HOLTY’S BLOG: “SAVING” THE SEASON

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Baseball Hall of Famer and San Diego legend Trevor Hoffman was in the house last night. But, not even he could “save” the Gulls from a third straight loss to the Condors.

You may not like my cheesy jokes, but as I’ll remind you, it’s my blog and I’ll do what I want.

Now for the blog…

– Look, I’ll be the first to admit that it won’t be easy for the Condors to get in the playoffs. But, they’re not going away. Without their best offensive player and their most offensive d-man, the Condors have gone 8-3-2 over their last 13 games.

– So it won’t be easy Holty, but how does it get done? Well, the Condors are the equivalent of five points behind Texas for fourth (whom they don’t play again). The Stars are in the Midwest this weekend for back-to-back games against Milwaukee and Chicago. Sure, the Heat and Rampage are in between the Condors and Stars, but Stockton just lost 6-0 at home to hapless Cleveland. That’s a backbreaker.

– Bakersfield is eight points back of second-place San Diego (one more meeting) and Ontario (three more). The three against Ontario are particularly intriguing. If the Condors can grab a win Friday in Ontario, the gap would close to six with seven games left. The Gulls also close the season with three games against division leader Tucson.

– Long story short, nothing is getting decided until the final week of the season.

– Joe Gambardella has really found his game in the second half of the season. Two more goals last night gave him the team rookie lead with 12 goals. Gerry Fleming always remarks at how good his hand/eye coordination is and it was on display in his second goal.

– Round two between Evan Polei and Mike Liambas was just as good as round one. Maybe the third round will come Saturday night in Condorstown.

– Credit to Nick Ellis for keeping himself in game-ready mode over the last month. He came up with some big stops last night. It couldn’t have been easy sitting for the past month, but he’s a pro and answered the bell when called upon last night.

– Ryan Hamilton was named the Condors IOA/American Specialty Man of the Year. He’s now a finalist for the league’s Yanick Dupre Award. He’s been around the rink more lately rehabbing and around the team. I know it’s tough on him to not be out there, but his positive attitude is a model for others. Congrats to him!

– Bakersfield has points in six straight (5-0-1) road games for the second time this season. This is against the toughest schedule in the AHL. It will be the Condors best month of the season also with a 6-2-2 record heading into the weekend.

– Promo Madness reaches the Elite Eight on Friday. Vote here, once a day, per device.

Until next time Condorstown!

Ryan Holt is the Voice of the Condors in his 7th season. He’s headed to Santa Anita today where he will only bet on grey horses. Follow him on Twitter for more nonsense (@CondorsHolty) or shoot him an e-mail to RHolt@bakersfieldcondors.com with questions, comments, or blog ideas.