Joe Patarino 
The Ontario Reign looks to end their four-game road trip with a win when they take on the Bakersfield Condors on Saturday night.
Starting the season 7-0-0-1 and currently riding a six-game winning streak, the Ontario Reign are in Bakersfield for the first time this season. It’ll be the second meeting between the two teams, with the Reign winning the first meeting 3-2 in Ontario.
The Condors were in action last night, falling to San Diego 3-2 in a shootout, dropping their record to 4-3-0-1.
Top Performers
T.J. Tynan has a team – and AHL – leading ten assists on the season. His 13 points are tops on the Reign. In the goal-scoring department, Martin Frk continues to lead the way for Ontario, and he’s got six that have found the net.
Matt Villalta put another strong performance in on Wednesday night, stopping 32 shots in a 5-2 win. He is 5-0 with a 1.99 goals-against average and a .928 save percentage. Saturday night will be the first of a back-to-back so that we could see Garret Sparks in goal, as well. He’s 2-0 with a 1.95 goals-against average and a .945 save percentage.
For the Condors, Adam Cracknell and Seth Griffith each have 10 points to lead the way. They also share the team lead in assists with seven each and are tied with Cooper Marody and Tim Schaller in goals with three.
Between the pipes, Ilya Konovalov played last night, so the Reign are likely to Stuart Skinner, who is 2-0 with a 1.50 goals-against average and a .946 save percentage. Olivier Rodrigue is also an option. He is 1-2 with a 3.07 goals-against average and a .859 save percentage in his three starts.
Special Teams
Ontario is 11-for-39 on the power play (28.2%). Tynan’s seven power-play points lead the Reign, six of those are assists. Frk’s three goals on the man-advantage are tops on the team.
On the penalty kill, the Reign have killed 12-of-28 (78.6%). Sean Durzi scored the team’s lone short-handed goal of the season against Henderson on Wednesday.
Bakersfield is 9-for-36 (25%) with the man-advantage. Griffith’s three power-play goals lead the Condors. He also has five assists for eight points — both of which also respectively rank first on the team.
The Reign have killed off 27-of-33 (81.8%) while shorthanded with one short-handed goal on the season.
Shot Attempts
In the first meeting between the two teams, Bakersfield held a significant edge across the board in shot attempts:
| vs Bakersfield | Shot Attempts For | Shot Attempts Against | CORSI | CF% |
| All Strengths | 56 | 66 | -10 | 45.9% |
| All Strengths HD | 16 | 21 | -5 | 43.24% |
| 5v5 | 24 | 48 | -24 | 33.3% |
| 5v5 HD | 9 | 12 | -3 | 42.9% |
Reign Drops
- This will be the first game of the season without Tynan. The 29-year-old forward has been the team’s best player in the early going but was called up to Los Angeles on Friday.
- The 2020-21 AHL MVP has handed over 40% of the team’s goals. The Reign will have to look elsewhere for production.
- On a related note, this would be an excellent time for Alex Turcotte to take the reins on driving the play for Ontario.
- Assuming Turcotte moves to 1C, Jaret Anderson-Dolan could also move up the lineup. He’s played well in the early part of the season.
- Tynan’s absence could be an opportunity for Nikita Pavlychev to draw into the lineup. The 6’7″ center hasn’t played a regular-season game yet.
- The Reign have had back-to-back games with poor first periods. They’ll be less prepared to come back in this one without their top producer. A good start could be crucial.
- The door is also open for Vladimir Tkachev to be the primary playmaker on the power-play.
Puck Drop and Broadcast Info
- Saturday, November 6 at 7:00 p.m. P.T.
TV: AHLTV