GAMEDAY: BARRACUDA VS FIREBIRDS
Dec 31, 2022SAN JOSE BARRACUDA (13-17-0-1) at COACHELLA VALLEY FIREBIRDS (19-6-3-0)
SAT, DEC. 31 | 3:00 P.M. | Tech CU Arena | San Jose, CA
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Firing Up: After a 4-0 loss to the Coachella Valley Firebirds (Seattle Kraken) on Friday, the Barracuda close out 2022, and continue its four-game homestand, on Saturday with the second of back-to-back games against the Firebirds. The Barracuda are 0-2 versus the Kraken’s top affiliate and enter Saturday having dropped its last seven in a row and are just 3-8 in December after beginning the month 2-0. The Firebirds have won four in a row and seven of eight and are tied with the Calgary Wranglers for the top spot in the Pacific Division.
New Beginnings: 2022 was a year to remember in franchise history as the Barracuda opened Tech CU Arena in August and welcomed John McCarthy as the team’s second head coach in franchise history, replacing long-time bench boss Roy Sommer. The Barracuda enter Saturday with a 21-43-3-3 record in 2022 and are clinging onto the final playoff spot in the Pacific Division after Friday’s 4-0 loss.
Road Warriors: The Firebirds enter Saturday having played a league-high 20 road games this season and rank third in road winning percentage (.775). Coachella Valley has won its last four straight on visiting ice and are a +20 in road goal differential and average 3.65 goals for per game.
Tough Times: After beginning December 2-0, the Barracuda have just one win over its last nine games, allowing 4.88 goals per game during the stretch and have dropped seven in a row. The Barracuda rank last in the league in goals (2.55) and 25th in goals against (3.48). Since beating the Tucson Roadrunners 6-0 on Nov. 20, the Barracuda have given up the first goal in 15 of its last 16, going 5-11 during the stretch.
Spiky Fish: The Barracuda rank second in the AHL in penalty minutes per game (19.42) and majors (20) and are first in minor penalties (186). Jeff Viel is second in the AHL in minors (22), third in penalty minutes (84), and T-fourth in majors (4).
Truth or Dare?: Former Barracuda and Sharks forward Alex True is in his second season within the Kraken organization after being Seattle’s Expansion Draft Pick from the Sharks in 2021. So far this year, True has 15 points (three goals, 12 assists) in 29 games with the Firebirds. The Denmark native is second in Barracuda franchise history in points (128), goals (59), assists (69) and is third in games played (128).
Player to Watch: After leading the AHL in scoring in 2021-22 with the Chicago Wolves and collecting his second Calder Cup championship, the Seattle Kraken signed veteran AHL forward Andrew Poturalski to a two-year, one-way contract this summer. The seventh-year pro, and former San Diego Gull, is pacing the Firebirds in scoring (8+22=30) through 28 games.
Rookie Arrivals: Rookie forward Thomas Bordeleau is pacing all AHL freshmen in goals (14), T-first in power-play goals (6), and power-play points (12), and T-third in scoring (21). Fellow rookie William Eklund is T-second among first-year players in points (22). Bordeleau (14), Tristen Robins (9), Eklund (8), Danil Gushchin (8), Brandon Coe (3), and Ozzy Wiesblatt (1) have accounted for 43 of the Barracuda’s 79 goals scored (54%), 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.