REIGN PREVIEW 1/7 – Ontario vs. Iowa 

REIGN PREVIEW 1/7 – Ontario vs. Iowa
WHO: Ontario Reign (20-10-1-1) at Iowa Wild (10-21-1-1)
WHAT: AHL REGULAR-SEASON GAME #33/72
WHEN: Wednesday, January 7 @ 7:00 Pacific
WHERE: Toyota Arena – Ontario, CA
HOW TO FOLLOW: VIDEO: FloHockey – AUDIO: Reign Radio – TWITTER: @ReignInsider & @OntarioReign

TONIGHT’S MATCHUP
The Ontario Reign and Iowa Wild square off in the second of four total meetings this season, the second of two in Ontario at Toyota Arena.

Ontario picked up their third shutout victory of the season on Sunday defeating the Wild 3-0. Erik Portillo made 19 saves for his third career AHL shutout, his first since Jan. 5, 2024 when he made 25 saves in a 2-0 victory over San Jose. He had been out of the lineup since Nov. 12, 53 days, when he suffered an injury in Calgary. Martin Chromiak scored a pair of goals for his third multi-goal game of the season and is now second on the club with 13 while Andre Lee registered his team leading 15^thof the year, seventh on the power-play. Glenn Gawdin recorded an assist for the eighth straight game while lifting his point streak to 11-games.

Iowa rode a four-game (3-0-1) point streak into the matchup, but the shutout loss was their sixth of the season. The Wild had a stretch from Nov.8-Dec.19 posting a record of just 3-15-0. They have given up two or fewer goals in regulation in four of their last five games but have been held to two or fewer in six of their last seven.

GETTING THE CALL UP
The LA Kings announced earlier this morning that they have recalled forwards Andre Lee and Taylor Ward from Ontario.

Lee leads the club in points (27), goals (15), and power-play scores (7) having appeared in all 32 games. He has seven goals and an assist in his last eight games and 20 points (12G, 8A) in his last 21 games. Ontario is 9-1-1-1 when he scores this season and 17-2-1-1 when he tallies a point. Drafted by the Kings in the seventh round, 188^th overall, in the 2019 NHL Draft, Lee played 19 games with LA last season recording three points (1G, 2A). He made his NHL debut on Oct. 10, 2024 in a 3-1 win at Buffalo, recorded his first point on Oct. 16, 2024 in a 6-2 loss at Toronto, and scored his first NHL goal on Jan. 1, 2025 in a 3-0 win over New Jersey. He has spent parts of the last five seasons with the Reign appearing in 185 games accumulating 71 points (35G, 36A). He signed a two-year contract extension with LA this past March.

Ward is third on the squad in goals (12) and fifth in points (21) having skated in all 32 games this season. Ontario is 10-1-0-0 this season when he scores a goal and 14-2-0-0 when he collects a point. Originally undrafted, Ward signed a three-year, entry-level contract with the Kings in March 2022 after four seasons at Nebraska-Omaha. He scored a goal in his NHL debut last year on Apr. 17, a 5-1 loss vs. Calgary, which is his lone game in the NHL. In parts of five seasons with Ontario Ward has skated in 256 games notching 116 points (47G, 69A). He signed a one-year contract extension with LA this past July.

PLAYERS TO WATCH
For Ontario, Glenn Gawdin has a 11-game point streak (3G, 10A) and has 20 points (5G, 15A) in his last 21 games. His 20 assists are tied for seventh in the AHL as the Reign are 14-6-0-1 when he records a point. Nikita Alexandrov has a point in seven of his last eight games (1G, 8A) and 13 points (4G, 8A) in 13 games with Ontario while Cole Guttman has a point in three of his last four games (3G, 3A).

For Iowa, Gerry Mayhew leads the club with nine goals, 17 points, and six power-play scores but has just three points (1G, 2A) in his last eight games. Dylan Gambrell has five points (1G, 4A) in six games while Ben Jones has five points (3G, 2A) in seven games with a goal in three of his last four. David Špaček leads all Iowa defenders with 16 points (2G, 14A) and has five points (2G, 3A) in his last six games.

REIGN REMARKABLES

• #8 Martin Chromiak has 19 points (10G, 9A) in his last 20 games.
• #21 Glenn Gawdin has 20 points (5G, 15A) in his last 21 games.
• #26 Andre Lee has 20 points (12G, 8A) in his last 21 games and seven goals in his last eight games.
• #59 Nikita Alexandrov has 12 points (4G, 8A) in 13 games with Ontario.
• #81 Cole Guttman has 19 points (7G, 12A) in his last 20 games and three goals in his last three games.

AMONG LEAGUE LEADERS

• #8 Martin Chromiak is tied for 6th with five power-play goals and tied for 8th with 13 goals.
• #17 Kenny Connors is tied for 3rd among rookies at +14 which is tied for 9th among all skaters.
• #21 Glenn Gawdin is tied for 7th with 20 assists and tied for 12th with 26 points.
• #26 Andre Lee is tied for 10th with 27 points, tied for 6th with 15 goals, tied for 4th with seven power-play goals.
• #34 Taylor Ward is tied for 9th with 12 goals.
• #49 Isaiah Saville is tied for 3rd among goaltenders with two shutouts.
• #59 Nikita Alexandrov is tied for 8th with 19 assists and tied for 12th with 26 points.
• #78 Jared Wright is tied for 3rd among rookies at +14 which is tied for 9th among all skaters.

QUICK HITS

• The Reign have now collected a point in six of their last eight games, 5-1-0-1, and are 11-5-0-1 since Nov. 21.
• Ontario is 10-3-1-1 in one-goal games having won seven of their last nine.
• The Reign have now scored three or more goals in seven straight contests while allowing their opponent to two or fewer goals in four of the last five.
• Ontario has a power-play goal in three straight games for the second time this season, the first since games 4-7, while killing of 18 straight power-plays against.