While the two parent teams sit on the sidelines, the two minor league affiliates suited up Thursday night for a second round bout at Citizens Business Bank Arena.
The outcome? A convincing 5-3 victory by the Ontario Reign.
The Reign stormed out the gates, dominating the first period and spotting themselves a two goal lead after the first 20 minutes. Goals from Michael Mersch and Vincent LoVerde on the powerplay were the difference in a first period that saw Ontario out shoot the Gulls 12-4.
But it was a turnaround in the second by San Diego that got everyone in the arena a little nervous. In the second the Gulls evened things up with goals from the recently signed St. Cloud State product Kale Kossila, and from the gritty forward Matt Bailey. The former was a beautifully redirected slap pass from Chris Mueller that beat Budaj 5-hole. The Reign never really settled in, and a good shift from San Diego's third line led to a chance down low which Bailey capitalized on. After a first in which San Diego was heavily outshot, they held evens in the second 11-11.
But it was a pair of career firsts that got the Reign back on top in the third.
Mike Amadio created a turnover on the forecheck from newly signed college defenseman Brian Cooper, and then fed Joel Lowry in the slot for the goal. It was Lowry's first career pro playoff goal, and it was also Amadio's first career pro point.
The Reign consolidated that lead with a Michael Mersch redirection on a Kevin Raine point shot to go up 4-2. It was Mersch's second of the game, and third point of the night.
San Diego did manage to make it interesting. With Hackett on the bench for the extra attacker, Brandon Montour's sneaky slapshot/pass off the end boards found the stick of Corey Tropp who poked it past Budaj on the short side.
However, it was the Reign that would hold on for the last two minutes, down a man and with the goalie pulled.
It was an exciting way to start the series, as we now embark on a travel heavy game 2 in San Diego Saturday followed by Game 3 the following night in Ontario.
Turning Points:
The third period go ahead goal by Joel Lowry was massive for the Reign. After a pretty hefty push back by San Diego in the second, it was huge to get a goal in the early stages of the third.
When asked about the momentum shifts in the game, Reign coach Mike Stothers responded "I think we saw some tonight. So there are small plays or subtle things in the game that maybe turn the tide. Maybe it’s a good shot block, maybe it’s a big play by a kid right out of junior that makes a play to a kid that’s in his first year and comes up with a timely goal for us."
He also noted the importance of the goal coming from his 4th line guys of Amadio and Lowry "As good of a play as it was from Amadio and the composure to give it to Lows, I thought Lows did a real good job of holding onto it for just a split second and then was able to throw it upstairs. Real good play by a couple young guys, and your line that goes out fourth. Good contribution."
As stated before, it was a massive goal considering the huge push San Diego made in the second. With momentum squarely on their side entering the final frame, it was the unlikely 4th line that managed to wrestle it back. Ultimately for good in fact.
Key Stats
12 to 3
That was the number of shots generated by the top six wingers of the Ontario Reign (Mersch, Backman, Kempe, Herr) versus the shots generated by the top six wingers of the San Diego Gulls (Noesen, Kase, Ritchie, Mueller). It was an altogether smothering effort by the Reign defensive pairings, as most of the offense of San Diego was attempted through the middle of the ice.
7 of 8
This was the amount of shifts the Reign top pairing of Gravel and Forbort took against the San Diego top line in the third period at even strength. The top shutdown unit for the Reign saw around 25 minutes of action tonight, heavily focused on the Gulls top 6. However, Stothers really beared down in the third and almost exclusively used them on the Gulls top line of Ritchie/Mueller/Kassela.
.857
This was the save percentage of Matt Hackett in the game.
While granted, a one game sample size is a terrible thing to judge on, it was a far cry away from the .930+ they got from Anton Khudobin in the first round. Could this injury be a series changer if it is long term?
Key Players
Michael Mersch
The big man was key tonight for the Reign. Although he had a quiet series against San Jose, his three point performance included three blocked shots, and three shots on net. It was an outstanding all-around performance.
Michael Sgarbossa
He was a key player tonight because he was a game time scratch from Dallas Eakins. Sgarbossa was spotted later in the evening wearing a walking boot. This is a huge loss for a team that thrives on center depth. With fellow can-be center Nic Kerdiles already on the shelf, the Gulls were forced to push Chris Wagner into a top six role, and also forced to field a bottom six with centers Kyle MacKinnon and Matt Bailey. While the loss of one player may not seem massive, it should be remembered that Sgarbossa was a 50+ point player for the Gulls this season and a huge member of their PP and PK unit.
The entire Reign defensive group
The D-corp of Gravel, Forbort, Raine, Schultz, LoVerde, and MacDermid were incredibly strong at keeping players to the outside and also preventing entry at the blue line. All in all they helped limit the San Diego offense to just 19 shots on the night. They also received a major offensive boost from the backend, as Raine, Schultz, and LoVerde combined for two goals and three assists. Raine and Schultz, the team's third pair, were named the second and third stars behind Mersch.
Moving Forward
Reign head down to San Diego tomorrow ahead of a Game 2 on Saturday.
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