Gulls Biweekly Report 13

By Thomas Harrington

For the first time since 2022, the San Diego Gulls are returning to the Calder Cup Playoffs!

The Gulls played five games over the past two weeks, and had a record of 4-1. San Diego will most likely finish seventh in the Pacific Division and face the Colorado Eagles in the first round, but there’s a chance they could climb a couple of spots in the division. For that to happen, the Gulls would need to win their final three games and for the teams ahead of them to lose the rest of the way.

San Diego started out by hosting the Tucson Roadrunners. Tyson Hinds opened the scoring in the first and neither team found the back of the net in the second period. Jan Mysak made it 2-0 early in the third, and Nico Matovic finished the game with an empty net goal, giving the Gulls a 3-0 victory. Calle Clang stopped all 27 shots he faced for his third shutout of the season. Herman Traff made his AHL debut in this game but was scoreless. San Diego then hosted the Bakersfield Condors. Neither team scored in the first period, but Bakersfield scored two quick goals early in the second before the Gulls just went on a run. Ryan Carpenter and Cal Burke scored to tie the game, then Justin Bailey scored twice, and Sasha Pastujov scored in the final minute to make it a 5-2 game. The Condors did score once early in the third, but Matthew Phillips scored the final goal to make it a 6-3 game. Roger McQueen made his AHL debut in this game, and he picked up an assist on Phillips’ goal.

The Gulls then hit the road for three straight games, starting in San Jose against the Barracuda. Phillips opened the scoring just over two minutes into the contest, but San Jose responded with two goals of their own to make it 2-1 after the first period. In the second period, Pastujov tied the game, and then Nathan Gaucher put San Diego on top. In the third, Sam Colangelo scored early, and Gaucher finished things off with an empty net goal, giving the Gulls a 5-2 win.

San Diego then played two games in Bakersfield. McQueen scored his first career AHL goal just over a minute into the game. The Condors then scored twice before Bailey tied the game. In the second, Bakersfield scored three times to take a 5-2 lead. In the third, Pastujov scored the only goal and San Diego lost 5-3. Lucas Pettersson made his AHL debut in this game and was scoreless. In the final game, Yegor Sidorov opened the scoring, but Bakersfield scored twice to take the lead. In the second, Phillips, Gaucher, Bailey, and Myatovic all scored to give the Gulls a 5-2 lead. The Condors scored in the third, but Tristan Luneau and Stian Solberg both scored empty net goals. San Diego won 7-3 and clinched the final spot in the Pacific Division. Matt Basgall made his AHL debut in this game and recorded an assist on Myatovic’s goal. Damian Clara got his first start of the season and won his first career AHL game.

The Gulls have three games left in the regular season. They’ll start out at home by hosting Tucson, and then travel to Ontario to face the Reign. San Diego will finish the regular season at home, hosting the Coachella Valley Firebirds.

The Anaheim Ducks announced they have agreed to a multi-year contract extension with Gulls head coach Matt McIlvane. Also Tristan Luneau was recalled by Anaheim today.

Several players have joined San Diego as their respective seasons have come to an end. McQueen has made the biggest impact, with three points in four games, while Basgall has one point in one game, Pettersson is scoreless in two games, Traff is scoreless in one game, and Clara has won his lone start. Other players could join the Gulls in the final week of the regular season, but given how full San Diego’s roster currently is, they likely won’t see much playing time if any do.

San Diego has done what they set out to do at the start of the season, get back to the playoffs. However, they still have a chance to improve their seeding and maybe even make a run once the post season begins. It’s great to see them get to this point. Hopefully, now the Gulls can take the next step.

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April 15th, 2026