Kyle Garcia 
The Ontario Reign got throttled in their final game before the Christmas break as they lost to Abbotsford, 6-0.
— Ontario Reign (@ontarioreign) December 22, 2023
Goal Breakdown
First period:
ABB: Arshdeep Bains (5), ASST: Quinn Schmiemann (2), Cole McWard (4)
Second period:
ABB: Nick Cicek (2), ASST: Chase Wouters (4), Aatu Raty (13)
ABB: Tristen Nielsen (7), ASST: Cole McWard (5), Sheldon Dries (11)
ABB: PP Linus Karlsson (7), ASST: Arshdeep Bains (21), Christian Wolanin (16)
ABB: John Stevens (7), ASST: Quinn Schiemann (3)
ABB: Sheldon Dries (13), ASST: Tristen Nielsen (5), Cole McWard (6)
Third period:
None
Stats
Goals:
ONT: 0
ABB: 6
Shots:
ONT: 34
ABB: 42
Power plays:
ONT: 0/5
ABB: 1/3
Here are the three takeaways from Thursday’s 6-0 loss:
Erik Portillo gets the nod again
This decision came as a shocker. After hinting Jacob Ingham could get a start after Saturday’s 5-4 shootout victory over Colorado, Marco Sturm went in the opposite direction. Erik Portillo was given the nod in net for the second straight night. It was Portillo’s first time starting both games in a back-to-back situation in his short professional career. It seemed like everyone was expecting Ingham to start, including me. I was shocked to see Sturm not go with Ingham in net last night, given how he has given both David Rittich and Portillo a start on back-to-back situations this season.
With Jacob Ingham expected to make his first AHL start of the season tonight in Abbotsford, we're taking a look back at what the goaltender had to say to @JoshSchaeferPxP when his season began at the Rookie Faceoff in Las Vegas in September.#ReignTrain | @RotoloChevyCa
— Ontario Reign (@ontarioreign) December 21, 2023
In the end, Ingham did play last night, but not for the right reasons.
No response
After getting outshot 43-24 the previous night, I expected the Reign to come out with better intensity to start this one. That never materialized. Ontario spent most of the first period in their end as Abbotsford established a forecheck and chances on the cycle. Eventually, the pressure led to a perfect passing play, and the puck wound up in the back of the Reign net.
Arshdeep Bains, he's making it reign! ☔️ pic.twitter.com/NCh9KpxgtT
— Abbotsford Canucks (@abbycanucks) December 22, 2023
After the first 20 minutes, the Canucks outshot the Reign 15-8 and claimed a 1-0 lead. If Marco Sturm wasn’t pleased with his squad’s effort in those 20 minutes, he was in for a big surprise the next 20 minutes. Abbotsford tied a franchise record with five goals in a period in the middle frame. Those five goals were scored in a span of 8:53. Not every goal can be pinned on the goalie, as there were multiple defensive zone breakdowns. You can probably pin one or two goals all game on the netminder in this one. Overall, Ontario was outmatched in both games.
After Abbotsford made it 5-0 with 12:43 left in the middle frame, Sturm finally saw enough and gave Portillo the rest of the night off as Ingham came in for relief. At that point, Abbotsford outshot Ontario 27-11. That should tell you everything. Ingham made 14 saves on 15 shots in 32 minutes of action. The only thing that might have made Reign fans feel better in this one was Yoshinobu Yamamoto’s signing with the Dodgers late last night.
Overall, I’m sure Sturm will not be happy with how his team played Wednesday and the first 30 minutes of last night.
Sheldon Dries scores goals for a living! 🙌 pic.twitter.com/Zkk406cfH6
— Abbotsford Canucks (@abbycanucks) December 22, 2023
They come in waves
Abbotsford got contributions from almost everyone in the lineup. The Canucks had 11 skaters register a point, with four of them recording multi-point games. Abbotsford likes to roll all four lines and six defensemen, and they came in waves last night. After recording 43 shots on goal the previous night, Abbotsford followed that performance up with 42 shots last night and were just relentless on the attack. Once they put their foot on the gas pedal, they went full speed and never slowed down. While it was raining in Southern California, it was reigning goals in the Abbotsford Centre, especially in the second period.
Notes:
*Erik Portillo started back-to-back games for the first time in his professional career. After last night’s loss, he now owns a 2.68 goals-against average and a .914 save percentage.
*Jacob Ingham played in his first AHL game since February 14th, 2022.
*Ontario got shutout for the second time this season.
*Kim Nousiainen led all skaters with five shots on goal.
*11 skaters recorded a point for Abbotsford.
*Arturs Silovs recorded his third shutout of the season.
UP NEXT: The Christmas break has arrived! The Reign return to action on December 28th, as they take on the San Diego Gulls at 7 PM. Merry Christmas Reign, Kings, and Hockey Royalty fans!
Featured image credit: Abbotsford Canucks