Reign Reel in Steelheads, 5-1
Tristan King Nets Two Goals, One Assist Against Former Team

BOISE, Idaho- The Ontario Reign (17-12-1-2), proud affiliate of the NHL’s Los Angeles Kings,  beat the Idaho Steelheads (15-15-2-1)  5-1 before 4,083 at CenturyLink Arena Friday.

The first period featured some payback for players on both squads, as former Steelheads Geoff Irwin and Tristan King combined to put the Reign up 1-0 at 5:16, only to see former Reign forward Aaron Lewadniuk score the equalizer for Idaho at 9:27.  Irwin fought for the puck in the left corner and threw it into the slot where King tipped the puck past Jerry Kuhn to put the Reign up 1-0.  Lewadniuk scored his second power-play goal of the season off of a long rebound to tie the game at one.

The Reign extended their lead to 3-1 in the second period as they poured 21 shots on Kuhn.  Bill Bagron’s eleventh goal of the season came on a Reign power play at 14:24.  King continued to torment his former team as he got behind the Idaho defense and rang a backhander off the crossbar and into the net for his second goal of the game at 16:56.

Derek Couture’s power-play goal at 4:52 of the third period extended the Reign lead to 4-1 and lifted Couture into a tie for the lead in ECHL power-play goals at nine.  Kuhn got his glove on the Reign sniper’s shot, but momentum carried the puck into the net.  Kevin Estrada notched his fourth goal of the season at 16:29 and the Reign went on to defeat the Steelheads 5-1.

Jean-Francois Berube (5-6-1) stopped 25 of the 26 shots he faced in the win, while Kuhn (10-11-3) took the loss with 35 saves.  Rookie goaltender Thomas Speer made his professional debut in net after the Reign's final goal.
    
Three stars:
1) ONT - Tristan King
2) ONT - Geoff Irwin
3) IDH - Aaron Lewadniuk 

To view the box score, click here. 

Reign Drops:
The next game is $5 Oporto Wednesdays.  Pick-up your $5 Wednesday ticket vouchers at any Oporto Fresh-Grilled Chicken Burgers location (Ontario, Rancho Cucamonga).  Limit 4 vouchers per person.

Call 909-941-PUCK (7825) or visit www.ontarioreign.com today for tickets to Reign home games. 

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