSimone didn’t waste his second chance.

“I kinda saw that he (Brossoit) didn’t know where the puck was,” said DeSimone on recounting his game winning goal. “I figured to just check behind him, and it was just sitting there. (I was) lucky enough to put it home.”

San Jose jumped out to a quick start drawing first blood as defenseman Jacob Middleton fired a cross-ice pass to a wide-open Emerson Clark at the right slot and he buried the puck past Condors backup goalie Laurent Brossoit (2-1-0) for his third goal of the season at the 2:01 mark of the first period. Adam Helewka would also pick up an assist on the play.

The Condors came back to tie up the game at the 6:12 mark of the first period when Patrick Russell was able to race past two Barracuda defensemen to the front of the net and tip in a shot past Antoine Bibeau (10-7-0) from Caleb Jones along the left boards. It was Russell’s seventh goal of the season.

The Barracuda had a chance to take the lead late in the first period when the No. 1 line of Danny O-Regan, Marcus Sorensen and Rudolfs Balcers put on a flurry of shots against Brossoit, only to come up empty-handed.

There was no scoring, but plenty of action in the second period. Thanks to some brilliant goaltending by both goalies, the score remained tied at 1 heading into the second intermission. Bibeau made a couple of point blank saves on separate shots by Ty Rattie and Iiro Pakarinen. Bibeau also came up with a huge save late in the second frame when Ryan Mantha created a turnover in the San Jose zone but Bibeau was able to glove his wrist shot. Brossoit was able to stone a Balcers point blank attempt right in front of the crease.

Jon Martin and Ryan Stanton got involved with some extracurricular activity in front of the Condors net after Brossoit froze the puck after a good scoring chance by the Barracuda. Martin received a double minor for roughing, but Bakersfield wasn’t able to take advantage on the power play.

Brad Malone broke the deadlock early in the third period with his 10th goal of the season. After taking a pass from Ryan Hamilton, he was able to dipsy-do his way to the front of the net and back handed a shot through the five-hole of Bibeau at the 4:40 mark.

Calvan Fitzgerald tied it back up after just coming onto the ice during a line change. O’Reagan found him with a wide-open pass as he skated down the middle of the ice where he was able to rifle in his third goal of the season past Brossoit a little over half way through the third period.

“It’s something we’ve been harpin on them to get up in the play,” said head coach Roy Sommer about his defensemen scoring goals as of late. “They gotta be apart of offense because we’re not scoring a lot up front.”

Bibeau earned the victory stopping 26 of 28 shots from the Condors. Brossoit took the defeat on 28 of 31 on the afternoon.

GAME NOTES: San Jose was able to keep Barracuda killer Josh Currie off the score sheet. Currie has scored 10 goals against the Cuda in his career. Both teams were both 0/1 on their only power play opportunity. The attendance of 5,218 was one of the biggest crowds of the season for the Barracuda.

UP NEXT: San Jose finishes up their four-game home stand when they take on the Stockton Heat on Wednesday evening at 7 pm PT at the SAP Center.