This was a tight match the whole 60 minutes through, and we honestly thought that the Grizzlies would pull out one of their 3rd period 19:00 goals. Unfortunately, the boys had no such luck.Utah scored first on the power play at 1:53 of the 1st with a goal from Vlady Nikiforov. This would be the only time the Grizzlies would see the back of Ontario's net in the contest. Four minutes later, the Reign tied things up with one of their own. The match remained tied until Ontario scored midway through the 2nd to gain the lead.
Though the Grizzlies battled, the Reign held their one-goal lead through the 3rd, then tacked on an empty netter to end things 3-1, Ontario.
From the official post game:
The Ontario Reign defeated the Utah Grizzlies (26-23-2-5) 3-1 Saturday night at the Citizens Business Bank Arena. The Reign added a late empty-netter to seal the contest and break the 2-1 score.
Utah had three power-plays in the third period but was unable to beat Reign goaltender Curtis Darling who stopped 28 of 29 Grizzlies shots. [utahgrizzlies.com]
post game || Grizzlies Fall 3-1 in California
highlights || Game Highlights 2/27/10 at Ontario
gamesheet || Utah at Ontario 2/27/10
interview || USA/Canada Gold Medal 2/27/10 intermission
blog || Adrian Denny's game day blog
Scoring Summary:
UTA V. Nikiforov (14), 1:53 1st period (Perry, Sixsmith); Grizzlies 1, Reign 0
ONT J. Francisco (13), 5:34 1st period (Voce, Pelech); Grizzlies 1, Reign 1
ONT M. Egener (6), 11:57 2nd period (Pelech, Jackson); Grizzlies 1, Reign 2
ONT M. Howe (5), EN 19:18 3rd period (Francisco); Grizzlies 1, Reign 3
What Worked Well: Penalty Kill
Special teams were on it again. Even though Utah stayed out of the box for the most part, the few penalties the Grizzlies did allow, they killed off with style. Nice job once again by the PK units.
What Could Have Been Better: 5-on-5 Play
While we're completely impressed by how Utah's special teams have been working, Ontario wasn't. The driving force behind both contests was really 5-on-5 play, and the Grizzlies, while we know they can do it, didn't really match up to the Reign on this.
Who Made the Difference: Tim Maxwell
Beau Erickson in net was amazing and we saw some great puck handling from Sixsmith and Vlady, but Maxwell just had a really good game. He was a real boost to special teams, particularly on the PK and also rallied on the 5-on-5. One of the things we really like about Maxwell is that he has this uncanny ability to keep the puck in, and he showed off that talent superlatively.
Stars of the Game:
1. ONT - C. Darling
2. ONT - M. Egener
3. UTA - V. Nikiforov
Additional Notes:
> James Sixsmith continues his scoring streak tallying an assist in the contest.
> Utah is now 11-1 when Vladimir Nikiforov scores a goal.
> Beau Erickson stopped 29 out of 31 in the loss.
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