Aces Overthrow Reign, 6-3
February 22, 2009 - ECHL (ECHL)
Ontario Reign News Release
ONTARIO, Calif. - The Ontario Reign, proud affiliate of the NHL Los Angeles Kings and AHL Manchester Monarchs, was defeated by the Alaska Aces, 6-3, Sunday evening in front of 5,148 fans at Citizens Business Bank Arena.
The match got physical from the first puck drop. Left wing Chris Curran threw a check on Aces defenseman B.J. Crum as he was streaking around the net, and sent Crum flying into the boards. Aces defenseman Nick Tuzzolino took exception to the legal hit, and dropped the gloves with Curran. Both players landed some haymakers and continued throwing punches even after falling to the ice. The referees eventually broke it up, and doled out a 5-minute fighting major and 2-minute instigating minor to Tuzzolino and a 5-minute fighting major to Curran.
Alaska opened up scoring in the match just seconds after killing off Tuzzolino's instigating minor. On a breakaway, right wing Matt Stefanishion fed the puck ahead to left wing Lance Galbraith, who threw the puck past Ontario goaltender Jeff Zatkoff, high on his stick side. The Aces took a 1-0 lead.
The Reign countered with a goal of their own at 15:29. An Alaska player tried to clear the zone, but his attempt was grabbed by right wing Bud Holloway, who tipped the puck to right wing Jon Rheault. Rheault shot the puck from between the face-off circles in front of the net, and his bid went top-shelf and sent the goalie's water flying back towards the glass. The teams headed into the second period tied at one.
Todd Jackson headed to the locker room at 5:02 in the second after a slash from Alaska defenseman Ryan Turek. At 7:01, during an Aces shorthanded shift, Matt Stefanishion fired the puck into the left side of the net before Zatkoff could slide in front of the shot. Alaska's 2-1 lead didn't last long, because less than three minutes later, right wing Brad Mehalko passed the puck to defenseman Dan Knapp from behind the net. Knapp fed the puck to forward Dale Reinhardt in front of the net, and Reinhardt launched the puck into the empty side of the goal before Alaska netminder Jean-Philippe Lamoureux could get back into position.
At 15:43, the gloves hit the ice again after Jon Rheault sent an Alaska player into the boards. Two separate fights erupted, the first of which was between Reign defenseman Andrew Martens and Aces left wing Scott Burt by the boards. The fists flew and shots were landed before the players fell to the ice and headed to the box. Immediately following, Reign defenseman David Walker and Aces forward Erik Fabian squared off. The Alaska forward landed a few blows, but Walker connected with some left jabs of his own before both players went down. The referees handed out six penalties after the brawls: Burt, Fabian, Walker, and Martens received 5-minute fighting majors, while Jon Rheault received a 5-minute boarding major and a game misconduct for his hit, giving the Aces a power play.
Forward Luke Erickson received a pass from Matt Shasby just in front of the blue line. Erickson fired off a slapshot that flew past Zatkoff and gave the Aces a 3-2 lead. Right wing Brett Hemingway also registered an assist on the goal. After a turbulent second period, the Reign headed into the third looking to battle back and catch the Aces.
Alaska was still on a power play to start out the third period, and right wing Cam Keith capitalized on the man advantage. Keith grabbed a rebound and sent the puck flying over Zatkoff, who was still on the ice after going down to make a save. The Aces extended their lead, 4-2.
Right wing Bud Holloway streaked towards the Alaska net on a breakaway, but was hooked by B.J. Crum and awarded a penalty shot at 1:52. Lamoureux made the save and held the Aces lead. Less than two minutes later, during a penalty kill for Jeff Zatkoff's delay of game minor, center Tim Kraus cut Alaska's lead to one with his unassisted, top-shelf goal that made the score 4-3.
Alaska came back with two unanswered goals to close out the match. The first came at 9:57 from center Alexandre Imbeault, who floated the puck into the back left corner of the net. Brett Hemingway and defenseman Bryan Miller registered the assists. The second goal came at 15:42, when Cam Keith picked up his second goal of the night, after sliding the puck around Zatkoff off a breakaway. Ontario was unable to catch Alaska, and the Aces picked up the win with a final score of Aces 6, Reign 3.
Three stars:
1. AK - C. Keith
2. AK - M. Stefanishion
3. ONT - T. Kraus
REIGN DROPS
Attention Reign Fans! Team action photos are now available for online purchase at www.ontarioreign.com under the "Multimedia - Photo Gallery" tab. The Ontario Reign team photographer is Lee Calkins.
Monday, February 23, the Reign is taking on the Victoria Salmon Kings at 7:00 p.m. PLEASE NOTE- this is the rescheduled game (originally January 23). The Reign is extending a special ticket offer to their fans! Any upper level ticket is $5 and any lower ticket is $10! Please note these prices do not include a $3 facility fee, and this offer is ONLY available at the Citizens Business Bank Arena box office.
Saturday, February 28, the first 3,000 fans in attendance when Ontario takes on Las Vegas will receive a special edition Reign trucker cap!
Sunday, March 1, the Reign is holding their season ticket holder party at Santa Anita Racetrack from 12:00-4:00 p.m. Season ticket holders: please R.S.V.P. by calling (909)941-7825.
Are you looking to get in the sports industry? Now is your opportunity!! The Ontario Reign will host a Job Fair at Citizens Business Bank Arena on Friday, March 6, 2009 from 2 - 5 p.m. You will be networking with top executives from leading sports and entertainment organizations such as the Clippers, Dodgers, Kings, Galaxy, Angels, Chivas USA, Defenders, Arsenal, Quakes & the 66ers. Pre-registration is required; the $10 registration fee includes a ticket to that night's 7:00 p.m. game vs. the Stockton Thunder. Bring multiple copies of your resume. Call Greg Mejia to pre-register at (909) 941-7838 or email him at gmejia@ontarioreign.com.
Single game tickets are on sale now and can be purchased at www.ticketmaster.com, at all TicketMaster locations, or by calling (213) 480-3232.
ECHL Stories from February 22, 2009
- Aces Double Down on Reign, 6-3 - Alaska Aces
- Aces Overthrow Reign, 6-3 - Ontario Reign
- ECHL Transactions - ECHL
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- Jackals Split The Weekend - Elmira Jackals
- Nailers Win 5-4 at Trenton Devils - Wheeling Nailers
- Devils Comeback Falls Short in Shootout, 5-4 - Trenton Devils
- Derlago's hat trick paces 5-2 Condors victory - Bakersfield Condors
- Stingrays Finish Road Trip Strong With 4-1 Win Over Reading - South Carolina Stingrays
- Salmon Kings fall in third to Condors - Victoria Salmon Kings
- Blades road struggles continue, lose 6-3 at Gwinnett - Florida Everblades
- Gladiators Beat Everblades 6-3 - Atlanta Gladiators
- Chiefs get best of Jackals, 7-4 - Johnstown Chiefs
- Kirk MacDonald Loaned To Providence - Reading Royals
- Gladiators sign Yandle - Atlanta Gladiators
- Nailers Vs Devils Game Preview - Wheeling Nailers
- Game Preview: Ontario Reign vs Alaska Aces - Ontario Reign
- Bakersfield Condors vs. Victoria Salmon Kings Game Preview - Bakersfield Condors
- ECHL Today - ECHL
- Royals Knock Off Nailers, 5-2 - Reading Royals
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