Heat, Reign Begin Pivotal Two-Game Set Friday at Stockton Arena
Published on April 8, 2022 under American Hockey League (AHL)
Stockton Heat News Release
Friday, April 8, 2022
TONIGHT'S MATCHUP: Stockton Heat (41-12-4-1; 1st Pacific) vs. Ontario Reign (36-15-5-3; 2nd Pacific)
LOCATION: Stockton Arena | Stockton, California
TIME: 7:00 p.m. PDT
TUNE IN: Today's game can be streamed on AHLTV, and the radio call is available on Fox Sports Radio 1280 or online via Spreaker.
HEAT INDEX
The Heat hit the home stretch exactly where they want to be, a 68-game season boiling down to the final 10, starting with a two-game set against the second-place Ontario Reign. Stockton enters the twin bill with wins in consecutive games and six of the last seven while Ontario has sputtered into the weekend having dropped two straight and seven of the last 10.
POINTS IN BULK
Justin Kirkland has matched his career-long point streak of seven games heading into tonight's contest, a stretch in which the forward has claimed four goals and five assists. Kirkland, who has a career-best 40 points on the year, has found his way onto the score sheet in 17 of Stockton's last 21 games with 23 points in that run, trailing only Matthew Phillips on the Heat roster with 24 points since February 11.
FROM A TO Z
Connor Zary's goal in Stockton's Sunday outing gives him scores in two straight and three of the last four games. Zary has six goals in Stockton's last eight tilts, tied for best on the squad alongside Phillips, and is fifth on the roster with seven points in the last eight games. Of Zary's 11 goals on the year, six have come since March 18.
HOME COMFORT
Stockton comes into Friday's game with the best home record in the AHL, a mark of 22-5-4-0 for a league-leading .774 points percentage. The Heat have won two of three games against the Reign at Stockton Arena this season, including a 2-1 win on January 29 and a 6-5, shootout victory on February 12. With the next win on home ice, the Heat will set a new club record for home wins in a season with 23.
#GOALS
The Stockton-Ontario matchup is pits the top two scoring teams in the AHL against each other with the Reign leading the league at 3.86 goals per game and the Heat in second at 3.71. Defensively, the Heat are second-stingiest at 2.62 goals against per game while Ontario ranks 23rd with 3.22. In the season series, the teams have played to an even 22-22 score.
LEADERS OF THE PAC
The Heat enter the two-game set against second-place Ontario leading the Pacific Division by seven points with a game in hand on the Reign. The division-clinching 'Magic Number' for Stockton sits at 12 points prior to the two-game set, with potential four-point swings on Friday and Sunday with the top two teams in the division facing off.
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