The Ontario Reign met up with the San Jose Barracuda for the eighth and final time this season on Saturday night.
This season's series has been heavily one-sided, with the Reign taking all seven games before this matchup.
When the puck dropped, the game started exactly how you would think. A quick rush from Ontario that ended with a great save from Barracudas goalie Georgi Romanov.
Five minutes later, the Barracudas would score the first goal of the game. What started as a great shift ended poorly.
Defenseman Steven Santini made a costly turnover, allowing an odd-man rush for San Jose into the offensive zone that ended up resulting in a goal for Danil Gushchin.
Surprisingly, the Reign struggled to get any offense going throughout the first period. Some good looks here and there, but nothing too much doing.
Some insurance came for San Jose early in the second. A shot that hit off the right post left the puck sitting on the goal line, with Tristen Robins poke-checking it into the net.
The Reign would answer right back with a goal of their own, as Francesco Pinelli from the left wing baited defenseman Jack Thompson and Romanov with a toe-drag, finishing the goal on his backhand side.
In the final frame, Ontario had a tough time getting the puck past Georgi Romanov. All game, he had the Reign scratching their heads.
The equalizer would come late in the third, as Andre Lee would score his third goal in as many games, and this one would fall under the heading of lucky.
Lee’s shot would hit Romanov’s mask, falling off his head as the puck gently rolled into the net. Nonetheless, it was a tie game.
Samuel Fagemo would score what everyone thought was his 40th goal of the year in overtime, before being overturned about a minute later.
Fagemo would have two more chances at 40 goals in this overtime, one being denied by Romanov on a breakaway chance, and one ringing the iron with three seconds left.
Taylor Ward would end up being the hero, scoring the lone tally in the shootout, and walking away undefeated in the season series versus the San Jose Barracudas.
Here are my three takeaways from the game:
Goalie Duel
The goaltenders in this game were phenomenal on both ends of the ice. We’ll start with Georgi Romanov.
Romanov was the only reason the Barracuda were in this game, turning away 41 of 43 shots from the Reign.
It is worth noting that if it wasn’t for a mask malfunction late in the third period, we would be talking about a brutal Reign loss to a bottom feeder.
Not only did he make all of the routine saves, but he also made the spectacular play when his team needed it the most.
Romanov’s talents do not reflect his stats, having a 3.22 GAA and a 900. Save percentage. The Barracuda defense has lots of holes, leaving Romanov stranded often.
Although Erik Portillo’s game was not as impressive, he still put together a solid outing, earning him first star of the game.
Portillo saved 27 of the 29 shots that came his away, and like Romanov, made the routine saves, as well as the eye popping ones.
The sequence of events that summarize this game perfectly occurred in overtime with about 1:40 left to play.
Danil Guschkin had a great look, being right out in front with Portillo laying on his stomach, making a great save.
Tynan would end up clearing the puck straight to Fagemo, who was cherry-picking at center ice, leaving him wide open on a breakaway chance.
Of course, Romanov would also make a game-saving stop. Both goalies were walls all night, and they deserve their flowers.
Low Physicality
When the Reign welcomes tough customers into their house, it is usually a tough, grindy battle, with a lot of hits and fights.
Romanov definitely gave the Reign a tough time, but at the same time, the Reign seemed to be a tick behind San Jose all night.
Maybe Ontario came into the game thinking they were going to clean them up real quick and send them home, which is not what happened.
Either way, there was no physicality or energy from the Reign this game, and even though they came home victorious, I doubt this is the way they wanted to win it.
Another Come From Behind Win
Currently on a seven game heater, the Reign continue to find ways to come from behind and win important games.
It is their fourth comeback win in a row, dating back to their matchup with the Barracuda in San Jose, where the Reign were also down 2-0 and also came back to win the game 3-2.
They’re playing very good hockey as we head into the final two weeks of regular season play, and it is exciting to see if you’re a Reign fan.
The Reign will head to Coachella Valley for one, before coming back home for the final time this season to face the San Diego Gulls.