Ontario Reign: Three Takeaways From 5-2 Win Over Abbotsford

For the third time this season, the Ontario Reign defeated the Abbotsford Canucks by a final score of 5-2.

Goal Breakdown

First period: 

ONT: Andre Lee (17), ASST: Martin Chromiak (18), Glenn Gawdin (26)

ABB: Lukas Reichel (3), ASST: Jimmy Schuldt (8)

Second period: 

ONT: Jared Wright (10), ASST: Tim Rego (3), Aatu Jamsen (8)

ONT: PP Glenn Gawdin (8), ASST: Nikita Alexandrov (28), Cole Guttman (17)

ONT: Aatu Jamsen (9), ASST: None

Third period

ONT: Francesco Pinelli (6), ASST: Jared Wright (8)

ABB: Vilmer Alriksson (6), ASST: Ben Berard (12), Jujhar Khaira (3)

Stats

Goals: 

ABB: 2

ONT: 5

Shots: 

ABB: 25

ONT: 18

Power plays: 

ABB: 0/3

ONT: 1/2

Here are the three takeaways from Wednesday night’s 5-2 victory:

A pair of late-round draft picks shine

Three players for the Reign recorded a goal and an assist; two of them were late-round draft picks three and five years ago, respectively.

Jared Wright (6th-round, 2022) snapped a three-game pointless streak with his transition goal in the second period. He also added a primary assist on Francesco Pinelli’s third-period tally for good measure. Wright isn’t a player who will wow you with flash and skill, but his blazing speed wreaks havoc in all three zones, making it a useful skill in his repertoire.

Aatu Jamsen (7th-round, 2020) scored a goal for the second straight game. The 22-year-old, as he did on Saturday, drove down the right side, used his skill and size to protect the puck, and put himself in a position to get around the defender before ultimately tucking it by the netminder. Make that back-to-back games where Jamsen made a play we didn’t see him make last year. He is slowly making strides and is looking comfortable on North American ice in season two.

Quality over quantity

For the ninth time this season, the Reign were held to 20 or fewer shots on goal. In those nine games, the Reign scored four goals or more in five of them. Entering the game, the Reign were second-to-last in shots on goal per game (25.2) but sixth in goals per game (3.34).

As you can see, the Reign don’t generate many shots on goal (part of that is due to overpassing, shots going wide, or shots being locked), but when they get their looks, they bury them. It may not be the best recipe, but it’s been efficient for 42 games. Can it hold up throughout the rest of the season into the playoffs? We’ll see.

Home cooking

There’s no place like home at Toyota Arena. The Reign won their sixth straight at home and are 7-2-0-1 in their last ten. Their 15 wins on home ice are tied for third in the league, and their .762 points percentage is also third. Simply put, Ontario is getting the job done at home this year. If they keep this up, having home-ice advantage could bode well for them in the playoffs as they look to keep making Toyota Arena a tough building for the opposition.

NOTES:

*Glenn Gawdin extended his point streak to three games with his goal and assist.

*Although he didn’t extend his goal-scoring streak, Guttman extended his point streak to five games. He also has 16 points in his last 12 games.

*Nikita Alexandrov extended his point streak to three games with his assist.

*Martin Chromiak extended his point streak to six games with his assist.

*Andre Lee scored in his second straight game. He leads the team with 17 goals.

*Francesco Pinelli snapped his five-game goalless drought.

*Erik Portillo won his sixth straight game after returning from injury. He stopped 23 of 25 shots (.920 sv%) in the win.

UP NEXT: The Ontario Reign return to action on Saturday, January 31st, when they hit the road for a matchup against the San Diego Gulls. The game starts at 6 PM PST, and you can watch it on FloHockey. If you are unable to watch the game, you can listen to it on the Ontario Reign Radio Network or on the ESPN LA app.

Featured image credit: Christopher Mora/Ontario Reign

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