Sports
San Diego Gulls Training Camp Kicks Off at Poway Ice Arena
There is free admission this week to San Diego Gulls practice sessions.
POWAY, CA — The San Diego Gulls opened training camp Monday, with 25 players spending 90 minutes on the ice at Poway Ice Arena under the direction of second-year coach Dallas Eakins.
Participating in practice were 17 players assigned to the American Hockey League team by its NHL parent team, the Anaheim Ducks, one under contract with the Gulls, left wing Zac Larraza and seven players on professional tryout contracts.
Three of the players played in the NHL last season -- defensemen Nate Guenin and Jeff Schultz and right wing Stefan Noesen. Noesen and Schultz were both first-round choices in the NHL draft.
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The Ducks announced following practice they had released left wing Antoine Laganiere from a professional tryout contract and assigned him to the Gulls.
Laganiere had 16 goals and 16 assists in 57 regular-season games with the Gulls last season and two goals and two assists in nine Calder Cup playoff games.
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The Ducks will assign additional players to the Gulls as they reduce their roster to NHL regular-season limit of 23 by the Oct. 11 deadline. The Ducks have 35 players on their roster.
Practice sessions Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday and Sunday will all take place from 10 a.m.-noon at Poway Ice Arena, 12455 Kerran St. in Poway, and be open to the public, with admission free.
The Gulls will play their first exhibition game Thursday against the Ontario Reign, the Los Angeles Kings AHL affiliate, at Citizens Bank Arena in Ontario. The teams will also play an exhibition game next Monday at Honda Center in Anaheim.
The Gulls will conduct an intra-squad scrimmage Oct. 12 at Valley View Casino Center. Admission and parking will be free. Fans can register for tickets at SanDiegoGulls.com/scrimmage. There is a maximum of four tickets per customer.
Seating will be general admission on a first-come, first-served basis. Doors will open at 6 p.m. with the scrimmage beginning at 7 p.m.
The Gulls will open the regular season Oct. 14 by facing the Tucson Roadrunners, the Arizona Coyotes AHL affiliate, at the Valley View Casino Center.
— City News Service
Image via Poway Ice, YouTube