Gulls Down Phoenix

Steve Martinson’s goal with 1:33 remaining gave the Gulls a 4-3 victory over the Phoenix Roadrunners Thursday. The game was played at Veterans Coliseum in front of 4,333 fans, who saw the Gulls win in Phoenix for the first time in eight tries this season.

The Gulls came back from deficits of 2-0 and 3-1 before Martinson scored the game winner off a deflection by Larry Floyd. The victory was the Gulls’ third in the past five games and improved their record to 27-33-7. They also moved eight points ahead of fifth-place Milwaukee in the standings, with 61, in a battle for the final International Hockey League playoff spot.

The Gulls outshot the Roadrunners, 40-30, as third-place Phoenix fell to 30-28-6 with 66 points. The loss extended the Roadrunners’ losing streak to four and they will face the Gulls at 7:30 p.m. tonight at the San Diego Sports Arena in what will be the second of three consecutive meetings between the two.

For the Gulls, it was a rare come-from-behind victory. It marked just the third time this season that they have won a game after trailing through two periods. The Gulls are 3-28-4 when they enter the third period losing.

Phoenix led, 2-0, on a pair of goals by Chris Kontos. Ron Duguay made it 2-1 with his 13 score of the season, but Sylvain Couturier scored a short-handed goal (his 39th of the season and 18th against the Gulls) to make it 3-1.

But Soren True, who has scored in four of six games since joining the Gulls from Albany, scored with less than a minute left in the first period to make it 3-2.

After no one scored in the second period, Gull Darren Lowe scored his 19th goal of the season, off a pass by Joe Stefan, to make it 3-3 with less than eight minutes left.

Goalie Scott Brower (11-13-3) stopped 27 of 30 shots to get the win for the Gulls.