The Barracuda are back and so are we, with another edition of 3-2-1, as we give our three stars, take two things away, and ask one big question! The San Jose Barracuda defeated Coachella Valley 5-1, giving them only their second ever victory against the Firebirds. The Barracuda improve to 2-10-2-3 all time over Coachella Valley.
Three Stars
Luke Grainger
According to my editor, I can’t give the entire team a Star, so here we are. Grainger opened the scoring for the Barracuda with his first pro goal in only his third AHL game. It’s been tough to get into the line-up, with the Barracuda playing as well as they are, you don’t want to fix what isn’t broken, but Grainger’s certainly made a case to stay in the line-up for at least the next game; maybe he’s the key to cracking the Coachella Valley curse.
Andrew Poturalski
Poturalski was the big market signing for the Barracuda this summer; a nine year pro, he’s only two seasons removed from his 101 point campaign with the Chicago Wolves. He spent the last two seasons with the Firebirds, recording 93 points in 98 games with CV, and now here he is, making it look easy for the Barracuda. His goal was an empty netter, true, but he hit that net from about 195 feet away, under pressure, and he also added a primary assist on Collin Graf’s game winning goal. He also led all Barracuda with 6 shots (tied with Coachella Valley’s Jagger Firkus for the lead among all skaters), and has been a huge addition to the power play, which was anemic at best last year. Look for him to feature in more big moments for the Barracuda this season.
Collin Graf
Please don’t ask me how long I agonised over who to put here. I could have gone with Donovan Houle, who spent all game causing problems on purpose, and who registered an assist and four shots, or Yaroslav Askarov (37 of 38 saves, 5-0-0 on the season), but to make it interesting, I’m going with Collin Graf. Graf scored the game winner for Barracuda way back in the first period, registered four shots on goal, and continues to lead both the Barracuda and all rookies leaguewide in scoring with ten points in 7 games. Not bad for a 22 year old with 14 total games of pro experience.
Two Takeaways
Goals! Goals! Goals!
It’s easy to look at the addition of Yaroslav Askarov and think that he’s why this team is succeeding. And true, he’s certainly not hurting their chances. The Barracuda have allowed only 13 goals (tied for second in the AHL). Even more impressively, they’ve scored more than any other team in the AHL (35 goals). Second place is Hershey, and to add to that, the Barracuda are scoring an average of 5 goals a game. Hershey is just a shade under 3.5 (31 goals in 9 games).
There’s a reason some people are calling the Barracuda a wagon.
Unspecial Teams
It was a low event special teams night, true. Only three minors handed out, plus Scott Sabourin found a dance partner in Ian MacKinnon late in the game. And yes, the Barracuda added another shorthanded goal (Colin White), putting them atop the league in that category as well. But the power play had it’s chances tonight and simply couldn’t convert.
I’m not worried; the Barracuda are still top ten in PP% in the league. The goals will come. But it’s definitely frustrating when they have the firepower that they have, and can seemingly score at will at even strength or a man down (fun fact: the Barracuda have as many shorthanded goals this season as they do powerplay goals). As the season stretches on, you have to hope that’s something John McCarthy will continue to look at and tweak.
One Question
How Far Can The Rookies Carry This Team?
The Barracuda have two players in the top twenty of league scoring: Collin Graf (1G tonight) and Luca Cagnoni (1A tonight). Third place on the team is Filip Bystedt, meaning you have to get all the way down to fourth to find a player whose year of birth starts with a 19 (Andrew Poturalski). The Barracuda spent big on veterans this offseason, bringing in players like Poturalski, Schuldt, White, and Carlsson (Lucas, yet to play a game due to injury). It’s a long season, maybe of these kids are fresh out of college or major junior. The long AHL season will grind on them, and that’s when the veterans will become important. But right now, the kids are carrying this team. I guess we’ll find out how long the Barracuda can keep on rolling through teams.
Next Up
The San Jose Barracuda are back in action on November 2nd, when they play the Iowa Wild in Iowa. Puck drop is at 4pm Pacific, and you can watch on FloHockey.tv!
