The Gulls kick-off their 2022 playoff run with a lose against the Ontario Reign.
On Wednesday night, San Diego Gulls dropped game 1 away against the Ontario Reign, and they now could end tonight with an elimination from the 2022 Calder Cup playoffs.
The Gulls, as planned according to head coach Joel Bouchard, came out exactly how they wanted to entering the game.
"I thought we were prepared," Gulls head coach Joel Bouchard stated after the game. "We came out exactly like we did. I think a couple of plays and they score and then we got affected by it. It took us a little while and then I thought we settled in, we were one goal away. Then, we give their power play some momentum – like some chances and they got some momentum. I don’t think it was our best overall.
Gulls defenseman Trevor Carrick gave credit to the home team after the game, in large part due to the veterans playing for Ontario, and their ability to apply enough pressure to make the Gulls fall apart after the first score.
"I don’t know. It kind of just fell apart after that, after they got their first goal. It’s a veteran team there. We knew that they weren’t going to sit back and they were going to push. That’s exactly what they did. Us being a younger team, we kinda got down a little bit and sat back and we can’t do that against a high-flying team like that. They’re kind of a run-and-gun team and they’re going to keep going. So, we have to push back and get it back in their zone and we were kinda unable to do that."
However, coach Bouchard recognizes that the Gulls shouldn't be entirely considered out of the tournament just yet, as San Diego do have experienced former NHL players that can possible switch things around tonight on the verge of elimination.
"That being said, we have a lot of guys that just came with us, like first game for a lot of guys with us and some guys coming back from the NHL. So, I think we can be tighter, which will help us a little bit on both sides of the ice. I think the game got away from us a little bit and then we came back with a goal and it kind of got away from us a little bit again."
The Gulsl will look to extend this series to 3 games tonight, as they face-off the Reign for game 2 tonight at the Toyota Center at 7 p.m.
