Lamoureux Goes From Third Line to Top Scorer for Reign

When Mario Lamoureux signed with the Ontario Reign last summer for his first full professional season, he was a self-described “third-line center” who only scored 46 points in four seasons playing at the University of North Dakota.

Now, he leads the ECHL in rookie scoring with 25 goals and 35 assists, has an eight-game point scoring streak and is tied for 12^th overall (with called-up teammate C.J. Stretch) on the overall league scoring list.

And no one is probably more surprised than he is, as he added an assist for the Reign on Friday night as Ontario lost to Stockton in a shootout, 5-4.

“Five months ago, if you said I was going to be one of the leading scorers in the league, I probably wouldn’t have believed you,” Lamoureux said after the game. “I feel like I’ve been given a good opportunity and played with some good players this year.”

Lamoureux (pronounced LAM-or-OO) said matching up against NHL-level players during the lockout helped progress his game early in the season.

“I think especially playing against a Nate Thompson (a member of the Tampa Bay organization who played for Alaska during the lockout) and a Brad Mills (a former New Jersey Devil who played for Utah during the lockout), guys who’ve had a lot of experience, when I played against those guys, I tried to outwork those guys,” he said. “Obviously they’re really good players at a higher level for a reason. But I felt like I wanted to be out there against those guys, I wanted to play against them. I wanted to compete against those guys. I think that helped me get a little better. Seeing that I could play with those guys gave me confidence that I needed this year, and it’s helped me grow a lot.”

Part of the credit for his recent point streak can also be credited with his linemates. He’s mostly been teamed up over the last few weeks with former NHLer D.J. King (6-foot-3, 230) and assistant captain Brady Calla (6-foot-1, 205). Both of the big bodies are helping open space for Lamoureux to make plays.

“Those guys (King and Calla) do a good job protecting the puck and they create a lot of turnovers,” Lamoureux said. “They get in on the forecheck fast, and they turn those pucks over and I’m just trying to jump on those and take them to the net and make plays. Whoever I’m playing with, I’m trying to know their strengths and know how we’re going to have success playing as a line. So it might be a little bit different playing with different guys. With those two guys, it’s keep things simple, take pucks to the net and create turnovers and be a real solid, reliable linemate.”

It’s been successful thus far for Lamoureux. And he’s grateful for the opportunity he’s had in Ontario.

“I feel like I’ve grown a lot over the season,” he said. “I feel like I prepare as good as anybody. And obviously with the opportunity I’ve been given with ice time in different situations has helped me grow my game. I came in as a third-line center, a good defensive player, good penalty killer. Try to do all the little things good. And I feel like I’ve grown my game, gotten more confidence with that puck, and all things I’ve prepared for and worked on for my whole life. I feel like I’ve gotten the opportunity to show what I can do. It’s been a good year, and I’ve gotten a lot of help from a lot of guys, so it’s been fun for me.”

FRIDAY NIGHT: The Reign gave up two goals in the final 48 seconds of the second period, turning a 3-1 lead into a 3-3 tie. Nathan Deck’s goal with 10:40 left gave Stockton its first lead of the game, which lasted until the final minute, when David Walker, a former Reign captain, tipped the puck into the net past back-up goaltender Matt Cooper to force overtime.

In the shootout, the Reign went 0-for-4 against Cooper, who was the game’s first star, making 26 saves in 46:30 of action after coming in for injured starter Tyler Bunz.

The Reign, however, controlled long portions of the game, limiting the Thunder’s opportunities. But Stockton was able to get four by goaltender Dustin Carlson on 17 shots.

“When you outshoot a team 43-17, you expect to win it,” said Reign coach Jason Christie. “There’s nothing wrong with my team’s effort tonight. They battled hard, they worked hard, I just think the goaltender would have liked a couple of those shots back.”

OTHER NOTES: Walker returned to the Reign after spending the season playing for Schwenningen ERC in Germany’s second division. He capped off his return with the game-tying goal, but it started much differently. The former captain renewed his relationship with Stockton’s Garet Hunt. The two stared each other down on their first shift, and dropped the gloves on their second together. … Goaltender Chris Carrozzi, who was injured during last weekend’s trip to Bakersfield and Stockton, was placed on injured reserve and replaced on the roster by Troy Redmann. Christie said Carrozzi is “day-to-day” but should be ready to join the team on its road-trip to Idaho next week. … The Reign filmed a “Harlem Shake” video after the game, inviting fans to stick around in an attempt to have the largest amount of people as part of one of the videos.