The Ontario Reign finished their homestand Sunday afternoon against the Bakersfield Condors.
Coming into the game, the Condors sat only one point behind the 4th place Reign, with both teams fighting for home ice advantage in the playoffs, this was a four point game.
About three minutes into the game, Akil Thomas picked up where he left off, scoring a one-timer from point-blank range.
After Thomas scored his spectacular overtime winner Friday night, head coach Marco Sturm said “He’s not done yet.” Akil was not done indeed, giving the Reign an early lead.
Bakersfield responded early in the middle frame, as while on the man advantage, Dylan Holloway shot the puck through traffic that beat Reign goaltender Erik Portillo.
The Condors would dominate the first half of the second period, putting the pressure on Ontario’s end, and not giving them any breathing room when the Reign were on the forecheck.
The momentum would all shift when the Reign got on the power play, and even though they did not wind up scoring, adjustments were seemingly made.
Less than a minute after the power play was over, Colton Young would find Nikita Pavlychev on the backdoor, tapping it in, and retaking the lead.
Jacob Doty would get in on the fun later in the period, scoring his career high fifth goal of the season, giving the Reign some insurance.
The Condors would start the third period on the man advantage. Off the rush, Ben Gleason would set up Matvey Petrov right in front, shooting the puck past Portillo.
Going 0-2 on the power kill for the Reign was very unordinary for this team. They have been so good all season while on the kill, especially as of late.
Coming down to the final minutes of the game, Akil Thomas would score an empty net goal, seemingly ending the night.
Bakersfield would not go away just yet, as Carter Saviole would tip in a backdoor pass with 14.2 seconds left to go in the game.
The Condors would run out of time in this one, as the Reign pulled out a 4-3 victory, sweeping the homestand. Akil Thomas’ empty net goal would wind up being the game winner, leading the league in the statistic with nine.
Here are my three takeaways from the game.
“Real Deal” Akil
Akil Thomas keeps proving that he is ready to be called up with the big boys.
Scoring goals 20 and 21 on the year, Thomas has been dialed in as of late. In the three game homestand, Thomas scored the game winning goal in all three games, picking up six points in the process.
I believe the plan is for Thomas to compete for a spot in training camp next season, hoping to find a place in the bottom six.
Even though the Kings still have two available call ups to use, and one seemingly reserved for AHL all-star defenseman Brandt Clarke, it is hard to see Thomas getting the call up this season.
Either way, Thomas has lived up to his “real deal” nickname this season.
Bottom Six Coming Through
A complete team needs the bottom six to be valuable, and that is exactly what the Reign have.
Guys like Doty and Pavlychev stepped up in Sunday’s game when they needed to the most. Especially with Charles Hudon and Samuel Fagemo out, the Reign need everyone to contribute.
Francesco Pinelli also continues to play really good hockey. Sturm had this to say about the rookie, “It took him a long time. He had a stretch from becoming the guy in the OHL to now playing on the fourth line. He had to learn. He’s another guy that has accepted his role and he knows exactly what it takes.”
If the bottom six can keep competing the way they are, this Reign squad can have a chance to make a push at the Calder Cup.
Swept The Homestand
Following a three game losing streak, the Reign needed to find their footing fast. These last three games were debatably the most important of the year.
The Reign did just that, winning three straight against three really tough teams, giving them some cushion for home-ice advantage in the first round.
Sturm credited the success to the guys “feeling more comfortable” out on the ice. Pinelli also mentioned how Sturm has been putting more trust into him, correlating that to feeling better on the ice.
After this homestand, the Reign now sit only one point behind the Colorado Eagles for third place, and two points behind the Tucson Roadrunners for second place, who have also played two more games than the Reign.
The Ontario Reign will head to San Jose for one against the Barracuda Wednesday night, hoping to make it four straight wins.