San Francisco Bulls: No More Comebacks

(Originally published at Inside Hockey)

Monday afternoon the San Francisco Bulls announced that they would cease operations immediately. They only played 40 games of their second season. The attendance reports are there on the ECHL site for anyone to see, like the catastrophic vitals of a terminal patient. The resounding silence of their marketing campaign, so boisterous last season, had been humming like a flatline tone since October. The surprise is not that the Bulls failed, but that they survived for so long in such a condition. On the ice, the team was stronger than before, but it didn’t show up in their final stats. That was a detail that only those who watched the games would know. Those viewers were too few, but as the link above shows, they were enthusiastic.

Bulls Add Ryan Garlock, Win Two of Three

(Originally published at Inside Hockey)

The San Francisco Bulls have won two of their last three games, after losing two of three to the Aces. They won at home against the third place Colorado Eagles, and on the road against their nearby rivals and last season’s Western Conference Champions, the Stockton Thunder. In between those wins, they lost on the road to the Bakersfield Condors, who are tied with the Bulls in points but have three games in hand on San Francisco.

Slow Starts Cost Bulls Against Aces

(Originally published at Inside Hockey)

The Alaska Aces may not be the runaway ECHL points leaders they were last season, but they still occupy a special, dark place in the hearts of the San Francisco Bulls and their fans. Last weekend’s trio of games at the Cow Palace did little to change that. Despite a stunning comeback from the Bulls in the middle game, the Bulls only earned two points in three games.

Bulls Add Four Players Before 3 in 3 Against Aces

(Originally published at Inside Hockey)

The San Francisco Bulls will play three games in three days between Thursday and Saturday, all against the Alaska Aces, and all at the Cow Palace. They should be interesting games.

Since their three-game sweep of the Utah Grizzlies (December 18 to 21), the Alaska Aces haven’t lost two games in a row. They also haven’t won two in row. Their road record isn’t as daunting as their home record: they have won 8 of 14 on the road, compared to 11 wins in 16 home games. The Bulls have only won four of their last ten games, and earned points in two more. All of that might be irrelevant in light of the number of changes to the Bulls’ lineup.

Bulls Dig Deep, Find New Mettle

(Originally published at Inside Hockey)

The San Francisco Bulls started a six-game homestand last weekend, with two games against the top two teams in the ECHL’s Pacific Division. The Bulls lost the first to Ontario 4-1, and won the second against Stockton in a shootout 6-5. The loss was a big let down after the team had competed so effectively against Ontario the weekend before.

SF Bulls Make 4 Goal Comeback Against Stockton Thunder

(Originally published at Sports Radio Service)

SAN FRANCISCO-Saturday, the San Francisco Bulls came back from a three-goal deficit to defeat the Stockton Thunder in a shootout. It was the third meeting of the season for the two teams. The first period ended tied at one, the second period ended 4-2. The teams went to a shootout tied at five goals apiece. Two of the Bulls’ goals were scored by Steven Tarasuk, his first two goals of the season. Also, there were teddy bears, lots of teddy bears tossed on the ice.