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2015-16 AHL Ontario Reign - going back to Cali, Cali, Cali...

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went to my first reign game tonight.

this game was so one sided it's not even funny. the reign suffocated the guppies tonight leaving them with at most 1 grade A scoring chance.. the goal was a flukey tip i think. The reign were very organized with their assignments and I was crazy surprised how well this team stays onside and the little amount of time they dump and chase. They've got a real TEAM-like game to them. Very well coached... obviously our pipeline isn't as stacked w/ high picks lately but somehow this team still managed to win a calder last year and have been playing great THIS year... credit to the coaches and the development crew for the success

GRAVEL and FORBORT worked great together and they controlled the play with a lot of confidence... Gravel is definitely not afraid of getting lit up to make a play. There's a bit of fearlessness to his game that i really like. They were the number one pairing and they played like it. Liked gravel's play on the Right side, seems like the kid can play both sides like martinez...Gotta love the versatility...

With all of Dowds blindpass tendencies, he makes up for it with great energy and a sense of urgency that was lacking on the bottom 6 all year w/ the kings. His puck retrieval skills are quite good, he tends come away with a lot of 50/50 pucks, and he's creative on the cycle. His goal tonight was pretty slick... found a lose puck kicked it to his stick and put it home. He and Gravel are players that looked good while they were up this year and i hope they make the kings starting roster next year.

Kempe was pretty awesome tonight... A very responsible center that has quite a snapshot. His linemates Brodzninski and Mersch also look like they'll be in the NHL soon-ish, they react quickly and just look poised to someday be effective wingers in the bigs.

Auger is huge and drew a penalty just for being huge and stubborn w/ the puck. He came into his rookie camp looking quite awkward, he's looking comfortable and effective on the reign.

Reign just looked good tonight. I'll probably be back for more games. Great time at CBA.
 
losingsand said:
went to my first reign game tonight.

this game was so one sided it's not even funny. the reign suffocated the guppies tonight leaving them with at most 1 grade A scoring chance.. the goal was a flukey tip i think. The reign were very organized with their assignments and I was crazy surprised how well this team stays onside and the little amount of time they dump and chase. They've got a real TEAM-like game to them. Very well coached... obviously our pipeline isn't as stacked w/ high picks lately but somehow this team still managed to win a calder last year and have been playing great THIS year... credit to the coaches and the development crew for the success

GRAVEL and FORBORT worked great together and they controlled the play with a lot of confidence... Gravel is definitely not afraid of getting lit up to make a play. There's a bit of fearlessness to his game that i really like. They were the number one pairing and they played like it. Liked gravel's play on the Right side, seems like the kid can play both sides like martinez...Gotta love the versatility...

With all of Dowds blindpass tendencies, he makes up for it with great energy and a sense of urgency that was lacking on the bottom 6 all year w/ the kings. His puck retrieval skills are quite good, he tends come away with a lot of 50/50 pucks, and he's creative on the cycle. His goal tonight was pretty slick... found a lose puck kicked it to his stick and put it home. He and Gravel are players that looked good while they were up this year and i hope they make the kings starting roster next year.

Kempe was pretty awesome tonight... A very responsible center that has quite a snapshot. His linemates Brodzninski and Mersch also look like they'll be in the NHL soon-ish, they react quickly and just look poised to someday be effective wingers in the bigs.

Auger is huge and drew a penalty just for being huge and stubborn w/ the puck. He came into his rookie camp looking quite awkward, he's looking comfortable and effective on the reign.

Reign just looked good tonight. I'll probably be back for more games. Great time at CBA.
Click to expand...

Nice recap, thanks. How did Amadio look? Must be good systems and coaching because like you said, it amazes me that the team has performed so well when nearly everyone is a mid- to late-round draft pick or a veteran and they're competing against teams with a lot more "high-end talent". Seems that they're getting the most out of nearly every player.
 
Amadio was okay. Didn't really stand out but didn't make any big mistakes. He made some good decisions in the offensive zone that resulted in some decent chances. I believe he was centering the 4th line, but it's good they're throwing him into the fire right away. The Reign play again tonight in Ontario, I won't be making it, and again on Sunday if necessary.
 
Whoever wins the West is going to have their hands full if Toronto comes out of the East. The Marlies (the team with the best winning percentage) just swept the Sound Tigers. The Marlies were down 1-4 in the second period, then came roaring back with 5 goals to win the game, 6-4.
 
PJ Kings Hockey said:
Nice recap, thanks. How did Amadio look? Must be good systems and coaching because like you said, it amazes me that the team has performed so well when nearly everyone is a mid- to late-round draft pick or a veteran and they're competing against teams with a lot more "high-end talent". Seems that they're getting the most out of nearly every player.
Click to expand...

Amadio actually started looking a lot better as the game went on but he seemed to be wanting to play mistake free hockey instead of trying to make an impression. Was good in puck protection and never got lost when the play moved to our end, started making some plays later on. I wouldn't say he was 'playing scared' or tentative, but a guy making the jump from juniors into an AHL playoff game that looked like he didn't want to **** up.

That all sounds really negative but I thought he looked good if unspectacular. I'd expect him to only improve, he seemed to really adjust to the speed of the game and he made some really saavy passes, which is actually why I thought he would be very good at the pro level--better competition, but better puck support from teammates too.
 
Raccoon Jesus said:
Amadio actually started looking a lot better as the game went on but he seemed to be wanting to play mistake free hockey instead of trying to make an impression. Was good in puck protection and never got lost when the play moved to our end, started making some plays later on. I wouldn't say he was 'playing scared' or tentative, but a guy making the jump from juniors into an AHL playoff game that looked like he didn't want to **** up.

That all sounds really negative but I thought he looked good if unspectacular. I'd expect him to only improve, he seemed to really adjust to the speed of the game and he made some really saavy passes, which is actually why I thought he would be very good at the pro level--better competition, but better puck support from teammates too.
Click to expand...

I very much agree with this assessment. Very puck savvy too. A good debut for sure.
 
PJ Kings Hockey said:
Whoever wins the West is going to have their hands full if Toronto comes out of the East. The Marlies (the team with the best winning percentage) just swept the Sound Tigers. The Marlies were down 1-4 in the second period, then came roaring back with 5 goals to win the game, 6-4.
Click to expand...

Seemed like half their team was playing for the Leafs at the end of the season. I will be a tall order, whomever has it.
 
losingsand said:
went to my first reign game tonight.

this game was so one sided it's not even funny. the reign suffocated the guppies tonight leaving them with at most 1 grade A scoring chance.. the goal was a flukey tip i think. The reign were very organized with their assignments and I was crazy surprised how well this team stays onside and the little amount of time they dump and chase. They've got a real TEAM-like game to them. Very well coached... obviously our pipeline isn't as stacked w/ high picks lately but somehow this team still managed to win a calder last year and have been playing great THIS year... credit to the coaches and the development crew for the success

GRAVEL and FORBORT worked great together and they controlled the play with a lot of confidence... Gravel is definitely not afraid of getting lit up to make a play. There's a bit of fearlessness to his game that i really like. They were the number one pairing and they played like it. Liked gravel's play on the Right side, seems like the kid can play both sides like martinez...Gotta love the versatility...

With all of Dowds blindpass tendencies, he makes up for it with great energy and a sense of urgency that was lacking on the bottom 6 all year w/ the kings. His puck retrieval skills are quite good, he tends come away with a lot of 50/50 pucks, and he's creative on the cycle. His goal tonight was pretty slick... found a lose puck kicked it to his stick and put it home. He and Gravel are players that looked good while they were up this year and i hope they make the kings starting roster next year.

Kempe was pretty awesome tonight... A very responsible center that has quite a snapshot. His linemates Brodzninski and Mersch also look like they'll be in the NHL soon-ish, they react quickly and just look poised to someday be effective wingers in the bigs.

Auger is huge and drew a penalty just for being huge and stubborn w/ the puck. He came into his rookie camp looking quite awkward, he's looking comfortable and effective on the reign.

Reign just looked good tonight. I'll probably be back for more games. Great time at CBA.
Click to expand...

Glad you enjoyed your first game. A lot of LA fans don't know what their missing by never coming out and at least giving it a shot. It's a good time, and the hockey's pretty good too.
 
losingsand said:
went to my first reign game tonight.

this game was so one sided it's not even funny. the reign suffocated the guppies tonight leaving them with at most 1 grade A scoring chance.. the goal was a flukey tip i think. The reign were very organized with their assignments and I was crazy surprised how well this team stays onside and the little amount of time they dump and chase. They've got a real TEAM-like game to them. Very well coached... obviously our pipeline isn't as stacked w/ high picks lately but somehow this team still managed to win a calder last year and have been playing great THIS year... credit to the coaches and the development crew for the success

GRAVEL and FORBORT worked great together and they controlled the play with a lot of confidence... Gravel is definitely not afraid of getting lit up to make a play. There's a bit of fearlessness to his game that i really like. They were the number one pairing and they played like it. Liked gravel's play on the Right side, seems like the kid can play both sides like martinez...Gotta love the versatility...

With all of Dowds blindpass tendencies, he makes up for it with great energy and a sense of urgency that was lacking on the bottom 6 all year w/ the kings. His puck retrieval skills are quite good, he tends come away with a lot of 50/50 pucks, and he's creative on the cycle. His goal tonight was pretty slick... found a lose puck kicked it to his stick and put it home. He and Gravel are players that looked good while they were up this year and i hope they make the kings starting roster next year.

Kempe was pretty awesome tonight... A very responsible center that has quite a snapshot. His linemates Brodzninski and Mersch also look like they'll be in the NHL soon-ish, they react quickly and just look poised to someday be effective wingers in the bigs.

Auger is huge and drew a penalty just for being huge and stubborn w/ the puck. He came into his rookie camp looking quite awkward, he's looking comfortable and effective on the reign.

Reign just looked good tonight. I'll probably be back for more games. Great time at CBA.
Click to expand...

Excellent coaching is evident when one sees this team in person.

I went to 5 reg season games this season & loved the action.
Thanks for your report.

Next time, try eating at Luxe before the game (if you like buffets).
It's right behind Hooter's in the mall near the arena.
 
Kempe is looking real good at center with the stakes high.

And my goodness, Dowd is a gamer, built for the playoffs is a funny meme but the guy has all sorts of heart and moxie. Love it.
 
The AHL scheduling is so damn weird. Ontario and San Diego will be alternating home games after every game, no 2-2-1-1 format, and their first game is on Thursday, then after Game 3, which is a Sunday, they'll have four days off until Game 4, which'll be on a Friday.

Makes zero sense to me.
 
Ziggy Stardust said:
The AHL scheduling is so damn weird. Ontario and San Diego will be alternating home games after every game, no 2-2-1-1 format, and their first game is on Thursday, then after Game 3, which is a Sunday, they'll have four days off until Game 4, which'll be on a Friday.

Makes zero sense to me.
Click to expand...

Two things factor into AHL playoff scheduling that don't really factor into NHL playoff scheduling:

1) Arena availability - most arenas don't like NOT booking events for two months on the off chance that the hockey tenant might make the post-season. NHL arenas are pretty much available within a day or two of ideal scheduling, so that's just not really a factor - but the AHL teams don't usually have the pull with the arena managers to push other events out of the way in April and May that the NHL teams do. For example, in the San Diego/Texas series just concluded, games 3 and 4 were Thursday and Friday, and game 5 wouldn't have been till Monday -- because Disney's World of Color Kingdom had the VVCC booked for Saturday and Sunday.

2) SERIOUS attendance differences between mid-week games and weekend games -- NHL playoff games are such events that fans are just gonna come, regardless of day of week. AHL playoff games, not so much. Game Five, had it happened, would almost certainly have been at least a 30% dropoff in attendance from Game Four, being Monday versus Friday.

So, when you factor those two things in, they explain a lot of the apparent irregularities of AHL playoff scheduling. Notice that I didn't say that they make the scheduling "make sense", cause no, they frequently don't... but they're much larger factors.
 
Congrats to the Reign for wrapping it up against the Barracuda -- I've been hoping this would be the Pacific Division Final matchup from the beginning of the season, and I'm very glad to see it come to fruition. It should be a humdinger of a series! I'll miss game 1 at the CBBA, but will obviously be at games 2 and 4 (and 6 if necessary) at the VVCC -- I'm also hoping to make game 3 on Sunday in Ontario.

Here's my scouting report on the Gulls for y'all:

One key to watch for on the Gulls side is the health of starting goalie Anton Khudobin. He left tonight's game five minutes into the first period after a collision with teammate Brandon Montour, holding his head. He did not return to the game. I'll be very interested to see what the reporting on this is, and whether he can make it back by Thursday. Hackett did very good work in relief, especially once the Gulls went up 3-1, but he just doesn't seem to have the day-in, day-out shutdown capability (at least at the AHL level) that both Khudobin and Budaj have. If the goaltending matchup does end up as Hackett-Budaj, that will be a major advantage for the Reign.

The Gulls lineup has altered pretty significantly over the last month, with the return of players from injury, the signing of college and juniors players, and the return of the players the Ducks had up with them before their deliciously "untimely" (snicker) demise. Cooper and Wellinski have been patrolling the blueline after signing their ATOs, Kosilla has been getting regular shifts at forward after his signing. Ritchie is back down from the Ducks and appears to be shaking whatever funk he was in shortly after being sent back down, and will be likely trying to use his size against the Reign's size. Wagner has been a spark since his return from the Ducks as well, and with his last stint up with the big club, Theodore has seemed to learn the appropriate balance between offensive freewheeling and defensive solidity.

In the last two games, the Gulls' offense has been firing with a balanced attack -- the 12 goals they racked up against Texas at home in the last two games were scored by 10 different players (8 forwards and 2 d-men). The only repeat customer was Cramarossa, who had one Thursday (just after being sprung from the penalty box), and two Friday (one shorthanded, one empty net).

I'll be very interested to see how the games play out differently from the final two of the regular season. This should be delicious! For those of you coming down to San Diego for the even-numbered games (which I recommend -- it's not as new as the CBBA, but it's a heck of a hockey experience), get your tickets early -- the end zones in the terrace were curtained off for these last two games, taking the total capacity down below 10k. I'm not sure whether or not they'll be opened for these games, so better safe than sorry. I'm in LL1 if anyone wants to say hello during the series - just about six rows behind the home penalty box.
 
In a matter like that, I feel for the players due to the constant shuffling between each game and the breaks in flow in between Games 3 and 4. On one side I guess they'll be well rested and the travel isn't that bad, but like you said, guess they book these buildings well in advance of the AHL playoff schedule.
 
Raccoon Jesus said:
Amadio actually started looking a lot better as the game went on but he seemed to be wanting to play mistake free hockey instead of trying to make an impression. Was good in puck protection and never got lost when the play moved to our end, started making some plays later on. I wouldn't say he was 'playing scared' or tentative, but a guy making the jump from juniors into an AHL playoff game that looked like he didn't want to **** up.

That all sounds really negative but I thought he looked good if unspectacular. I'd expect him to only improve, he seemed to really adjust to the speed of the game and he made some really saavy passes, which is actually why I thought he would be very good at the pro level--better competition, but better puck support from teammates too.
Click to expand...

Thank you for the observations. That all sounds normal for a player playing professionally for the first time. He needs time to develop that identity.
 
King'sPawn said:
Thank you for the observations. That all sounds normal for a player playing professionally for the first time. He needs time to develop that identity.
Click to expand...

Absolutely. And yeah his 'identity' was certainly something he'll develop, but I read his performance as a guy who realized that Ontario was dominating the game and he should just fall in line and be a good soldier, not try to be a hero. Not a bad thing at all especially in context. But if you didn't know who he was, you would have thought he was a multi-year pro, fit right in in that regard.
 
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