Life at the top isn’t easy. Since climbing into first place recently, a myriad of things have gone wrong for coach Marco Sturm and the Ontario Reign. Already without Erik Portillo — the team’s No. 1 goaltender — they suffered an embarrassing 4-0 loss on Friday in the opening of a two-game weekend set vs. Colorado. There’s just something about those Eagles too, as they’ve seemingly had Ontario’s number since joining the AHL’s Pacific Division in 2018.
All is not lost though. Even with the Reign now sitting in fourth place, they have games in hand over Calgary (3) and Coachella Valley (4). Tied with Colorado with 65 points and 50 games played, Saturday’s rematch is a chance to claw their way back up.
Aiding in the cause has been the return of Sammy Fagemo to the lineup. Although he didn’t produce any points on Friday, having his lethal shot back should aid Ontario’s offense moving forward. Last night, Sturm had him on the third line, which where he’s typically slotted. Perhaps tonight he’s moved up. Equally of note was the reunion of Kings prospects Andre Lee and Sammy Helenius. After speculating on putting them back together for several weeks, the plan is now in motion.
REIGN PROJECTED LINEUP vs. EAGLES
Malott – Gawdin – Hudon
Lee – Helenius – Ward
Chromiak – Studnicka – Fagemo
Element – Pinelli – Doty
Hicketts- Millar
Dvorak – Walsh
Cecconi – Rowe
Copley
McKay
Other roster options include: (F) Jamsen and (D) Booth, Krebs, Krygier, and (G) Portillo
Puck drop is scheduled for 6:00 pm Pacific Time and the game can be viewed on FloHockey. An audio only feed is also available on the ESPN LA app.
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