As yesterday’s holiday dust settles, the Reign are gearing up for a Black Friday battle on home ice against the visiting Henderson Silver Knights.
Coming off a two-game sweep of Bakersfield last weekend, Ontario will look to carry that momentum into tonight’s matchup at Toyota Arena. In particular, the Lee–Connors–Wright line aims to build on its season-long success.
For the first ten games, it looked as though new head coach Andrew Lord had found a formula that worked with that line, but he opted to separate them for five games. Last weekend, though, he put the trio back together and they wasted no time rediscovering their chemistry.
In the aforementioned home-and-home series vs. the Condors, that line was responsible for three of Ontario’s six goals. Wright found the back of the net twice, Connors added one, and Lee contributed two primary helpers; all playing a key role in securing the sweep.
When it comes to Henderson, the Silver Knights have given Ontario trouble this season. The Reign have managed wins against every other opponent, but have yet to solve Henderson, going 0-2 in a pair of previous contests.
Perhaps complicating matters for Ontario, goaltender Carter Hart is now down on a conditioning loan and slated to start for Henderson this evening. In his first two games of the rehab stint, he has compiled a 1-1 record and a 2.55 GAA. He’s still suspended from the NHL, but that’s about to change in a few days. After a two year absence to resolve legal issues, he’s eligible to be reinstated as early as Dec. 1.
Injury Updates
On the injury front, the Reign remain fairly short-handed. Goaltender Erik Portillo, defenseman Jakub Dvorak, and forward Kaleb Lawrence remain sidelined.
However, Kings prospects Franky Pinelli and Martin Chromiak are expected to play. The latter left Saturday’s game in Bakersfield after spitting up a significant amount of blood and did not return. Somehow, he returned to practice a few days later in a partial face shield and will attempt to give it a go vs. Henderson.
Per our sources, Portillo is said to be improving, yet still isn’t quite ready to return. Although there isn’t a definitive timeline for his return, there is internal optimism that Portillo will only be out a few weeks.
What You May Have Missed
Reign rookie forward Jared Wright stopped by Kings Of The Podcast earlier this week and you don’t want to miss that fun-filled conversation:
Reign Projected Lineup vs. Silver Knights
If there are any key changes during pregame warmups, this article will be updated.
Ward – Thomas – Chromiak
Jamsen – Gawdin – Guttman
Lee – Connors – Wright
Brown – Pinelli – Ziemmer
Hicketts – Salin
Booth – Burroughs
Kirsanov – Bolduc
Copley (starter)
Saville
Likely scratches: (F) Hughes, Isogai and (D) Dvorak, Millar
Injured: Doty, Lawrence (month-to-month), Parker-Jones, Portillo
Key Game Info
Puck drop is set for 7:00 pm Pacific Time and will be streamed via FloSports. Additionally, a Reign radio feed is available here.
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