Revamped power play lifts Wranglers past Ontario in preseason opener

By Steve Silver

Friday, Oct. 9, 2009 | 1:30 a.m.

When head coach and general manager Ryan Mougenel took the reins of the Las Vegas Wranglers, he knew one of his first priorities was fixing last year's anemic power play.

The rookie head coach searched for a way to transport one of the ECHL's worst special teams units from the proverbial outhouse to the luxurious penthouse. To do so, Mougenel literally took his squad to a penthouse at the Palms to hold a meeting about his power play system.

The motivational tactic already appears to have paid off as the Wranglers scored three power play goals en route to dropping the Ontario Reign 5-2 in the preseason opener Thursday night at the Orleans Arena.

"Special teams are huge, and I put a real strong emphasis on it," Mougenel said. "One of the things I did was that I wanted to get them thinking the right way, so I took them up to the penthouse at the Palms and we did our power play meeting there. The power play was in the outhouse last year and this year it's going to be in the penthouse. They need to start thinking penthouse when they go out there for a power play."

In addition to capitalizing three times on 10 power play opportunities, the Wranglers also successfully killed five of six Ontario advantages and survived two separate 5-on-3 situations.

Forwards Brett Wilson, Greg Collins and Mick Lawrence each tallied power play goals while Matt Kang and Adam Miller each notched two assists as the Wranglers out-shot the Reign 40-21.

"Everybody is gelling together and having fun on the bench," Miller said. "It's calm and we're young, so we're having a lot of fun. We have a lot of speed this year, so we're going to use it."

After falling into a 1-0 hole just 1:22 into the game, the Wranglers utilized that speed to score five consecutive goals.

Wilson tied the game 1-1 on the Wranglers first power play of the night when he punched in a loose rebound in front of Ontario goalie Curtis Darling.

Less than three minutes later, Dan Riedel put Las Vegas on top 2-1 when he tapped in a Kang rebound into a wide open net. Shortly thereafter, Collins scored the second power play goal of the night to send the Wranglers into the first intermission leading 3-1.

"Guys were in the right place tonight and we were playing well," Collins said. "We are in pretty good shape and I think that showed tonight."

In the second period, Lawrence and Robbie Bina scored less than five minutes apart for the commanding 5-1 lead.

Ontario center Greg Hogeboom netted the Reign's only power play goal of the night late in the third period, but that goal failed to spark a significant rally as the Wranglers held on for the 5-2 victory.

"The one thing that I love is the consistency and the work ethic," Mougenel said. "We're excited to coach this group. They are excited to get it going. I think they see the potential if they play hard and they play to a system and have fun doing it, then they will have success."

Stars of the game: 1. Greg Collins (1 goal, 1 assist), 2. Matt Kang (2 assists), 3. Michael Ouzas (19 saves)

Goalie swap: Joel Gistedt will man the crease tomorrow night in Ontario after Ouzas picked up the victory at home Thursday.

Mougenel said he simply wanted to give the 21-year-old Swedish goalie some ECHL road experience and that an opening night starter has not been named yet.

Speed skater: Serbian-born forward Ned Lukacevic has impressed Mougenel throughout training camp and he wowed the Orleans Arena crowd Thursday night with his uncanny breakaway speed.

"He works hard and I love that," Mougenel said. "I did a lot of homework on him and the one thing that nobody talked about was his speed, but he's real strong on the puck and he makes great decisions. He plays hard. He plays the game the way the game should be played."

Lukacevic, a fourth-round selection of the Los Angeles Kings in the 2004 NHL Draft, joined the Wranglers after splitting time between the Reading Royals and the Providence Bruins of the American Hockey League last season.

Once a goon, always a goon: Former Phoenix enforcer James McEwan did not waste much time showing the Ontario Reign his affinity for the penalty box. Last season, McEwan racked up 227 penalty minutes in 59 games. He picked up a staggering 20 penalty minutes Thursday night including a game misconduct for spearing as the game ended.

Heavy hitter: Newly acquired Wranglers defenseman Chris Frank did not take kindly to McEwan's antics as the two dropped gloves midway through the second period. Judges award a split-decision to Frank. Watch for this rivalry to boil over as Las Vegas and Ontario meet 15 more times this season.

Give blood, play hockey: I apologize in advance to all the baseball fans out there, but when is the last time you saw a professional baseball player smile while getting stitches? Hockey players are just tougher -- end of story.

Case in point is forward Shay Stephenson. Stephenson received a few stitches in his chin after the game as naturally as breathing. Welcome to hockey season.

Attendance: A very preseason-esque crowd of 1,850 fans witnessed the Wranglers victory Thursday night at the Orleans Arena.

Next up: The Wranglers travel to Ontario Friday to close out the preseason with a 7 p.m. matchup at the Center Ice Arena.

Steve Silver can be reached at 948-7822 or [email protected].