REIGN PREVIEW 11/30 – Ontario at Bakersfield

WHO: Ontario Reign (9-7-0-0) at Bakersfield Condors (7-7-2-1)
WHAT: AHL REGULAR-SEASON GAME #17
WHEN: Saturday, November 30 @ 7:00 PM Pacific
WHERE: Mechanics Bank Arena – Bakersfield, CA
HOW TO FOLLOW: VIDEO: FloHockey – AUDIO: ESPN LA App / Reign Radio – TWITTER: @ShafReign & @OntarioReign

TODAY’S MATCHUP: The Ontario Reign aim to close out November by extending their winning streak on the road in Bakersfield against the Condors on Saturday night at Mechanics Bank Arena.

WHAT TO WATCH FOR: Ontario has earned victories in eight of its last 11 games, moving above the .500 mark for the first time this season. By virtue of a 4-0 shutout win over Texas on Friday, the Reign have jumped into a tie for sixth place in the Pacific Division standings with 18 points. Bakersfield has a record of 7-7-2-1 from 17 games and is sitting in eighth in the Pacific. Ontario ranks third in the AHL offensively, averaging 3.63 goals per game. The Condors are a more defensively-focused team, allowing just 3.06 goals per contest. Bakersfield is at the bottom of the AHL in power play percentage, scoring just four times on the man-advantage in 48 opportunities this year (8.3%). Ontario has done well on the penalty kill as of late, discarding 22 of their opponents’ last 23 power play chances to move up to 12th in the league in that category at 84.6%.

LAST TIME OUT: Pheonix Copley stopped all 27 shots that came his way to help the Ontario Reign win their third straight game 4-0 over the Texas Stars in the first meeting between the two clubs since 2018 on Friday night at Toyota Arena. Samuel Fagemo also starred in the victory with two goals for the Reign, while Kaleb Lawrence recorded a goal and an assist and Jack Studnicka earned two assists.

HEAD-TO-HEAD: Bakersfield claimed the first meeting between the two teams this season on Oct. 18 in Ontario by a score of 4-1. Last season, the Reign won five of the eight regular season matchups against the Condors before recording back-to-back postseason victories over Bakersfield in the First Round of the Calder Cup Playoffs. The lone meeting of the series to go past regulation was the final one of the regular season, with the Reign earning a 4-3 victory on an overtime goal by Martin Chromiak. Ontario’s scoring was evenly distributed in last year’s regular season series, with Tyler Madden sharing the team lead with six points on two goals and four assists, while Charles Hudon had five points on three goals and two assists. Madden’s success against Bakersfield carried over to the postseason, where he scored twice in Game 1 before adding the series-winning goal to end the Condors season in the third period of Game 2.

FAGEMO’S SCORING FLASH: After finding the back of the net twice on Friday, forward Samuel Fagemo has now scored four times in his past three games and is now leading Ontario with nine total goals during 2024-25. Fagemo, already the team’s all-time leading goal scorer with 112 tallies in his AHL career, is also almost at a point-per-game pace this year with 15 in 16 contests. The Goteborg, Sweden native got off to a slow start this season without a goal in his first six games before netting four in a two-game span to open November. A year ago, Fagemo set career-highs with 43 goals and 62 points in 50 games and led the AHL with 19 power play goals, the most any skater has ever had in a Reign sweater.

SCOUTING THE CONDORS: Bakersfield has lost three of its last four games and is looking to get back on track Saturday at home during the club’s annual Teddy Bear Toss promotion. Returning veteran forward Seth Griffith is the Condors’ leading scorer with 13 points on seven goals and six assists from his first 16 appearances. Matthew Savoie has also factored in with 10 points on four goals and six assists, while Drake Caggiula, Noah Philp, Daniel D’Amato and Cameron Wright have each scored five goals. Blueliners Noel Hoefenmayer and Connor Carrick are tied for the scoring lead amongst defenders with seven points apiece, each with a goal and six assists. In net, Olivier Rodrigue leads Bakersfield with a 0.926 save percentage in nine appearances, posting a record of 5-3-1. Collin Delia has also played eight contests, going 2-4-2 with a 2.97 goals-against average.

KUDOS FOR KALEB: Rookie forward Kaleb Lawrence registered his first-career multi-point game in Friday’s Reign win, assisting on Aatu Jamesen’s opening goal in the first period before adding an insurance marker of his own late in the third. The helper was the first of Lawrence’s career, which has now consisted of four points from his first five AHL contests. His late tally was the Ottawa, Ont. native’s third goal of the season on just his ninth recorded shot on goal. Lawrence has also amassed a plus-four rating from his first five appearances and has been on the ice for a goal in each of his last four games. The former seventh-round selection by the LA Kings in the 2022 NHL Draft is coming off a 37-point regular season during his final OHL campaign, which saw him split time between the Ottawa 67’s and London Knights and score 10 goals with each club.

COPLEY SHUTS THE DOOR: Goaltender Pheonix Copley blanked Texas Friday night for his first shutout of the 2024-25 season. The clean sheet was the 16th shutout of the veteran’s AHL career, which has spanned 10 seasons since he first appeared with the Hershey Bears during 2014-15. He has also recorded three shutouts at the NHL level, one with the Washington Capitals in 2018-19 and two during his time with the LA Kings. Through eight games for Ontario this year, Copley has a record of 5-3-0 with a goals-against average of 2.59 along with a .899 save percentage. The 32-year-old North Pole, Alaska native has played 77 regular season games in his NHL career, earning an impressive 44-16-8 record with a 2.84 goals-against average.