First Attempt at AHL: Bakersfield Condors

So as you know, this is an NHL blog, which means everything NHL: signings, scores, opinions, you name it. Well, very recently, I've been attending AHL games, in particular Stockton Heat games against the Bakersfield Condors. Only two times so far and in those two times, the Condors have won by a score of 2-1 in the first game and 3-2 in the second game. The AHL might not be exciting for most of us, but for those in the Central Valley, especially in Stockton and Bakersfield, I'm guessing they are grateful for some hockey, no matter what level it is. So for my first attempt at AHL, I'm going recap the game between the Bakersfield Condors and the Ontario Reign. Bear with me here!

The Bakersfield Condors, who are 11-11-2-1 so far this season, just went into the Christmas break with a point after a 2-1 overtime loss to the Ontario Reign on a Sunday afternoon at Citizens Business Bank Arena in Ontario. Matthew Ford scored the only goal for the Condors while Joel Lowry scored for Ontario while Sean Backman scored the overtime goal for the Reign. The Condors were the only ones that scored on the power play, while the Ontario Reign had none on their power play opportunities. The Condors' Ben Scrivens stopped 24 of 26 shots while the Reigns' Peter Budaj stopped 19 of 20.

The Ontario Reign look very good this season at 16-4-2-1, just like their counterparts in the NHL, the Los Angeles Kings. Meanwhile, the Condors are at .500 and looking for some kind of spark. They host the Stockton Heat the day after Christmas and will be looking for another win against this team this season. For a while, I always thought the Condors would be a good team coming out of the gate, but that certainly belonged to Ontario after winning the Calder Cup last year.

Well, the Condors go into Christmas looking good, but they can certainly use a little more offense in their game. Maybe with the Stockton Heat coming to town, they can get that, but they have to find it somehow.

Well, that's my first attempt at the AHL. I know, my analysis isn't that good, but it's the AHL. Players are always being recalled and sent back to the NHL, but I'll be going to a lot of games this season, particularly the Stockton Heat. Hopefully, I'll get better at this as the season progresses along.