GAMEDAY: BARRACUDA VS REIGN
Feb 15, 2023
SAN JOSE BARRACUDA (18-25-0-4) vs. ONTARIO REIGN (26-17-1-0)
WED, FEB. 15 | 7:00 P.M. | Tech CU Arena | San Jose, CA
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Wednesday Night Rivalry: After earning a point in a 5-4 shootout loss to the top team in the AHL, the Calgary Wranglers, on Saturday night, the Barracuda close out its five-game homestand on Wednesday with the third visit on the season from the Ontario Reign (LA Kings). The Barracuda are 2-2 versus the Reign this season, 1-1-0-0 at home, and are coming off a 4-2 win in the last meeting on Jan. 6 at the Toyota Arena. Entering Wednesday, the Barracuda have dropped five in a row (0-4-0-1) and four in a row at Tech CU Arena (0-3-0-1).
Reign Report: The Reign enter Wednesday riding a three-game winning streak after back-to-back shootout victories and have an eight-point lead on the Tucson Roadrunners for the fifth spot in the Pacific Division, with four games in hand. Additionally, the Reign are 4-0 in its last four games on the road, and 8-2 over its last 10. Ontario has a .500 or better record against every team it has faced this season, except for the Calgary Wranglers (1-5-0-0). Ontario ranks 10th in the AHL on the power play (21.6%) and eighth on the penalty kill (83.4%) and have gone on the PK just 163 times (second fewest in the Pacific Division, 27th in the AHL). The Reign rank 10th in the AHL in goals for (3.20) and sixth in goals against (2.76), and is 11-4-1-1 in one-goal games.
Last Time Out: The Barracuda tallied three goals in the third period on Saturday night at Tech CU Arena, including a pair from William Eklund, erasing three different deficits in the game to earn a point in a 5-4 shootout loss to the Calgary Wranglers. In the loss, Andrew Agozzino collected a pair of points (1+1=2), while Tristen Robins snapped a 16-game goalless drought, and William Eklund recorded his second multi-goal game of the season. The shootout loss was the team’s third straight after beginning the year 3-1 in shootouts. Makiniemi suffered the loss, his second consecutive after 60 minutes, while Daniil Chechelev picked up his first AHL win. The Barracuda finished the game 2/4 on the power play and 4/5 on the penalty kill. The Wranglers got goals from Kevin Rooney, Clark Bishop, Adam Klapka, and Emilio Pettersen, and the game-winning shootout goal from Matt Phillips. Calgary went 3/3 in the shootout, while the Barracuda went 2/3.
Last Meeting: On Jan. 6, the Barracuda scored a season-high four goals in the third period to upend the Ontario Reign, 4-2. In the win, Thomas Bordeleau scored twice, and Darren Brady and Will Riedell (EN) notched their first AHL goals, while Aaron Dell made 28 saves to pick up the win. The Reign got power-play goals from Tyler Madden and T.J. Tynan in the loss, while Cal Petersen allowed three goals on 32 shots.
About the Barracuda: San Jose enters Friday four points behind the Bakersfield Condors for the final playoff spot in the Pacific Division, and after Saturday, have just a .462 (11-13-0-2) winning percentage on home ice (28th in the AHL). The Barracuda rank first in the AHL in penalty minutes per game (18.51), second in minor penalties (265), and third in times-shorthanded (213). SJ is tied with Rockford and Belleville for the fewest first goals (16), and have the second-worst first-period goal differential (-29) in the league. Despite that, SJ has 10 wins this season when giving up the first goal (10-17-0-4) which ranks near the top of the league. The Barracuda are 30th in the AHL in goals for (2.57) and 25th in goals against (3.40).
Players to Watch: Reign forward and two-time defending AHL MVP T.J. Tynan ranks third in the AHL in scoring (55), first in assists (48), first in power-play assists (24), and second in power-play points (26). The veteran AHL forward had an eight-game point streak from Jan. 17 to Jan. 31 in which he collected 20 points (3+17=20), but enters Wednesday with no points over his last two. Sophomore defenseman Jordan Spence ranks T-fourth among AHL blueliners in scoring (33), third in assists (30), third in power-play assists (16), and fourth in power-play points (18). Spence and Tynan were both on the AHL’s First All-Star Team last season.
Resounding Rookies: Barracuda All-Star Thomas Bordeleau is second among all AHL rooks in goals (19), shots (124), and power-play goals (8), and is first in power-play points (19) and power-play assists (11), and T-fifth in scoring (32). Fellow rookie William Eklund is third among first-year players in scoring (35) and Daniil Gushchin is first among freshmen in shots (135) and shootout goals (4).