Kyle Garcia 
The Ontario Reign tied it up late but couldn’t get the extra point in their 4-3 shootout loss to the Coachella Valley Firebirds.
Goal Breakdown
First period:
CV: Kole Lind (13), ASST: Cale Fleury (22), Andrew Poturalski (33)
Second period:
ONT: Samuel Fagemo (36), ASST: Kevin Connauton (14), TJ Tynan (45)
ONT: Martin Chromiak (13), ASST: Joe Hicketts (16), Francesco Pinelli (7)
Third period:
CV: Logan Morrison (15), ASST: Shane Wright (19), Devin Shore (9)
CV: Marian Studenic (14), ASST: None
ONT: TJ Tynan (8), ASST: Charles Hudon (30), Brandt Clarke (27)
Overtime:
None
Shootout winner:
CV: Logan Morrison (round two)
Stats
Goals:
CV: 4
ONT: 3
Shots:
CV: 28
ONT: 25
Power plays:
CV: 0/2
ONT: 0/4
Here are the three takeaways from Friday’s 4-3 shootout loss:
Late-game heroics aren’t enough this time
The ending to this game was almost similar to the last meeting between the two teams. In the last meeting, the Reign trailed 1-0 late in the third as Samuel Fagemo scored with under a minute remaining in regulation with the extra attacker on the ice to tie the game. The game went into overtime and Jacob Moverare won it for Ontario on a shot from the inner right circle with under a minute in the extra frame.
The Reign saw themselves in the same situation last night. The difference was they weren’t tied entering the third period. Ontario led 2-1 entering the third period, but goals from Logan Morrison and Martin Studenic 5:37 apart saw the visitors go up 3-2. Marco Sturm pulled Aaron Dell with 2:30 to play in regulation to get the extra attacker on to tie the game. The move paid dividends again as TJ Tynan tied it up with a quick shot below the left circle to tie the game at three with 1:13 remaining in regulation.
Deja vu? Almost. This time there were no overtime heroics by the Reign as Coachella Valley won it in a shootout as Morrison got the lone tally in the skills competition. However, never count the Reign out until the buzzer the way they have been playing lately.
Power play goes cold
The Reign power play has hit a rough patch these last three games. In that stretch, the power play has gone 0-for-11. The first unit had good puck movement and chances, but couldn’t get one by Firebirds’ netminder Chris Driedger. Sometimes special teams can decide a game or swing momentum, and in this case, it was the latter.
With the Reign up one goal early in the third, and heading to their fourth power play of the game, they couldn’t convert to extend their lead. Less than a minute after killing off the penalty the Firebirds tied it at two. I wouldn’t say the Reign lost this game because of special teams as they did tie it late and lost in a shootout. I would chalk it up as a missed opportunity. The Reign will need the power play to turn around soon or they’ll have plenty of missed opportunities like this in future games.
New rivalry?
The San Diego Gulls have always been the Reign’s number-one rival since both teams entered the AHL in the 2015-16 season. With Coachella Valley entering the league last year, the rivalry has been brewing slowly, and this year, it has heated up. Six of the seven games have been close and there’s been a lot of intensity, physicality, fights, and plenty of post-whistle scrums in every game. Even the fan bases for the visiting teams show out. The Gulls and Reign will always have history between the two, but Coachella Valley is slowly taking that throne as the Reign’s new top rival. The next meeting between the two teams is April 10th, and just maybe, they could meet in the playoffs if everything falls into place.
NOTES:
*The road team has won six of the seven meetings. This was the third time the teams needed overtime or a shootout to decide the contest.
*Samuel Fagemo recorded his fifth goal of the season against the Firebirds. He currently leads the AHL with 36 goals.
*Martin Chromiak recorded his first goal in eight games.
*Kole Lind scored his fourth goal against the Reign this year. He is now tied with Samuel Fagemo, TJ Tynan, Rocco Grimaldi, and Georgii Merkulov in scoring with 53 points.
UP NEXT: The Ontario Reign hit the road to take on the Bakersfield Condors for the fifth time this season. The game starts at 7 PM PT and can be seen on AHLTV.
Featured image credit: Mike Zitek/Ontario Reign