Donatelli Finishes What Sapergia Starts as Gulls Top Kansas City

SAN DIEGO —  A tap dance might be appropriate, but leave the heavy combat boots at home. This was more Fred and Ginger than Rambo.

The Gulls (7-7-2) tickled and teased 3,647 fans Thursday night before winning their third home game of the season, a 6-3 International Hockey League victory over last-place Kansas City (2-12-0) at the San Diego Sports Arena.

Brent Sapergia, the driver of the Gulls sometimes mean, sometimes lean--always unpredictable--scoring machine, scored twice early and set the tone as the Gulls jumped to a 4-2 lead after two periods.

But Kansas City reeled in the Gulls and controlled much of the third period, before a breakaway goal from center ice by Clark Donatelli sent a collective sigh of relief through the crowd and gave the Gulls a 5-3 lead at 13:15 in the third.

“We stopped skating in the third,” Gulls Coach Mike O’Connell said. “We were lucky to get that goal by Donatelli. We have to come out (tonight, when the Gulls gain play Kansas City) and skate a lot better than we did (Thursday), or we’ll be in a lot of trouble.”

The Gulls started the third with a 4-2 lead, but Scott White scored at 5:24 pull Kansas City within one.

Goaltender Glen Halon kept a seemingly inevitable tying goal out of the net when he stopped Kansas City’s Mike Hiltner on a breakaway at 11:45.

Donatelli, who hadn’t been heard from since his second two-goal game Oct. 26 against Salt Lake, gave the Gulls a 3-1 lead on the power play at 7:24 in the second.

The Gulls were 0-for-3 on the power play before Donatelli scored from the left wing on a two-on-one perfect pass from Steve Martinson. Donatelli sent the to the top corner of the net, giving him his third two-goal game of the season.

Martinson chalked up his second assist of the night, his fifth in the last two games, on a bizarre play, courtesy of Donatelli.

From the right circle, Donatelli passed to Martinson, who waited in the left wing, only to have his shot deflected. It ended up on the stick of teammate Darcy Norton, who scored from the slot at 15:31, making it 4-1.

Two minutes later, with the Gulls’ Taylor Hall on the bench for a slashing penalty, Jeff Jablonski scored his second goal on the night to pull Kansas City to 4-2.

“We were sluggish,” said Sapergia, who now has 13 goals for the season. “I’ve never seen a team like this. We’re terrible at home, and great on the road. I don’t know, we just didn’t have that killer instinct.”

Jablonski gave Kansas City the early 1-0 advantage, scoring 1:54 into the game from outside the left wing, on a delayed penalty against the Gulls.

Something about playing catch-up has this strange appeal to the Gulls, who are the worst in the league in first goals allowed. They own the IHL record, with 13 allowed in 16 games.

After that was out of their system, Sapergia came in and scored the Gulls’ first two goals, the first at 3:33 on a breakaway from the slot and the second at 7:20. A muffed attempt from the right wing made its way to Larry Floyd, who passed from the left circle, who tapped in the goal for the 2-0 lead.

Kansas City pulled its goalie with 33 seconds remaining, and Martinson scored on a slapshot from the left point with 23 seconds left to make it 6-3.

Gulls Notes

There in spirit: Charlie Simmer, the Gulls’ left wing/assistant coach, was unable to attend the retiring of former Los Angeles King teammate Marcel Dionne’s number Thursday night at The Forum, but he did attend a dinner Wednesday night to honor Dionne, who along with Simmer and Dave Taylor, made up the famous “Triple Crown Line,” of the early 1980s. . . . Double good: Kansas City’s Jeff Jablonski, who scored the Golden Blades’ first goal Thursday, has a twin brother, Pat, in the IHL. Pat is league-leading Peoria’s No. 2 goaltender. . . . The road can be lonely, as Kansas City is finding out. Entering Thursday’s game, the Blades were winless on the road (0-4) and are only three games into a 10-game trip. . . . Goalie Mark Reimer, who is the property of Detroit, was loaned to Adirondack Thursday, the Red Wings’ top farm team. Reimer, 23, was 3-2-1 and had a 4.28 goals-against average this season. The Gulls have two goalies on their roster: Glen Hanlon and Scott Brower. . . . Promotions: The first 2,500 fans to arrive at tonight’s game will receive souvenir keychains.