After a month of relative stability, the Reign roster was thrown into upheaval last week by injuries and promotions - the hangnails and cold sores of ECHL existence.
Where might the team look for help? Scotland, of course.
 That's where defenseman Alan Mazur was plying his trade for the Dundee Stars of the Elite Ice Hockey League. With more than three-quarters of the EIHL season complete, the Stars had won just nine of 41 games.
Mazur, a native of British Columbia, grew tired of losing and heeded Reign coach Jason Christie's request for help.
"He's been emailing me and talking to me and wanted me to come," Mazur said. "The situation was great. I was enjoying it over there, I had a good time, but the team was struggling and I figured I'd come here and try to win a championship."
The 26-year-old played for Christie last year with the Central Hockey League's Bloomington PrairieThunder, contributing six goals and 32 points in 65 games. Mazur showed a willingness to join the rush on a few occasions in the Reign's 4-2 win over the Colorado Eagles on Saturday and finished with two assists in his first career ECHL game.
Considering his recent travel schedule, Mazur's debut only seemed more impressive.
"The last couple days I've been on the plane for 18 hours," he said after the game. "It feels like 6 a.m. right now. I've been in four countries in the last 24 hours. I was in Scotland, then the Netherlands, Canada for eight hours and then here."
With leading scorer C.J. Stretch in the American Hockey League, Francois Brisebois nursing a concussion and Matt Tassone (back) and Philippe Seydoux (concussion) on injured reserve, the Reign needed help from more than just Mazur.
They also signed Mike Gabinet, who split last season between the Idaho Steelheads and the AHL's Abbotsford Heat. He had four goals and 10 assists in 27 games.
The 30-year-old defenseman played 111 games in the ECHL and 53 in the AHL from 2005-11, but hasn't played a game this season. The native of Edmonton was an eighth-round draft pick by the Kings in 2001. He was at Citizens Business Bank Arena on Saturday but didn't play.
More than a quick fix?
With the team short on forwards but stacked on the blue line, defensemen Mike Montgomery and Jason Fredricks shifted to left and right wing, respectively, for Saturday's game against the Eagles.
Fredricks' speed made him a logical candidate to move to the wing. He even picked up a boarding penalty early in the first period Friday during one overly ambitious forecheck.
Montgomery isn't the fastest player on the team, but he was in the right place at the right time to score his first goal of the season in the second period Saturday. It also was the first point of Montgomery's 24-game ECHL career. The team saved the puck for him.
Christie said the experiment went well and hinted Fredricks and Montgomery might see more time on the wings.
"Sometimes down at this level you have to be able to play a different position," he said.
Injury updates
Brisebois' time with the Reign appears to have ended.
The rookie forward was suspended by the team Monday after Brisebois told Christie he wanted to focus on studying for the Medical College Admissions Test (MCAT), a prerequisite for admission to medical school in the U.S.
"It was not an overnight decision," Christie said. "I talked to him for a week about it. He was trying to get through but couldn't focus on both things."
In 38 games this season, Brisebois had 25 points (10 goals, 15 assists), which tied him for 12th among ECHL rookies and third on the Reign.
Brisebois, who had no points in his last four games, said he suffered a concussion Friday and had not been playing healthy for some time before that.
"It was the hit from last night," Brisebois said Saturday. "But (because of) hits in weeks past, I've been wondering for a little while if I should be playing."
Tassone, who has not played since Dec. 14, said he is "feeling a lot better" of late and plans to skate this week.
"It's one of those things where I start feeling a lot better and it goes up and down," he said.
Injuries have limited Tassone to 65 games over the last two seasons, but he said the back spasms are not related to any ailment he's had in the past.
Alumni update
C.J. Stretch had one assist in his AHL debut Friday, his only point in three games over the weekend with the Houston Aeros.
Alex Bourret had no goals and three assists during a six-game recall to the AHL's Worcester Sharks, before he was returned to the Central Hockey League over the weekend.
Geoff Walker saw his point streak end at six games Saturday, during which he posted four goals and four assists. The winger has 10 goals and 21 points in 35 games this season for the AHL's Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins. |
