Fan Appreciation is Friday; Reign Prepare for Postseason

Fan Appreciation Night Friday; Reign Prepare for Postseason

Apr 4, 2016

The Week That Was…

The Ontario Reign opened a four-game road trip last week with stops against the San Jose Barracuda, Stockton Heat and Bakersfield Condors for a week record of 1-2-0-0 and improved their Pacific Division-leading record to 40-18-4-1.

The road trip kicked off in San Jose on Wednesday with the final regular-season meeting against the Barracuda. Kris Newbury a goal in the second period, but the Barracuda prevailed 3-1. The Reign completed the head-to-head series with a 9-3-0-0 record.

On Friday, Michael Mersch scored his team-leading 22nd goal of the season and Justin Auger added a shorthanded tally in the third period in a 3-2 setback to the Heat.

The following night, the Reign bounced back and snapped a three-game losing streak with a 2-0 victory over the Condors. Goaltender Peter Budaj earned his AHL-leading ninth shutout, making 35 saves in the win.

The Numbers

Record: 40-18-4-1, .675 winning percentage (1st Place, Pacific Division)
Home: 21-8-3-1
Away: 19-10-1-0
Last 10 Games: 6-4-0-0
Streak: 1-0-0-0
Goals: Michael Mersch (22)
Assists: Nic Dowd* (34)
Points: Sean Backman (54)
Penalty Minutes: Kurtis MacDermid (111)
Power-Play Goals: Sean Backman (8)
Power-Play Assists: Nic Dowd* (11)
Power-Play Points: Sean Backman (18)
Shorthanded Goals: Andrew Crescenzi, Justin Auger (2)
Shorthanded Assists: Five players with one assist
Shorthanded Points: Andrew Crescenzi (3)
Game-Winning Goals: Sean Backman (8)
Wins: Peter Budaj (38)
GAA: Peter Budaj (1.76)
SPCT: Peter Budaj (.929)

*Dowd is currently with the Los Angeles Kings (NHL)

League Leaders:

Forward Sean Backman tied for 13th in the AHL with 54 points (21 goals, 33 assists) and is first in the league with 232 shots and eight game-winning goals. Forward Michael Mersch is third in the AHL with 198 shots.
Goaltender Peter Budaj leads the league with a 1.76 goals-against average (GAA), nine shutouts, 38 wins and 3336 minutes played and is third with a .929 save percentage and 1292 saves.
Defenseman Kurtis MacDermid is fifth among rookies with 111 penalty minutes and tied for second with 28 minor penalties.

This Week:

Ontario Reign at Stockton Heat

Wednesday, Apr. 6

7:00 p.m. PT

Stockton Arena in Stockton, California

Listen Live: OntarioReign.com, AHL Live

Preview: 12th of 12 meetings, 6-4-1-0 head-to-head record

Ontario Reign vs. Bakersfield Condors

Friday, Apr. 8

7:00 p.m. PT

Citizens Business Bank Arena

Fan Appreciation Night