SAN DIEGO – The San Diego Gulls (7-5-1-0) won their franchise-record fifth consecutive game as they defeated the Bakersfield Condors (6-8-0-0) 3-2 in overtime in front of 7,855 fans at Rabobank Arena. Corey Tropp scored the game-winning goal in the extra session and extended his point streak (4-4=8) to a career-high six games after collecting 1-1=2 points for his fifth multi-point game of the season.
San Diego earned a power play midway through overtime and it was Tropp who made the man advantage count as he finished off a cross-ice pass from Kalle Kossila to clinch the 3-2 victory for the Gulls.
The Gulls are now 5-0-1 when they score the first goal of the game and 6-0-1 leading after two periods.
San Diego struck first in the opening meeting of the season between the Pacific Divisional opponents when Nick Sorensen gave the Gulls an early 1-0 lead as his snapshot from the slot trickled through Condors goaltender Nick Ellis. Sorensen’s second goal of the season came after he missed the previous five games due to an injury and now has two goals in his last three games.
A few moments after Sorensen’s opening tally, San Diego ran into penalty trouble and managed to survive a Bakersfield five-on-three man advantage for 1:13. Defensemen Jaycob Megna and Jeff Schultz provided key blocks, while goaltender Matt Hackett stood tall in net to preserve the lead.
Hackett came up big again late in the period as he denied Anton Lander on a point-blank chance and the Gulls took a 1-0 lead into the dressing room.
At the 5:22 mark of the second period, Hackett would leave the game due to an upper-body injury sustained during a flurry in front of the San Diego net with Bakersfield on the power play. Hackett stopped all 14 shots faced tonight after he led the Gulls to a 4-0 shutout win in his last appearance on Nov. 19 vs. San Jose. Dustin Tokarski came on in relief of Hackett and made numerous saves on the penalty kill before heading into the second intermission.
The Gulls generated several chances late in the second period, but Ellis was up to the task and San Diego maintained their 1-0 edge after 40 minutes of play. The Condors’ 15 shots were the most San Diego had given up in a second period since Nov. 5 vs Stockton.
Early in the third period, Bakersfield would tie the game as Lander (1-1=2) poked in a loose rebound and teddy bears flooded the ice as the Condors celebrated their 18th-annual Teddy Bear Toss night. For the Gulls, Lander’s goal snapped a season-long 108:02 shutout streak dating back to Nov. 18 vs San Jose.
Minutes later, Taylor Beck was left alone in front of Tokarski and gave the Condors a 2-1 lead as he recorded his team-leading seventh goal on the power play, ending the Gulls’ streak of 12 consecutive penalties killed.
A sea-saw third period continued as Kevin Roy knotted the game at two as he scored in his sixth goal of the season off a Corey Tropp shot that skipped off the boards behind Ellis and popped in front of the net.
Gulls netminder Dustin Tokarski (5-2-0-0) made 20 saves in relief of Hackett to earn his fifth win of the season in seven appearances, and has now picked up wins in three straight. Bakersfield goaltender Nick Ellis (3-2-1-0) stopped 38 of 41 shots in the loss
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