January 15: Reign game breakdown

Reign game breakdown
The Reign overcame the loss of Michael Mersch due to injury late in the first period and hung on to beat Bakersfield 3-2 on Saturday night in Ontario. Leading 1-0 after 20 minutes on a redirect goal by Brett Sutter, Ontario came out for the second period without Mersch, who had been hit awkwardly by Kyle Platzer. With jumbled lines the Reign forged on, taking a 2-0 lead on a power play mark by Adrian Kempe. Bakersfield responded with a power play goal of their own minutes later by Ryan Hamilton but T.J. Hensick converted on a tic-tac-toe passing play from Daniel Ciampini and Sam Herr to put the Reign ahead by two again. Bakersfield’s Anton Lander scored 4:19 into the third on a quick release from the left circle but Ontario held on the rest of the way, outshooting the Condors 14-7 in the final period and 42-26 overall.

Best quote
Head coach Mike Stothers, on how hard it is to lose a player like Mersch: “We got through it tonight but looking forward and going ahead, it’s not the ideal situation. You don’t replace a Michael Mersch. So, it’s going to be a challenge for us. Again, it’s through nobody’s fault. Mike plays hard, he gets hurt.”

Three stars
–Vincent LoVerde – The All-Star’s two-assist performance started with his blast from the point in the first period, a goal that was originally credited to him and later switched to Sutter. He also had the primary helper on Kempe’s power play goal as his shot left a long rebound for Kempe, giving LoVerde his fourth multi-point game of the season. On the defensive end he made an outstretched, diving play to poke the puck away from Patrick Russell, who was on a breakaway late in the second period. “He’s our captain. He’s our leader. He’s our All-Star. What more can you say,” Stothers said. “You need a big play? Look to Vinny. Need a veteran presence back there with a younger-looking blue line tonight? He was there. He plays hard. He practices hard. Does everything hard. There’s only one speed for Vinny and that’s full throttle, all the time. He’s a pleasure to have. We’re very lucky to have him as our captain.”
–Adrian Kempe – When Mersch went down Kempe was called upon in an expanded role, double-shifted at times at center and wing, and responded well to the added responsibility. His power play goal — which he sent into a gaping net from the left circle following the LoVerde rebound — was his ninth goal of the season and his fourth since the Christmas break, an eight game stretch. “We were all kind of anticipating the year that [Kempe] was going to have. It’s now starting to become evident,” Stothers said.
–Taylor Beck – The Condors’ leading scorer (9-26=35) added to his numbers with his two-assist night. His shot from the point on the power play resulted in his team’s first goal, a deflection by Hamilton. Then, he set up Lander’s goal with his pass from behind the net.

Turning point
With 24.6 seconds left in regulation, LoVerde was called for a hooking penalty. On the ensuing faceoff to Reign goalie Jack Campbell’s left and the Condors skating 6-on-4 with their goalie Nick Ellis pulled, Andrew Crescenzi came up with a clean win to get Ontario the clear. Again, with 7.7 seconds left, Crescenzi managed to poke the puck forward on the faceoff and when his diving attempt to whack it out of the zone missed, Sutter was there to send it all the way down on the final play.

Stat fact
–5-1 – Campbell’s record now in the second game of back-to-backs this season. His 24-save performance included an flashing glove save in the second period on a Grade A chance for the Condors’ Jesse Puljujarvi, Edmonton’s first round pick at No. 4 overall in the 2016 draft who was recently sent down by the Oilers.

Lineups and injuries
Defenseman Kurtis MacDermid was a healthy scratch for the first time in his career with the Reign. The night prior against San Jose he took an unsportsmanlike penalty when the Reign were called for too many men which resulted in a 5-on-3 power play goal for the Barracuda. MacDermid played in a 56 games last season, the only 12 he missed coming while he served a suspension. “Sometimes a message needs to be sent, but more importantly a message needs to be received,” Stothers said. “So, hopefully a fine young guy like Kurtis, message received. Love the kid. Know his whole family. It’s like telling your own kid, giving ya a timeout, you’re grounded, you can’t go to the party, whatever. It’s a decision you make as a coach and as a parent. You’re probably not the most popular guy in the room right now, but you do what’s best for everybody. I had to give my daughters timeouts every once in a while. Had to ground them a couple of times. They still love their dad. So, I’m sure Kurtis and I will hug it out.” … Forward Michael Latta was a healthy scratch for a third straight game.

This and that off-ice
The Reign hosted Star Wars night and a sellout crowd of 9,491 on the same evening the Kings hosted the Jets in a sellout just down the 10 freeway.

Next up
Ontario will travel on Sunday to Tucson, where they’ll face the Roadrunners on Monday and Wednesday night. Stothers said there’s “no chance,” Mersch goes with them.