Looking to clinch home ice advantage, Firebirds fall to Condors, 3-2, in overtime
Even in a loss, the Coachella Valley Firebirds on Friday inched closer to finishing the regular season with the best record in the Western Conference.
But the game was not a display of how Firebirds' head coach Dan Bylsma wants his team to be playing at this stage of the season.
The 3-2 overtime loss to the Bakersfield Condors in front of 8,301 inside Acrisure Arena came after what Bylsma said was a period and a half of uninspired hockey to start the game.
“I would say we were lacking in intent to start the game,” Bylsma said. “And our execution, our passing and our compete was kind of just ‘dip your toe in the water’ and hope to get the 60 minutes over with.”
The direction of the game seemed to flip when rookie forward Jacob Melanson sacrificed his body to create a turnover that generated a two-on-one rush in the second period. The tide — and the Firebirds’ effort — seemed to turn.
Captain Max McCormick scored Coachella Valley’s first goal to cut the deficit, and blueliner Jimmy Schuldt tied the game two minutes later to send it to overtime.
In the extended time, the Firebirds managed just one shot in more than four minutes before Philip Broberg scored his third goal in as many games to seal the win for the Condors.
Coachella Valley (44-14-6-4) finished the game 0-for-3 on the power play and 2-of-3 on the penalty kill. The Firebirds outshot the Condors, 32-29.
Goaltender Chris Driedger made 26 saves in the loss, which snapped an eight-game Firebirds win streak with Driedger minding the net.
The Firebirds, who will receive a point in the overtime loss, will now have to wait until Sunday in a home game against the San Diego Gulls to try again to clinch the best record in the conference. The significance of clinching would ensure that the Firebirds have home ice through the conference bracket of Calder Cup Playoffs.
The Firebirds have four remaining regular season games to clinch the best record in the conference. Sunday at home, then Wednesday against Tucson before an away-and-home split against San Diego to finish out the season.
“We haven’t actually talked about it,” Schuldt said, “but everyone knows it. You see how much it helped us last year to have that home ice. It’s really important, so these games and these points are crucial.”
Bylsma said that he expects Sunday to be a bounce-back kind of game, and that any sense of urgency that was missing Friday will be on display.
“I think, yes, the guys on this team, we still have more to accomplish,” Bylsma said. “There’s still a lot at stake for this group. How we want to play, making a statement with the games we have remaining.
“Yes, I expect a response on Sunday.”
The goals
1-0, Condors: Philip Kemp scored just his second goal of the season two minutes and 28 seconds into Friday's game to give Bakersfield the early lead.
2-0: Carter Savoie scored his ninth goal of the season late in the first period to give the Condors a 2-0 lead prior to the first intermission.
2-1: After a scoreless second period, McCormick's fourth goal in his last four games gave the Firebirds some life. Devin Shore and Gustav Olofsson assisted on the play.
2-2: Schuldt's fifth goal of the season, which came on what may have been the single most impressive shot of the game, came on assists from Marián Studenič and Cameron Hughes.
3-2, Condors: Broberg's goal was just his fifth of the season but added to his streak of games with a goal. It came with under a minute to play in overtime and just prior to what would have otherwise given the Firebirds a shot to win in a shootout.
Ice nuggets
Wright, Winterton and Morrison return: Rookies Shane Wright, Ryan Winterton and Logan Morrison were reassigned to the Firebirds Thursday after spending last last few weeks in Seattle with the Kraken, the Coachella Valley's NHL affiliate. The three did not play Friday but are expected to be back in the Firebirds' lineup Sunday.
Hughes honored: The Firebirds announced Thursday that forward Cameron Hughes has been named the team’s winner of the 2023-24 IOA/American Specialty Man of the Year Award, which is given to a player for his work in the local community.
Last December, Hughes helped raise over $27,000 for the Firebirds’ One Valley Foundation with the Cameron Hughes/Buddy the Elf bobblehead campaign.
“Whether it be teaching at learn to skate programs at the Berger Foundation Iceplex, autograph sessions or various meet and greets, Hughes’ dedication to the community has made him as well-known off the ice as he is on it,” the team wrote in a statement about Hughes, who is second on the team this season with 24 goals.
Hughes is now one of 32 finalists for the AHL’s 2023-24 Yanick Dupré Memorial Award, honoring the overall IOA/American Specialty AHL Man of the Year. The league award is named after the former Hershey Bears forward and AHL All-Star who died in 1997 following a 16-month battle with leukemia. The winner of the Yanick Dupré Memorial Award will be announced by the American Hockey League later this month.
Blueliner Brogan Rafferty was the Firebirds’ honoree last season.
Andrew John covers the Coachella Valley Firebirds for The Desert Sun and the USA TODAY Network. Email him at andrew.john@desertsun.com.
This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Firebirds' comeback falls short in 3-2 overtime loss to Condors
