Overview
- Ontario opened the weekend with a 6-1 win featuring first pro goals for Jack Hughes, Jakub Dvořák and Kenny Connors, plus Koehn Ziemmer’s first two pro points and two assists from Angus Booth.
- Erik Portillo backstopped the victory with a season-high 36 saves on 37 shots, capping a run of allowing two or fewer in five straight starts.
- San Jose took the rematch 4-2 after an early 2-0 lead that included a shorthanded goal; Ontario got strikes from Martin Chromiak and a late six-on-four power-play goal by Taylor Ward before the Barracuda sealed it.
- Pheonix Copley started the second game in the planned rotation, while coach Andrew Lord’s new-look group continued to show both scoring spurts and defensive lapses.
- Ontario sits 5-3-1-0 and now returns home to face San Jose again on Tuesday, one of eight head-to-head meetings this season; forward Kaleb Lawrence remains out month-to-month as Connors draws continued praise for his two-way play.