Adversity is the word hanging over Ontario right now, and the Reign are running out of time to shake it off.
After Friday’s loss in Abbotsford, Andrew Lord’s club has dropped six straight for the first time in nearly four years. The last time Ontario went through a stretch like this was back in March 2023, when the skid reached 10 games. The bigger issue now is that the Reign keep coming up just short - four of the last four losses have been by one goal.
That sets up an immediate chance for a reset tonight against the Canucks, with the teams meeting again twice more in SoCal over the next 10 days. Ontario doesn’t need a complete overhaul so much as a little more finishing touch.
The games have been tight. The results just haven’t flipped their way.
The roster, though, is not exactly at full strength. Kings prospect Jared Wright was a late scratch on Friday and is not expected back tonight.
Word around the team is that it’s nothing major, just the kind of early-season bumps and bruises that lead to caution. There’s even a chance he could play tomorrow night, though that remains to be determined.
Ontario’s forward group is still a moving target, with several gametime calls still in play. Michael Mastrodomenico was a late addition on Friday, which left the Reign with 11 forwards and seven defensemen. Whether Lord goes that route again is still up in the air.
One player trending the right way is Kaleb Lawrence. He’s scored in back-to-back games and has looked sharper since rejoining the Reign this season. The 23-year-old Ottawa native could be finding his timing at exactly the right moment for a team that needs someone to break through.
In goal, 20-year-old Carter George is expected to start. In his last outing, he stopped 23 of 26 shots before an overtime goal slipped past him and sent Ontario to another painful defeat.
Projected lineup:
Jamsen - Pederson - Ward
Pinelli - G. Slukynsky - Ziemmer
Lawrence - Gorman - Guttman
Hughes - Doty
Kirsanov - Booth
Hicketts - Brzustewicz
Perunovich - Millar
Mastrodomenico
George
Portillo
Likely scratches: (F) Isogai, O’Hara, Wright (D) N/A
Injured: (F) Jenik (D) Dvorak, Salin, Woolley
A Reign radio feed can also be found here.
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