The San Jose Barracuda faced off last night with the Bakersfield Condors, resulting in a 2-3 loss for San Jose. The Condors were on a six-game losing streak, making this the first game the team has won since Feb. 8. As for the ‘Cuda, February is looking rough. The team has lost 7 of its last 11 games.
Last night’s game was very physical, especially in the first two periods, with a total of 18 penalties, the ‘Cuda being responsible for ten of them. Andrew Poturalski had served three by the end of the game.
Things didn’t start off so poorly. In the first period, Thomas Bordeleau got the Barracuda on the board first when he slid a puck into the net.
With 20 seconds left in the first, Bakersfield snuck in a goal by Alex Swetlikoff, tying the game by the end of the first. The second period started very strong, with a total of 11 penalties coming from both teams. Power plays and penalty kills made up the majority of the second period, causing some difficulty for both teams to score until Bakersfield’s Connor Carrick made his fourth shot in one minute on ‘Cuda goaltender Gabriel Carriere while on the power play.
The second period ended on a ‘Cuda power play, giving the team a strong start in the third period with a goal by Danil Guschin 34 seconds in.
Cameron Wright of the Condors gave Bakersfield the lead later in the period and then the win, as the ‘Cuda did not score again.
Throughout this game, we saw a lot of roughing and aggression. Several tussles broke out every couple of minutes. The tensions were incredibly high, maybe causing some distress to the ‘Cuda. Not that the energy is not to blame for this loss. Head Coach John McCarthy addressed the media postgame in regards to the loss:
“Tonight we were flat. We were flat from the drop of the puck, I think,” said McCarthy.
When asked about what needs to improve for a win on Saturday, it was not just one thing.
“We’ve got to take care of the puck. We have to value the puck; we have to break out better,” said McCarthy. “It’s not just one area, I think. We just got to play with some passion.”
Last night may have been a hard loss in San Jose, but Gabriel Carriere had an astonishing 37-save game, making it his best this season.
Bordeleau on his game
Bordeleau had an incredibly physical game last night, serving two penalties, having numerous breakaways, and scoring his twelfth goal of the season. As hard as it is to lose to a team coming off a six-game winless streak, it’s important to highlight what San Jose did good last night, Bordeleau being a key part of it.
When asked about what personal strategies may have worked and how the team helped create opportunities, Bordeleau gave credit where it was due.
“We’re just trying to set the tone. You want to let the other guys know your presence, and you are here to play physical,” said Bordeleau, who then talked about where it may have gone wrong.
“We kind of slacked off on the puck management at the end and it cost us,” he said.
And that lack of attention put the Barracuda in penalty trouble.
“We’ve seen games like that before, and it wasn’t really more physical than a lot of games that we’ve played,” Bordeleau said. “We can’t take that many penalties, myself included. We spent the whole second period on the PK, so it definitely does not help.”
The ‘Cuda continue to fight for a spot in this year’s playoffs. Coach McCarthy has the strategies and improvements fresh in his mind in preparation for Saturday’s faceoff against the Henderson Silver Knights in San Jose. Can they bring a positive type of physical energy?
The ‘Cuda return to Tech CU on Saturday.
Scoring summary Bakersfield Condors at San Jose Barracuda Feb. 26, 2025
First Period
SJ Thomas Bordeleau from Gabriel Carriere
BAK Alex Swetlikoff from Phil Kemp and Noah Philp
Second period
BAK Connor Carrick from Seth Griffith and Derek Ryan
Third period
SJ Danil Guschin from Rem Pitlick and Luca Cagnoni
BAK Cameron Wright unassisted
