The Bakersfield Condors have won three out of their last five games, and it’s been on the back of some strong offensive performances.

The Condors picked up wins against Tucson (two) and Henderson, but dropped the other two games they played against the Silver Knights. In their wins, the Condors scored five goals, four goals, and eight goals respectively, but in their losses, they scored a total of four goals. Even when Matt Tomkins gets a shutout, you can see the holes in the defensive side of the game still for the young team. But where there are holes defensively, there is a ton of fun and pop in the offensive part of the team’s game, especially with the top line of Isaac Howard, Josh Samanski, and Quinn Hutson.

There isn’t much to be said about Hutson’s performance as of late other than on fire which has led to him being recalled by the big club Monday morning.

In the past 10 games, the former Terrier has scored 10 goals, six assists for 16 points, and is now sitting at 28 points in 24 games. Hutson’s 28 points are good enough to put him in fourth in AHL scoring. It is quite easy to see how he is on this tear as of late, and it starts with his strong fundamentals.

In the first clip below, Hutson gets a pass from Samanski, and instead of handling it, he lets it go to his strong side, where he is able to use his strong release leading to a goal.

A picture perfect finish above by Hutson. That is an NHL release and a goal scorers goal, the most impressive part is how he waits for the puck to get into a perfect position with a great feed by Samanski. Hutson constantly displays that he has an excellent feel for his range and it paid off here. We can’t be talking about perfect finishes without this shot from the Condor’s leading scorer.

In the next clip it’s another great individual play made off the rush by Hutson. The former Boston University star makes a Silver Knight look silly with the quick outside to inside move and then shoots low creating a rebound for Viljami Marjala who slams it home into the wide open net.

When Hutson is on his game there isn’t a ton of players at the AHL level creating the types of chances he can create. In the next clip it shows that the Condors leading scorer can also make the simple plays and involve his teammates. Hutson finds Samanski with a beautiful pass under the stick of the opposition who then finds Howard and he snipes one home.

Even the subtle plays look a little prettier when its Hutson doing them. In our final clip showcasing the week Quinn had, it’s the potential all-star creating his own chance instead of setting up one for his teammates. Much like his bother Lane, Quinn is exceptional at creating space with the combination of lateral movement, quick feet, great feel for his and the defenders range, and hands that can dangle in a phone booth.

Not only are his physical tools working well with one another, it also helps that Hutson is able to quickly process the ever changing environment in his head. Quinn Hutson continues to impress this year and I think he’s not far from a call-up, the only issue is do you see him playing in your bottom six if you’re the Oilers?

Ever since coming down to the Condors, Howard has been excellent. In the 11 games since being sent down the former Spartan has put up 6-7-13. There is still more to be had with Howards playmaking as I find he notices passing lanes a little too late sometimes, but when he’s going down hill on the opponent you better watch out. The main skill that Howard has shown off is easily his wrist shot. It checks a ton of boxes: excellent velocity with a quick release, an an ability to change the angle/shoot through a screen and to shoot in stride easily. In the first clip below, every single box was checked from our checklist above as Howard ripped home the first goal of the Condors evening on the fifth.

Not too much the goalie can do as Howard times it perfectly avoiding the defenders stick and ripping it right by the both of them. This will be the part to watch of young American’s game. Yes the playmaking needs work, but having a scorer that has an elite finishing ability is extremely valuable to have in the pipeline. In the next clip its more of the same for Howard, the Hoby Baker winner shows off his finishing ability and shoots low (that’s twice in this article we mentioned shooting low… shooting low works).

I know I already brought it up, but once again for the game winning goal on the 13th, Isaac Howard shoots low. Under the glove and over the pad seems to be his sweet spot right now.

To close off this portion on Isaac Howard is two clips that show progression in his game already. Let’s see what they are.

The former first-rounder is creating contact with the opposition and trying his hardest to get inside leverage on the defenders through their hands. It seems little but continuing to refine this part of his game will allow him some extra space and natural protection of the puck. I have been loving what I’ve seen from Howard so far since he’s join the Condors roster.

Everybody has been doing their part on the top line and Josh Samanski is no exception. In the big German’s last ten games Samanski has two goals and 10 assists for 12 points, and is the defensive conscious of the first unit. The Condors’ top line pivot has been showcasing his speed and playmaking throughout the past week. Samanski was involved in a few clips prior to this and it showed his ability to be that final connecting piece between the American duo.

Samanski’s game all starts with his skating ability and work ethic, not only does he take low routes in the defensive zone, but he is also a hound on the forecheck and can create chances that way as well. In the two clips below you will be able to see Samanski’s forechecking ability and ability to hunt pucks high in the offensive zone.

It doesn’t just stop there. Once again in the next clip the German centre is the first player on the puck, Samanski is able to find Hutson who slings a pass over to Howard who unfortunately couldn’t finish off the play.

If a bottom six player goes down it wouldn’t shock me if they called up Samanski rather than his two wingers due to the fact that he plays centre, is defensively responsible, and plays a bottom six style of game. Max Jones did get called up to the Oilers earlier in the day before the Detroit game, but he might just be a body to fill a roster spot as the young guns eat up ice time.

The newest addition to the Condors lineup had two assists in his debut while playing on a line with Roby Jarventie and Marjala (who also had himself a three point evening on the 13th). I thought he had a fine game, he is a great addition to that line allowing the Finnish duo to play to their strengths while he compliments them. The most note worthy play Poulin had was in the clip below where he gets the puck along the wall and slings a beautiful pass to Rem Pitlick in the slot for a shot on goal.

I like the work ethic Poulin provides off the puck as well, the Blainville native gives an honest effort on the forecheck and the backcheck.

Overall, it was an up and down week for the Condors. The defensive zone and transition defence is still a massive issue in my opinion. In their most recent win they needed EIGHT goals to get the job done and that is clearly not replicable game after game. This roster has a ton of skill and right now its being fueled by that top line that continues to produce no matter what. The addition of Poulin might help with getting the goals against down as he provides a solid two-way presence on a team that needs it right now.