REIGN PREVIEW 1/31 – Ontario at San Diego

REIGN PREVIEW 1/31 – Ontario at San Diego
WHO: Ontario Reign (28-12-1-1, 58pts) at San Diego (19-14-6-3, 47pts)
WHAT: AHL REGULAR-SEASON GAME #43/72
WHEN: Saturday, January 31 @ 6:00 Pacific
WHERE: Pechanga Arena – San Diego, CA
HOW TO FOLLOW: VIDEO: FloHockey – AUDIO: Reign Radio – TWITTER: @ReignInsider & @OntarioReign

TONIGHT’S MATCHUP: The Ontario Reign head to San Diego tonight for just the second time this season as they take on the Gulls for the third of four total meetings this year.

Ontario picked up a 5-2 win over Abbotsford at Toyota Arena on Wednesday night as Glenn Gawdin, Jared Wright, and Aatu Jämsen each scored a goal and recorded an assist while Andre Lee and Francesco Pinelli also found the back of the net. The Reign have won three straight games, six of their last seven, and have posted a 10-2-0 mark in the month of January. The Reign have won six straight games on home ice while they’ve come away victorious in four of their last five on the road.

San Diego snapped a three-game losing skid last night picking up a 4-3 victory in Coachella Valley. The Gulls have a point in four of their last six games, 3-2-0-1, as they’re just 1-3-0-2 in their last six games on home ice.

HEAD-TO-HEAD SERIES: The Reign hold a 1-0-1-0 record vs. the Gulls this season. Martin Chromiak had two goals and two assists on Nov. 7 while Glenn Gawdin scored a pair of goals on Nov. 8. Tim Washe leads the way for the Gulls with three goals and an assist but was recalled by Anaheim on Jan. 7 and remains with the Ducks. Ontario is 5-for-5 on the penalty kill while they’re 2-for-9 on the power-play as Martin Chromiak and Joe Hicketts scored on the man advantage on Nov. 7.
Nov. 7 – ONT (4) at SD (6)
Nov. 8 – ONT (4) vs. SD (3) OT

BETWEEN TWO PIPES: For Ontario, Erik Portillo and Pheonix Copley have alternated starts over the last 12 games since Portillo returned from injury on Jan. 4. Portillo made 23 saves on 25 shots Wednesday improving to 11-1-1 on the year with a 2.28 goals against average and .915 save percentage. He has won six straight games since his return from injury which sidelined him from Nov. 13-Jan. 2, 16 consecutive games. Copley has won seven of his last 10 starts after making 28 saves on 29 shots on Saturday vs. Colorado. He holds a 11-9-0 mark this season with a 2.88 GAA and .892 SV%.

For San Diego, Tomas Suchanek made 26 saves on 29 shots in the victory last night for his first win of the season improving to 1-2-2 with a 2.94 goals against average and .890 save percentage. He has played 11 games in the ECHL with Tulsa holding a 3-7-0 mark with a 4.39 GAA and .884 SV%. Calle Clang has started four of the last six games and eight of the last 12. He made 23 saves in his last appearance, a 4-3 shootout loss vs. Tucson Wednesday, improving to 9-3-4 on the year with a 2.25 GAA and .910 SV%. He is 3-1-1 in his last five games. Ville Husso was recalled by Anaheim on Jan. 6 and remains with the Ducks.

ON THE ROAD: Ontario has won four of their last five games on the road having posted a 13-8-0-0 record away from Toyota Arena this season. They’ve scored a power-play goal in four of their last five, 4-for-15 (26.7%) while they’ve surrendered a power-play goal against in just one of the last five, 13-for-14 (92.9%). Ontario is 7-0-0-0 when leading after two periods, 4-5-0-0 when trailing after one, and 3-7-0-0 when trailing after two.

SPECIAL TEAMS BECOMING SPECIAL: The Reign went 1-for-2 on the power-play Wednesday and now have a power-play goal in five of their last six games, 7-for-20 (35%). They have a man advantage strike in 11 of their last 13 games, 13-for-43 (30.2%). Ontario was 3-for-3 on the penalty kill Wednesday as they’re now 7-for-7 in their last three. They’ve now surrendered a power-play goal against in just three of their last 15 games, 43-for-47, 91.4%.

INDIVIDUAL NOTES:
Erik Portillo has won six straight games since returning from injury after missing 16 consecutive games from Nov. 13-Jan. 2. He is victorious in 10 consecutive decisions.
Martin Chromiak has 13 points (4G, 9A) in his last 11 games.
Tim Rego has five points (2G, 3A) in his last seven games.
Glenn Gawdin has a point in 16 of his last 21 games (4G, 16A).
Andre Lee has 10 points (9G, 1A) in his last 11 games.
Nikita Alexandrov has a point in 16 of 23 games with Ontario (7G, 17A).
Jared Wright has six points (4G, 2A) in his last 10 games.
Cole Guttman has a point in 10 of his last 12 games (10G, 6A). After starting the season with just three points (1G, 2A) in his first 11 games he has 29 points (14G, 15A) in his last 27 games.
Aatu Jämsen has nine points (5G, 4A) in his last 12 games after notching eight points (4G, 4A) in his first 27 games.

AMONG LEAGUE LEADERS:
Erik Portillo is 8th with a 2.30 goals against average, 6th with a .915 save percentage, and tied for 6th with 11 wins.
Martin Chromiak is tied for 6th with six power-play goals, tied for 10th with 15 goals, and tied for 11th with 33 points.
Glenn Gawdin is tied for 7th with 26 assists and tied for 10th with 34 points.
Andre Lee is tied for 5^th with seven power-play goals, tied for 9^th with 16 goals, and tied for 14^th with 29 points.
Pheonix Copley is tied for 6th with 11 wins.
Nikita Alexandrov is tied for 5th with 28 assists and tied for 6th with 38 points.
Jared Wright leads all rookies at +19 which is tied for 7th among all skaters.
Cole Guttman is tied for 10th with 15 goals and tied for 13th with 31 points.

BY THE NUMBERS:
Ontario
GF: 5th (3.38)
GA: 7th (2.71)
PP: 9th (20.9%)
PK: 6th (83.8%)
SF: 31st (25.07)
SA: 5th (26.31)

San Diego
GF: 21st (2.83)
GA: 9th (2.83)
PP: 22nd (17.2%)
PK: 5th (84.1%)
SF: 1st (33.50)
SA: 8th (26.81)

TEAM LEADERS:
Ontario
Points: Nikita Alexandrov (38)
Goals: Andre Lee (17)
Assists: Nikita Alexandrov (28)
+/-: Jared Wright (19)
Shots: Martin Chromiak (90)
PPGS: Andre Lee (7)
PPAS: Nikita Alexandrov (10)
PP Points: Martin Chromiak, Nikita Alexandov (13)
Wins: Pheonix Copley, Erik Portillo (11)
GAA: Erik Portillo (2.28)
SV%: Erik Portillo (.915)

San Diego
Points: Sasha Pastujov (29)
Goals: Justin Bailey (14)
Assists: Sasha Pastujov, Matthew Phillips (20)
+/-: Justin Bailey, Noah Warren (9)
Shots: Sasha Pastujov (152)
PPGS: Yegor Sidorov (4)
PPAS: Sasha Pastujov (7)
PP Points: Sasha Pastujov (10)
Wins: Calle Clang (10)
GAA: Calle Clang (2.25)
SV%: Calle Clang (.910)