Erik Portillo got his first career Calder Cup shutout last night, as the Ontario Reign took down the Abbotsford Canucks 4-0. They improve to 2-0 in the best of 5 series. Here’s three stars, two takeaways and one question for the game:
Three Stars
Insert broken record here: Erik Portillo is and continues to be The Man for the Reign. As the kids say, he’s got that dawg in him, and that dawg has a 4-0 record, a shutout, and has allowed only three goals total so far in these playoffs. He’s improved to a .978 sv%, good for best in the AHL and (as it stands) beating out reigning goalie of the year Hunter Shepard of Hershey, and last year’s goalie of the year and league MVP Dustin Wolf of Calgary. There’s a reason he’s been a star of the game in every postseason game Ontario has played this postseason.
Akil Thomas scored his second of the playoffs, and first game winner. The opening goal came in the first period for the first time this postseason (more on that in a second), and he scored the first power play goal in three games for the Reign. Though the top line is coming along, the depth is really where the Reign are continuing to shine.
Joe Hicketts is such an under the radar player. He’s in his first season with the Reign, but has been in the AHL since 2016. He has three points in four games this postseason, was second on the team in shots for last night’s game with 4, and added an empty net assist on Tyler Madden’s goal for good measure. He’s been playing on the top pairing with Brandt Clarke for most of the series against Abbotsford, and he’s been thriving there. His career high in the postseason is 8 points, which he did in 19 games for the Griffins in the 2017 playoffs. Can he beat that this season?
Two Takeaways
Hot Start
For the first time all playoffs, the Reign scored a goal in the first period of the game. In their first three games of the playoffs, the score has been 0-0 after the first. In this game, by the time the buzzer went for the end of the first, the Reign were up 2-0, and could have been up 3-0 if not for a no-goal from Samuel Fagemo. The Reign have shown they don’t always need a full 60 minute effort to win games, but showing up and scoring early is always a good sign, and hopefully they can keep doing this as they move further towards the Calder Cup.
Snakebit
What does Samuel Fagemo have to do to score a goal? He has yet to score in this postseason, had a goal disallowed for not definitively crossing the line last night, and had four more shots, including a breakaway, saved by Abbotsford goaltender Zach Sawchenko. He’s up to 18 shots over 4 playoff games with zero goals to show for it, the fourth most shots in the AHL. In Game 1 of the series, Abbotsford’s Max Sasson broke his cold streak of 14 shots without a goal and scored his first of the postseason; will Fagemo be next? The Reign are winning without his goals, but as the opponents get tougher, Ontario is going to need the guy who scored 43 goals in 50 AHL games this season.
One Question
Can The Reign Close It Out?
The last game in the series is the hardest to win. The Reign and the Abbotsford head up to BC for Game 3 of the series on Wednesday May 8, and it’s a must-win for the Canucks, or their season is over. The Reign have yet to lose a game this postseason. Can they continue their unbeaten streak and advance to the Pacific Division Final? Or can Abbotsford extend their playoffs for just a little while longer? Only one way to find out.
What’s Next?
The Ontario Reign and the Abbotford Canucks play Game 3 of their best of 5 series in Abbotsford on Wednesday, May 8. The game starts at 7pm Pacific.
