Bench Stands Up for Bullfrogs, 10-6 : Roller hockey: With three key players out of action, reserves come through in victory over San Diego.

Coach Grant Sonier contends the Bullfrogs have the best bench in Roller Hockey International.

Sunday night against the San Diego Barracudas at The Pond, the Pacific Division-leading Bullfrogs displayed why Sonier might be right.

With three key players out of action for disciplinary reasons and another unavailable because of an injury, the Bullfrogs raced to a six-goal lead, then rolled to a 10-6 victory in front of an announced crowd of 10,872.

The Bullfrogs were without center and captain Victor Gervais, who served a league-imposed one-game suspension for his unruly outburst in Friday night’s controversial 8-7 shootout loss at Oakland. Also missing were starting defenseman Daniel Shank and forward Darren Banks, who were suspended by Sonier for violating team rules.

Making matters worse, forward Jared Bednar fractured his right ankle against Oakland. He probably will be out for the season.

That left Sonier with some big holes to fill. Shanks (25 points) and Gervais (24 points) are the team’s leading scorers.

“Tonight we proved we have 14 guys we can put into the lineup, and at any time they can go out and play well,” Sonier said. “From a coaching standpoint that allows me to push my players, and I’m going to push them as much as I can.”

Sonier also was supposed to miss this one after he was assessed a game misconduct after a heated outburst with game officials in Oakland. But RHI officials, in denying the Bullfrogs’ protest of that game, said Sonier instead could sit out Thursday’s game at Oklahoma City.

On Sunday, the Bullfrogs, outshooting their opponent 50-31, were unstoppable during two stretches. The run that opened the game made it seem as if a rout was on. An uncontested four-goal streak in the third quarter, after San Diego had narrowed the Bullfrogs’ lead to two, also was a highlight.

Mark Ouimet started the first-half run three and half minutes into the game, sending a 25-foot wrist shot past San Diego goaltender Frank Ouellette. Defenseman Mark Deazeley, making his first appearance for the Bullfrogs, grabbed an unassisted goal with 4:59 to go, Savo Mitrovic, off a pass from Fredrik Jax, beat Ouellette’s stick a minute and a half later. And with 3:06 remaining in the quarter, B.J. MacPherson converted a crossing pass from Mitrovic.

Darren Perkins scored 16 seconds into the second period, then fed Brad McCaughey for the team’s sixth goal at the 11:15 mark.

But the run was done.

Ouellette, who was superb last Thursday in a 9-8 loss to the Bullfrogs, made several key stops. His defensemen finally woke up too, and the Barracudas went on the counterattack.

Arturs Kupaks, who finished with four goals, broke the ice with back-to-back scores. Soren True scored at the 9:26 mark, then assisted on a goal by Jason Krywulak. Suddenly San Diego trailed, 6-4.

But third-quarter goals by Judson and Joe Cook, and two from Todd Wetzel did the trick for the Bullfrogs.