GAMEDAY: BARRACUDA AT CONDORS
Jan 28, 2023
SAN JOSE BARRACUDA (17-21-0-3) vs. BAKERSFIELD CONDORS (15-21-2-1)
SAT, JAN. 28 | 7:00 P.M. | Mechanics Bank Arena | Bakersfield, CA
LISTEN | WATCH | GAME NOTES | MEDIA KIT
Back in Bakersfield: After picking up a 4-1 win on Friday in Henderson, the Barracuda wrap up its three-game road trip on Saturday night at Bakersfield. The Barracuda are 2-1 against the Condors this season, 1-0 at the Mechanics Banks Arena, and are coming off a 5-1 loss at Tech CU Arena in the last matchup on Dec. 27. The Barracuda enter Saturday riding a four-game point streak (3-0-0-1), tied for the longest this season.
Major Movement: On Wednesday, The Sharks traded 2018 first-rounder Ryan Merkley, along with Matt Nieto, to the Colorado Avalanche for fellow 2018 first-rounder Martin Kaut and veteran defenseman Jacob MacDonald. Kaut, who set AHL career-highs in goals (19) and points (31) last year, has appeared in 27 games with the Avalanche this season and 10 games with the Eagles. On Friday, in his Barracuda debut, he scored and added an assist on Andrew Agozzino’s game-winning goal.
About Last Time: In the last meeting on Dec. 27 at Tech CU Arena, the Barracuda gave up three goals in the first period as Carter Savoie, Seth Griffith and Michael Kesselring all scored in the opening 20 minutes. Thomas Bordeleau got the Barracuda on the board with a power-play strike just 46 seconds into the second, but Griffith would notch another goal half-way through the second and then Raphael Lavoie would make it 5-1 just two minutes later. Olivier Rodrigue picked up the win by making 36 saves, while Strauss Mann suffered the loss, allowing five goals on 28 shots. The Condors finished the game with a pair of power-play goals. At the time it was the team’s sixth-straight loss.
Tale of the Tape: Both the Barracuda and Condors picked up road wins on Friday. The Cuda scored three times in the third period at Henderson en-route to a 4-1 victory, while the Condors erased a two-goal deficit in San Diego, beating the Gulls 4-3. Entering Saturday, SJ is 2-1 versus the Oilers affiliate and have a six-point edge for the final playoff spot in the Pacific Division, but have played three more games than the Condors. Bakersfield ranks 28th in goals for (2.77), 21st in goals against (3.31), 28th in shots for (28.79), 29th in shots against (32.33), 31st on the power play (14.5), and 20th on the penalty kill (79.0). The Barracuda rank 32nd in the AHL in goals for (2.57), 22nd in goals against (3.33) and are in the middle of the league on the PP and PK.
Friday Fun: The Barracuda notched three goals in the third period on Friday night at the Dollar Loan Center, upending the Henderson Silver Knights, 4-1. In the win, captain Andrew Agozzino notched three points (one goal, two assists), including the game-winning goal, Martin Kaut picked up a pair of points (one goal, one assist) in his debut, and Aaron Dell made 17 saves in the third period and 25 consecutive stops after giving up a goal in the first.
House of Horrors: Prior to its 2-1 win at Bakersfield on Nov. 26, the Barracuda had lost 10 in a row (0-7-2-1) at the Mechanics Banks Arena dating back to the start of the 2020-21 season, getting outscored 15-39 during the stretch. All-time the Barracuda are 13-17-3-3 on the road against the Condors. In the win on Nov. 26, Eetu Makiniemi made 25 saves and Danil Gushchin and C.J. Suess netted goals after Luke Esposito opened the scoring just 21 seconds into the first period. Despite going 2-0-0-1 over its last three home games, the Condors boast the second worst home winning percentage (.471) in the Pacific Division and rank 28th in the league.
Power of Pouliot: Defenseman Derrick Pouliot returned to the Barracuda lineup last Saturday after a 24-game absence due to an upper-body injury suffered on Nov. 16 against San Diego. The Barracuda are 10-5-0-2 with Pouliot in the lineup this year and 8-16-0-1 without him. In addition, when #55 has played this season, the Barracuda are 90% (64/71) on the PK as opposed to 74% (145/181) without him.
Resounding Rookies: Barracuda All-Star Thomas Bordeleau is T-first among all AHL freshmen in goals (18), first in power-play goals (8), and power-play points (17) and is T-fourth in scoring (29). Bordeleau (18), William Eklund (11), Tristen Robins (9), Danil Gushchin (9), Brandon Coe (3), and Ozzy Wiesblatt (1) have accounted for 51 of the Barracuda’s 106 goals scored (48%), the most among any rookie class this season. Wiesblatt (Rd 1, 31st overall), Bordeleau (Rd 2, 38th Overall), Robins (Rd 2, 56th Overall), Gushchin (Rd 3, 76th Overall), and Coe (Rd 4, 98th Overall) were all part of the Sharks historic nine-forward draft class in 2020.