ONTARIO, CA – A cold-front swept through normally balmy Southern California Friday night, appropriately ushering in Game 1 of the Pacific Division playoff series between the Stockton Thunder and host Ontario Reign. The evening began with the unveiling of the Reign’s Pacific Division championship banner in the rafters of Citizens Business Bank Arena and ended with a 4-3 Ontario victory on the strength of goaltender Jeff Zatkoff’s 30 saves and two goals by defenseman Shawn Germain, spoiling a hat-trick by Stockton’s Cory Urquhart. The start of the game featured end-to-end action, with the early momentum in the favor of Stockton, who took advantage of Ontario’s perimeter-yielding defensive tactic to control the boards, cycling well in the corners. This early pressure garnered Stockton the first man-advantage of the game when Reign defenseman Chad Starling went off at 2:38 of the first period for interference. The Thunder were unable to capitalize but stifled the Reign offense through the first half of the period with strong backchecking by the forward lines, not allowing Ontario any outnumbered attacks. Ontario’s first opportunity on the power play came at 11:44. With Robbie Bina in the box for hooking, the Reign had several quality chances, registering four shots, but failing to score. The Reign got on the board first at 19:01, after winger Geoff Walker recovered a missed stretch pass behind the Stockton goal. Protecting the puck along the boards, Walker pushed it to Bud Holloway. Wheeling into the left face-off circle, Holloway spotted a rushing Shawn Germain, who one-timed the pass over the blocker of Stockton goaltender Andrew Perugini. Not long into period two, the Reign had an opportunity to extend the lead on a brief two-man advantage. With Matt O’Dette already sitting for holding at 3:35, Bina was again sent off for hooking at 5:27. Ontario would not score on the 5-3, but cash in on the continuing power play as right wing Jon Rheault split the Stockton defensemen at the blue line and shoveled the puck between the pads of Perugini while falling to the ice at 6:55 for a 2-0 Ontario lead. Urquhart would end Zatkoff’s shutout bid on an odd-man rush after a hard around shot in the Reign offensive zone resulted in a carom off the boards which would catch the Ontario defensemen in a change. Flanked by centerman Craig Valette, Urquhart would keep the puck and lift it past Zatkoff high on the blocker side to pull the Thunder within one. Perugini would need to be helped off the ice with 4 minutes remaining in the second period and was replaced by back-up goaltender Bryan Pitton. He was greeted with a Reign power play shortly thereafter, turning away a hard shot from the left circle with a brilliant kick save. The Thunder would kill off 54 seconds of carryover penalty time to start the third period, but with Daryl Marcoux returning to the ice, recently-reacquired defenseman P.J. Atherton wristed home a low, hard shot through traffic from the far circle restoring the Reign two-goal margin. When Stockton’s Urquhart took an errant neutral zone puck in alone on Zatkoff, his backhand shot between the pads at 7:18 of the third period would give him his second goal of the night and put Stockton back within one. Urquhart would complete the hat-trick on the power play, tying the game at 11:27. The opportunity came after a questionable hooking call landed Reign forward Mike Howe in the box. The left-handed Starling’s stick would break shortly after the ensuing face-off and would eventually take the right-handed stick of Rheault. With Ontario down a man and a stick, Stockton would maintain control of the puck in the zone, leading to Urquhart’s wrist-shot tally from the right circle. With the game now tied, the ice seemed tilted in Stockton’s favor. That would be short-lived as Thunder defenseman Ryan Constant would take a high-sticking penalty less than a minute later. The Reign would strike quickly with Germain’s second goal coming on a wrist-shot over the blocker of Pitton only seven seconds in at 12:18 of the third period. Zatkoff would make Germain’s goal the game-winner with a pad save on a point-blank shot with 9 seconds remaining in regulation. Game 2 is scheduled for Saturday night in Ontario.
Contact john.soltis@prohockeynews.com.
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