ECHL Ontario Reign

Playoff Game Preview - Ontario Reign at Idaho Steelheads

Published on April 27, 2013 under ECHL (ECHL)
Ontario Reign News Release


Round 2 Game 5

Arena: CenturyLink Arena, Boise, ID

Date: Saturday, Apr. 27

Time: 6:10 p.m. (PT)

Video Webcast: America ONE Networks

Audio Webcast: Jesse Liebman - Pre-game show at 5:50 p.m.

TONIGHT:

The Ontario Reign (6-1-1) will return to CenturyLink Arena looking to take back the series lead over the Idaho Steelheads (6-3-1) in Game 5 of the Western Conference Semifinals. Last night the Steelheads rolled the Reign with a 6-0 shutout to tie the series 2-2. Ontario went 4-5-0-0 against Idaho this season and were outscored 32 to 29 with both a shutout win and a shutout loss.

The Reign earned their first ever playoff shutout when JF Berube stopped all 19 shots and his teammates beat Tyler Beskorowany and Josh Robinson five times to tie their largest margin of victory of this playoff season. Ontario suffered their largest margin of defeat against the Steelheads last night with a 6-0 loss. The previous record also belonged to the Steelheads with their 5-0, Game 5 win last season to eliminate the Reign from the playoffs.

ROLE OF THE ROOKIES:

Ontario's rookies have stepped up this season amassing 17 points in eight games which is impressive as six of the seven rookies are defensemen - not typically expected to be big point-getters. Enter Ebert - Nick Ebert alone has earned seven points ranking second on the Reign, and he is tied with Steelheads' Matt Case to lead ECHL defenseman in points.

SPECIAL TEAM BREAKDOWN:

The Reign boasted a perfect penalty kill until last night's game in which they gave up their first power-play goal of the 2013 Kelly Cup playoffs. The Reign rank second to Alaska on the penalty kill going 25 for 26 for a 96.2% success rate. Staying out of the penalty box has been a major factor in the Reign's success. With just 13.63 penalty minutes per game, the Reign, a team that lead the league in penalty minutes throughout the season, is focusing on preventing any disadvantages and it has worked in their favor. Ontario's power play is still improving as they rank 11th overall for 5 power-play goals on 35 chances for 14.3% rate.

SEASON SERIES:

10/24: ONT @ IDH....L, 2-7

10/26: ONT @ IDH....L, 2-6

12/8: ONT vs IDH....L, 2-3

12/9: ONT vs IDH....W, 5-4 OT

12/15: ONT vs IDH....W, 6-2

2/16: ONT vs IDH....L, 2-4

3/20: ONT @ IDH....W, 5-3

3/22: ONT @ IDH....L, 0-3

3/23: ONT @ IDH....W, 5-0

2013 PLAYOFFS:

4/2: ONT vs UTA....W, 5-2

4/3: ONT vs UTA....W, 7-2

4/5: ONT at UTA....W, 2-1 OT

4/6: ONT at UTA....W, 2-1 OT

4/19: ONT vs IDH....L, 2-3 OT

4/20: ONT vs IDH....W, 5-0

4/24: ONT @ IDH....W, 2-1

4/26: ONT @ IDH....L, 0-6

4/27: ONT @ IDH

4/30: ONT vs IDH

5/1: ONT vs IDH if necessary

REIGN TRACKER (ECHL active roster rankings):

Couture: Tied for league-lead with +9

Ebert: Tied for league-lead in defensemen scoring with 7 pts

Berube: 3rd in ECHL with 1.88 GAA, 2nd with 6 wins

LEADERS:

Points: Couture 9

Goals: Stretch 5, several active players are tied at 2

Assists: Couture 7

+/-: Couture +9

PIM: Calla 22

SOG: Couture 26

NEXT GAME:

Game 6 will be played Tuesday, Apr. 30 at 7:00 p.m. back at Citizens Business Bank Arena in Ontario.

Check out the Ontario Reign Statistics

Share: Facebook | Twitter/X | LinkedIn | Reddit | Email



ECHL Stories from April 27, 2013


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

OurSports Central