Ontario Reign: Three Takeaways From 4-2 Win Against Abbotsford

A three-goal second period was all the Ontario Reign needed to hold off the Abbotsford Canucks and snap their two-game losing streak.

Goal Breakdown

First period:

None

Second period:

ONT: Nikita Alexandrov (11), ASST: Samuel Bolduc (14), Glenn Gawdin (27)

ONT: Jack Millar (1), ASST: Kenny Connors (17), Jared Wright (12)

ONT: Otto Salin (3), ASST: Jared Wright (13), Joe Hicketts (14)

ABB: Ben Berard (11), ASST: Nils Aman (20), Danila Klimovich (20)

Third period:

ABB: Chase Stillman (1), ASST: Jett Woo (6), Nikolai Knyzhov (5)

ONT: EN Francesco Pinelli (8), ASST: Kirill Kirsanov (7)

Stats

Goals: 

ABB: 2

ONT: 4

Shots: 

ABB: 24

ONT: 34

Power plays: 

ABB: 0/1

ONT: 0/2

Here are the three takeaways from Wednesday night’s 4-2 victory:

Offense by committee

The beauty of this year’s Reign squad is that they don’t rely on two or three players to shoulder the load offensively; they do it by committee. On any given night, the difference-maker can come from anyone in the lineup. In last night’s victory, it was a pair of defensemen who made a difference.

Jack Millar — known for his defensive instincts — had a milestone moment as he scored his first professional goal. Millar capitalized on his opportunity as Ontario had  Nikita Tolopilo scrambling out of position for a 2-0 lead. Just 2:31 later, Otto Salin joined the party on a wrist shot from the top of the right circle, extending Ontario’s lead to 3-0.

For Salin, it’s been a tough year as he has been in and out of the lineup while adjusting and learning the style of play in North America. His game leans toward the offensive side, and being a factor offensively, like last night, can not only boost his confidence but also earn more playing time.

Home cooking tastes good

After dropping a pair of road games in Abbotsford, the Reign responded by doing what they usually do: win on home ice. With the victory, Ontario has won nine of its last home games, improving its home ice record to 18-5-1-1, the fourth-best points percentage (.760) in the league.

Aside from a slight let-up in the third period, the Reign had a strong performance throughout the evening, beating the Canucks to every loose puck and sustaining offensive zone pressure, which led to two of their three goals in the middle frame. Sometimes a little bit of home cooking is all a team needs to get back in the win column.

The second period remains a success

The second period continues to be Ontario’s best this season, especially against the Canucks, as they have outscored them 11-2 in the middle frame across six games. After outscoring the Canucks 3-1 in the middle frame last night, the Reign improved their goal differential to +15 (55-38). Their second-period scoring prowess has been a big reason why Ontario has been successful in holding a lead after 40 minutes of play (21-2-1-0).

NOTES:

*Glenn Gawdin’s assist gave him his 100th point in a Reign uniform.

*Alexandrov scored his first goal in ten games as he opened the scoring in the middle frame.

*Francesco Pinelli tallies his eighth goal of the season.

*Ontario had five of its six defensemen record one point.

*Salin’s goal stood as the game-winning goal. Two of his three goals have been game-winning goals.

*With the win, Ontario avoided losing three games in a row (They have not lost three straight games this year) and sits in sole possession of first place in the Pacific Division, ahead of the Colorado Eagles by two points.

*Jared Wright led all skaters with five shots on goal. Wright and his linemates, Kenny Connors and Andre Lee, gave the Canucks trouble with their hustle, forechecking, and sustained offensive-zone pressure in the second period.

*Erik Portillo stopped 22 of 24 shots for his 13th victory of the season.

UP NEXT: The Ontario Reign hit the road again for a two-game weekend series against the Tucson Roadrunners. The first game is on Saturday at 6 PM PST. You can watch the game on FloSports or 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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