After the Reign picked up a 2-1 win in Stockton on Friday night, both teams traveled to Ontario for a rematch on Saturday. Unfortunately, the sold out crowd at CBBA Arena went home less than thrilled after the Thunder posted a 4-0 shutout.
LA Kings goaltending prospect JF Berube (2009 NHL Draft) was in net for Ontario again, playing on back-to-back nights after just completing cross country travel from Manchester – where he had been in camp with the Monarchs. After the loss he told MayorsManor he was very tired and lacking energy. Well, of course.
The former Quebec Junior League standout came on strong for the Reign in the second half of last season, posting a 14-7-3 record and a 2.44 goals-against average after January 1st. That was a marked improvement from his 3-6-1 start and 4.07 goals-against average early on. In fairness though, he entered last season coming off of hip surgery and talked about the entire experience with us in an interview here.
Now, after a summer of training in his native Montreal with NHL goalies Jonathan Bernier and Jean-Sebastien Giguere, he’s ready to start the majority of games for coach Jason Christie – which is why his assignment to the ECHL makes sense. Martin Jones is expected to take on a heavy workload in Manchester, leaving little playing opportunity for the Monarchs back-up this season. Thus, this arrangement should benefit both of the Kings’ minor league affiliates.
Prior to the game starting, Ontario’s fans were treated to the unveiling of the team’s 2011-12 Pacific Division Championship banner – their second such title in just four years.
Game Highlights – Stockton’s Matt Reber scored early in the first period to put Stockton up 1-0, slipping it past Berube’s blocker side…Stockton had three power play opportunities in the second period, including a two-man advantage, but didn’t convert on any of them…Stockton added two more tallies in the final period, one by Gabriel Levesque (on the power play) and another from Reber…Berube stopped 23 of 27 Stockton shots…Stockton rookie Tyler Bunz stopped all of the Reign’s 17 shots.
Now, enjoy some exclusive photos shot for MayorsManor by David Sheehan…
CLICK THE IMAGES TO SCROLL THROUGH THE GALLERY
PICTURED: Berube, Derek Couture, Jordan Hill, Colton Yellow Horn and others.
For the third straight year, Ontario Reign President Justin Kemp stopped by the MayorsManor radio show this past week to give us a ‘State of the Franchise’ report. He talked about the performance of the team’s coaches, his ongoing relationship with the Kings’ front office, the possibility of more NHL players skating in the ECHL during the lockout and much more. Give it a listen here.
[…] Exclusive photos from the home opener can be seen here. […]