The San Diego Gulls first season in the American Hockey League ended Saturday night with a 2-1 loss at Ontario, as the Reign won the Calder Cup Pacific Division Finals four games to one.
The Gulls were outshot, 26-16, including by an 8-2 margin in the first period, and were scoreless in four power-play opportunities against the American Hockey League‘s top penalty killing team during the regular season.
“I certainly think we could have played better,” coach Dallas Eakins said. “I think our execution wasn’t there. I think we were a little mentally pooched,” which Eakins later explained meant being mentally tired.
Justin Auger, Ontario’s 6-foot-7-inch right wing who scored the game- winning goal, credited the victory to capitalizing on opportunities.
“When we had a chance to put the puck in the net we made sure we did,” Auger said.
Two players who scored winning goals earlier in the series combined on the game-winner tonight.
Auger broke a 1-1 tie by scoring on a two-on-one rush eight minutes, 56 seconds into the second period off an assist by Mike Amadio. Augur scored in overtime in Game 2 of the best-of-seven series last Saturday and Amadio scored in overtime in Game 4 Friday.
Auger was celebrating his 22nd birthday, a night after Amadio celebrated his 20th birthday.
Auger’s goal came 25 seconds after Gulls center Chris Wagner tied the score off Nick Ritchie’s assist.
“They scored a goal, it kind of takes some of the energy out of the building,” Auger said. “To get a goal right back after gets everybody fired back up.”
Following a scoreless first period, Reign left wing Joel Lowry opened the scoring at 2:33 of the second period, intercepting Gulls goaltender Matt Hackett’s attempt to clear the puck from behind the goal and putting a shot into an unguarded net.
“Our goalie saw an opening to move the puck and he made the choice to put it there and it got picked off,” Eakins said. “Those mistakes are made sometimes. As much that looked like a glaring mistake, he made three or four 10- bell saves out there that kept us in the game. We’re not going to hang him on a mistake like that when he saved us multiple times.”
A tripping penalty to Ontario right wing Sean Backman with 1:09 left in the third period and Eakins’ decision to pull Hackett for a sixth attacker gave the Gulls six skaters to the Reign’s four in the game’s final minute. However, they were unable to tie the score, with goaltender Peter Budaj stopping Matt Bailey’s shot on a rebound from deep in the left faceoff circle on the final shot.
Hackett made 24 saves, starting in place of Anton Khudobin for the fifth consecutive game. Khudobin did not dress for the series because of an upper- body injury sustained in the first-round series-clinching 6-2 victory over the Texas Stars April 29.
Budaj made 15 saves before a crowd at Citizens Business Bank Arena announced at 7,230.
“He made some huge saves,” Auger said.
Three of the losses in the series by the Gulls, the Anaheim Ducks AHL affiliate, came by one goal, including two in overtime. The fourth loss was by two goals, including an empty netter.
Ontario, the Los Angeles Kings AHL affiliate, advances to the Western Conference Finals against the winner of the Central Division Finals between the Lake Erie Monsters and Grand Rapids Griffins.
The Reign won the Calder Cup in 2015 as the Manchester Monarchs.
— City News Service
