Ontario’s road trip rolls on Wednesday night with a stop in Nevada, where the Reign are set for another Pacific Division test against Henderson. After wrapping up a two-game set in Texas over the weekend, Andrew Lord’s club is back in divisional play and facing the Silver Knights for the second time this season, just 11 days after Henderson picked up a 5-2 win over Ontario at Toyota Arena.
The biggest change this time around comes in goal. Kings prospect Carter George is expected to get the start for Ontario, giving the Reign a different look between the pipes than they had in the first meeting with Henderson. Through two starts this month, George has been the most effective of Ontario’s three active goaltenders, stopping 39 of 43 shots and posting a 1.94 goals-against average with a .907 save percentage.
Ontario split its two games in Texas, beating the home side 5-3 on Friday before falling 5-2 on Saturday, and Kirill Kirsanov kept his recent scoring touch going in the process. The defenseman picked up another assist to move to six points on the season, with one goal and five assists in eight games.
Even with five wins in eight games, the Reign have a few trends they’ll want to clean up. They went 0-for-7 on the power play against Texas and allowed the opening goal for the seventh time this season. Those issues haven’t wiped out their early success, but they’re the kind that can catch up fast if they keep showing up.
There’s also a small lineup tweak expected up front. Veteran Jacob Doty should return tonight, while 19-year-old rookie Vojtech Cihar is projected to come out as a healthy scratch.
One thing worth watching is how Lord shuffles his wingers. Lately, Ontario has kept most of its forward group paired together, but that could change as the staff looks for the right mix of offense and defensive responsibility.
Projected lineup:
Chromiak - Pederson - Guttman
Jamsen - Connors - Ziemmer
Pinelli - G. Slukynsky - Hughes
Isogai - Lawrence - Doty
Kirsanov - Perunovich
Booth - Brzustewicz
Hicketts - Millar
George
H. Slukynsky
Likely scratches: (F) Cihar (D) Mastrodomenico and (G) Portillo
Injured: (F) Jenik (D) Dvorak, Salin, Woolley
A Reign radio feed is also available.
In Other News...
Reign Head Home Needing Answers After Another Flat Night
Another uneven night left the Ontario Reign without much to build on, as Henderson controlled the game long enough to pull away for a 4-1 win. Ontario did get on the board through Aatu Jmsen, but the goal was little more than a brief spark in a game where the Reign spent too much time chasing, and Carter George was busy throughout while trying to keep the score manageable.
George turned aside 28 shots, while Pavel Moysevich handled 25 for Henderson as the Silver Knights stayed in charge and finished the job with an empty-net goal from Alexander Holtz. For Ontario, the result leaves more questions than answers as the club heads home after another flat showing and tries to sort out what has been missing. [Read more 🡒]
Kings Begin Crucial Homestand With Lineup Uncertainty Still Lingering
The Kings are back home after a road trip that produced a 3-2-0 record, and the timing lines up with the kind of stretch that can quietly shape a season. Their seven-game homestand opens against Ottawa, giving Los Angeles a long run in front of its own crowd while the roster continues to sort itself out around a few lingering health questions.
Kevin Fiala is skating on his own as he works toward his season debut, though the team is not looking at him as an immediate option. In the meantime, Los Angeles has brought up prospect Martin Chromiak from AHL Ontario, and he appears positioned to get a look while the Kings keep tabs on the status of Drew Doughty and Quinton Byfield. [Read more 🡒]
Kings Bottom Six Shakeup Could Reveal Laviolette's Early Plan
Peter Laviolette is already making early-season tweaks to the Kings bottom six, a sign that the coaching staff is still sorting out which depth forwards can hold up at the NHL level. Jared Wright, who played in three of the Kings four games since his recall, was sent back to the Ontario Reign as the club continues to juggle its forward group and look for the right mix down the lineup.
In his place, Martin Chromiak gets the next look on the NHL roster after building momentum in the AHL and standing out offensively there. He has yet to make his NHL debut, but the Kings are clearly willing to reward production and keep testing options as Laviolette evaluates his depth players in the opening stretch of the season. [Read more 🡒]