Sometimes the game of hockey can be decided on one bounce.
For the Bakersfield Condors, a bad bounce on Wednesday night in Stockton was instrumental in leaving them on the brink of elimination in the American Hockey League Pacific Division Semifinals.
The Heat scored the winning goal off a horrendous bounce with 7:02 gone in the third period and the Condors just missed getting a tying goal in the final seconds of a 3-2 loss.
Stockton’s goal came when Emilio Pettersen simply fired the puck into Bakersfield’s zone on a dump in. Bakersfield goaltender Stuart Skinner went to the backboards to play the puck but it never got there, instead hitting a stanchion and taking a 90-degree bounce back toward the goal as Skinner raced to get back in net. Skinner got his stick on the puck but did not control it and Pettersen, who saw the bad bounce and raced in instead of going off for a change, pushed the loose puck past Skinner.
The Condors pulled Skinner for an extra attacker in the final minutes and Tim Schaller’s backhander from the right edge went under Stockton goaltender Dustin Wolf. The puck started trickling toward the net but a Stockton defender pushed it back under Wolf to end the threat with 5.5 seconds left.
Now the Condors must win on their home ice at Mechanic’s Bank Arena on Friday night to extend the best-of-five series.
Stockton took a 2-1 lead 39 seconds into the third just as its power play expired when Nick Simon’s shot from along the boards outside of the right face-off circle eluded Skinner.
The Condors tied the game at 1:09 when an aggressive forecheck by Esposito and Noah Philp in the left corner led to a puck retrieval by Devin Brosseau. Brosseau skated into the slot, had the puck swept off his stick while on his backhand, but turned and got it back on his forehand and swept it past Wolf.
A tight-checking scoreless first period turned into a wild penalty-filled second with eight minor penalties and that many power plays (five to three in favor of the Heat).
Despite all the special team play the Heat struck first during five-on-five play, courtesy of a Bakersfield turnover in its own zone.
Defenseman Filip Berglund, under some pressure, tried to clear the puck with a bounce off the boards but Alex Gallant stopped the puck, raced in alone and beat Skinner from the left circle at 12:13.
Bakersfield tied the game with a power-play goal with 3:29 left when Brad Malone, set up just to the right of the net, redirected a low wrister from Brendan Perlini at the right point.
The Condors were playing without defenseman Philip Broberg who took morning skate but was recalled by Edmonton after Darnell Nurse was suspended for Thursday night’s game in Los Angeles after a head butt in Edmonton on Tuesday night.
In other news, the Edmonton Oilers signed Carter Savoie to a three-year Entry Level Contract. The first year (2021-22) will be burned as the Oilers season is still going on. Savoie played in the final two regular season games for the Condors but is no longer able to play in the AHL as he was not with the team before the trade deadline.
