Veterans leading the way to success in Ontario

With a come-from-behind overtime win on Saturday in Calgary against the team with the most points in the Western Conference, Ontario increased its points percentage to 0.656 on the year. That percentage, which consists of 59 points from 45 games, is the best mark in the west and the fifth-highest overall in the league.

After a stretch that included 10 wins in 11 games from late November into the league’s holiday break in December, the Reign have remained consistently near the top of the division standings between second and fourth. Another pivotal game in Calgary on Monday has them within striking distance of the top spot in the Pacific.

Ontario has excelled in all areas, with good offensive numbers for an average of 3.4 goals per game, they allow just 25 shots per contest which ranks second in the league and they’ve gotten high-quality goaltending from both netminders with veteran Pheonix Copley and prospect Erik Portillo.

While there are certainly younger players contributing, like Martin Chromiak and Francesco Pinelli up front, or Angus Booth and Jack Millar on the back end, much of the team’s consistent approach and success can be attributed to their veteran core. It’s not just those wearing letters on their jersey, although captain Joe Hicketts and alternates Charles Hudon and Jeff Malott certainly are a big part of the group, other newcomers, like Glenn Gawdin, who has over 40 points as the team’s top center, Jack Studnicka, who is close to the 30-point mark and Caleb Jones, who has stabilized the blueliners since joining Ontario’s roster during that successful stretch in December, are all major contributors to the success.

“Veterans, especially in this league, they’re so important,” said Sturm after the win on Saturday in Calgary. “A lot of people don’t know, it’s not just on the ice, but I think off the ice too. I feel like since I’m here, especially the last few years, we’ve had the right people around our young kids where they can learn a lot and they’re leading the way.”

Malott, who signed a two-year pact with the Kings on July 1 and is in his fifth pro season, has points in four straight games, including five goals and the primary helper on Hudon’s tying strike Sunday. He ranks third on the team in scoring this year with 37 points in 45 games on 15 goals and 22 assists.

Gawdin, who won the AHL Player of the Month for November after scoring 21 points in 12 games with nine goals and 12 assists along with a plus-13 rating, is on pace to surpass his career-high in scoring which was set last season when he totaled 55 points in 70 games with the San Diego Gulls.

Studnicka registered his 13th goal of the year on Sunday with a power play strike in the second period. He’s been on the scoresheet in eight of his last 10 games, sparking a line that includes wingers Andre Lee and Taylor Ward.

“Last year was really good as a leadership group, this year it’s a little bit different,” Hudon said after scoring to hit the 40-point mark on the year and extend a current point streak to five games, the longest active run of anyone on the team. “It’s kind of nice to see all the guys we have from another team who have come into our organization and have had success.”

Hudon is also on track for another high-end scoring season after joining the Reign on an AHL contract before the 2023-24 campaign. He finished with 54 points for the second consecutive year during his first run with Ontario and scored 20 goals, a mark that he’s only three away from matching this season.

“Looking at Gawds [Gawdin], he was with San Diego and has played against us a lot,” Hudon continued. “It’s tough for him but I think we’ve got a good group and we’re always sticking together. We talk a lot too. When we show up on the ice and something is wrong, someone is talking from on the bench, from on the ice and we’ve got a good group this year.”

For Studnicka, he’s found himself in a unique position as a 25-year-old who has played over 100 games at the NHL level and is nearing 200 contests in the AHL. Age-wise, he’s certainly far from the oldest player in the group, but he has valuable experience.

“You’re going to dinner with Hicketts, and then you’re driving Jamsen to the rink the next day,” said Studnicka as an example of the dichotomy he has among the group. “It’s fun. It’s honestly a really cool spot to be in because you can kind of relate to the younger guys. And at the same time, you’re still fresh and you’re still learning from these older guys. I’ve got some experience under my belt, so that helps too, but it’s a cool dynamic.”

Studnicka has been in multiple organizations during his pro career, including Boston, the team that drafted him in 2017, Vancouver, where he played for parts of two seasons and San Jose, his most recent stop before signing with the Kings last summer.

“It’s certainly one of the best locker rooms I’ve been a part of,” Studnicka said. “I think coming in, what I originally recognized is how much emphasis is put on team. Sometimes in the AHL, it’s more so about getting called up and this and that. But from day one, there’s been a common goal to win the Calder Cup and it’s been super cool to see that dynamic.”

The culture not only benefits the team’s performance but also the players they’re developing, who will hopefully make an impact at the NHL level with the Kings.

One of those important prospects is Jakub Dvořák, who is playing in his first North American professional season with Ontario. He’s only played in 23 AHL contests so far, but Dvořák said he’s been glad to have the veteran group in his corner and they’ve made a big difference for him.

“I think for us as young guys this is the big win situation, having a good group of older guys, because it makes everything a lot easier for us,” said Dvořák after Sunday’s practice. “Since they went through it, they’re trying to help us because they were in our boots and they know that sometimes it’s not easy. I’m really glad that we have a group like this here.”

Dvořák played parts of two years in the professional league in his home country, Czechia, before joining the Reign this year. But he said his experience there was nothing like what he’s seen here with Ontario.

“It’s a completely different thing,” Dvořák said. It’s hard to compare it because I haven’t been to a different pro team here in the league. But if I would compare it to the team in Czechia, this is on a completely different level. One side is how the guys treat you the other side is how they treat themself and how they work, how they show up as pro players every day.”

He too, like Sturm, mentioned that it’s not just the help he receives on the ice, but what others have done for him away from the rink that has really made a difference in him feeling comfortable with the team and in the United States.

“Hockey is one thing, but also there’s things at home and the social life as well,” said Dvořák. “Finding an apartment, doing the things that we need to do as European players to come here, are examples. Those are the sort of things that have really helped us.”

The Reign are hoping that the tightness of their group and the leadership they have will translate into success later in the season when the games matter the most. But there’s still work to be done in the next two months before the Calder Cup Playoffs open in the second half of April. Ontario still has hopes of earning the top spot in the division and the first-round bye that comes as a reward for the best team in the Pacific during the regular season.