BARRACUDA BLANKED BY FIREBIRDS, 4-0
Feb 15, 2024Palm Desert, CA – The San Jose Barracuda (16-23-8-0) had its three-game point streak snapped on Thursday night at Acrisure Arena against the Coachella Valley Firebirds (28-12-4-2) as Chris Driegder made 25 saves en-route to a 4-0 win. For the veteran goaltender, it was his second consecutive shutout. With the victory, the Firebirds have now collected points in its last 10.
In the first, the Barracuda were outshot 13-6, and at 15:24, the Firebirds would open the scoring as Kole Lind (10) went Backhand-to-forehand. Just 16 seconds later, Artem Guryev threw a hit on Andrew Poturalski which resulted in Guryev being given a match penalty for a hit to the head. Due to the penalty, the Barracuda were forced to play with five defensemen for the rest of the game.
In the second, both Magnus Chrona and Driedger were outstanding, making multiple high-end saves to keep it at 1-0 score after 40 minutes.
The Firebirds would extend their lead just 1:25 into the third when Max McCormick (20) was left uncovered in front of the net. In total, each team would put nine shots on net in the period, but the Firebirds would pot empty-net goals from Ryan Winderton (14) and Marian Studenic (10) to seal the win.
The Barracuda wrap up their three-game road trip in Bakersfield on Saturday as they faceoff with the Condors. The Barracuda return home on Wednesday, Feb. 21 as they host the Firebirds and kick off a three-game homestand. For more info about upcoming promotions and tickets, go to SJBarracuda.com.