Big crowds highlight Condors home stand; team starting March in Alaska

CONDORSTOWN, Calif. – The Bakersfield Condors saw an end come to their four-game winning streak last week. A pair of big crowds adding up to over 14,000 strong packed Rabobank Arena for the Condors two home games last week – tough losses against division rivals Stockton and Ontario.

Bakersfield is currently 18-36-2-3 with 41 points in the standings. They pulled to within just a pair of wins of the 8th place San Francisco Bulls in the standings, but now sit six points back of the final post-season position.

COMING UP (all times Pacific):
Thursday, Feb. 28 at Alaska (8:15 p.m., Sullivan Arena)
Friday, Mar. 1 at Alaska (8:15 p.m., Sullivan Arena)

Sunday, Mar. 3 at Alaska (4 p.m., Sullivan Arena)

LAST WEEK (Home team in CAPS):

Tuesday
Condors 4 vs. LAS VEGAS 2

F Francis Verreault scored twice, including the game winning goal in the early minutes of the third, as the Condors picked up their fourth consecutive victory, 4-2 in Las Vegas. G Brian Stewart backstopped the victory to the tune of 47 saves, while LW Evan Trupp and F Tyler Maxwell also lit the lamp for Bakersfield.

Thursday
Stockton 4 vs. CONDORS 1
Attn: 8,023

The visiting Thunder rolled out to a 3-0 advantage Thursday night, despite Bakersfield owning a heavy advantage in shots and spending much of 5-on-5 action attacking the Stockton net. But a pair of power play goals gave them a lead they would not relinquish. LW

Evan Trupp scored the only Condors goal, during the second period, while the Thunder added an insurance tally in the third.

Friday
Ontario 4 vs. CONDORS 3
Attn: 6,077

Bakersfield opened up the scoring less than two minutes into the game, only to have the Reign reel off three straight to take a commanding lead by the midway point. F Peter Boyd and F Brett Perlini each scored to pull the team within a goal on two different occasions, but Ontario held on for the win.

NOTES:

F Peter Boyd returned from injury last week, after missing nine games. He led the team with seven shots on Thursday in his return, and had a goal, an assist and a fight on Saturday.
LW Jacob Lagace has a three-game assist streak, with six assists during the stretch.
F Francis Verreault is just four assists away from breaking the Condors rookie record for assists in a season. He has 30, while record-holder Matt Pope had 33. Tyler Helfrich and Lars-Peder Nagel are tied for second with 31.
Thursday’s crowd of 8,023 was the largest weekday (Monday through Thursday) crowd in Condors history, and the second-largest crowd of the season.
The Condors total attendance of 14,100 fans for two games last week included their best back-to-back crowds of the season.

LEAGUE LEADERS:

G Scott Greenham is 5th in the ECHL with 973 saves.
G Brian Stewart is 3rd in the ECHL with 1,061 saves.
Stewart is 5th in the ECHL with 1,816 minutes played.
F Francis Verreault is tied for 2nd in the ECHL in rookie scoring with 46 points, just three points off the league lead. He is also tied for the rookie lead with 30 assists.
F Peter Boyd is tied for the ECHL lead with five shootout goals and is tied for the league lead with two shootout game-winners.
G Scott Greenham is tied for second in the league lead with five shootout wins and is 2nd with a .962 shootout save percentage (the 1st place goalie has faced four shootout attempts).
F Brett Lyon is 3rd in the ECHL (and leads all rookies) with 17 major penalties. He also ranks 2nd among rookies with 143 penalty minutes.
The Condors goaltenders rank 2nd in the ECHL in the shootout with a .818 save percentage.

TEAM LEADERS

Points – F Francis Verreault (46)
Goals – F Peter Boyd (17)
Assists – F Francis Verreault (30)
PIM – F Brett Lyon (145)
+/- – F Jacob Lagace (+8)

Wins – G Scott Greenham (10)

GAA – G Scott Greenham (3.35)
Sv % – G Brian Stewart (.911)

THIS WEEK:

Alaska trip, then ZOOperstars & Bobbleheads
The Condors head to Anchorage for a three-game series this week against the Alaska Aces. They return home for a two-game series against this same Ontario Reign squad.

Friday, Mar. 8 they welcome the ZOOperstars, sponsored by 101.5 KGFM and Dignity Health. On Saturday, Mar. 9 the first 2,000 fans 12 and under will get a dual bobblehead of goaltending tandem Scott Greenham and Brian Stewart, sponsored by Fox Sports 970 AM and Three-Way Chevrolet-Cadillac.

Tune in to all the action on Fox Sports Radio 970 AM, www.foxsports970am.com or on America One. “Condors Countdown” starts 15 minutes before the drop of the puck.

RENEWALS ARE UNDERWAY!

Renew your season tickets today and take advantage of great benefits, such as the Meet The Team Renewal Party, dollar-a-day merch credit and double your playoff tickets FOR LIFE! Call the Condors at 324-PUCK (7825) and speak with your ticket representative, or visit the ST renewal page on the website.