Texas Stars Stumble in 6-3 Loss to Ontario Reign to Close Out California Road Trip

(Credit: Ontario Reign)

Through six games across the state of California, the Texas Stars found pockets of magic that helped them bank important points during their longest road trip of the season. Tuesday night against the Ontario Reign, though, it was clear that the magic had run out as the Stars stumbled to a 6-3 loss at Toyota Arena. 

That is not to say they didn’t try to conjure another come from behind effort with two goals from Artem Shlaine and Harrison Scott in the third period, but the effort came up short. The Stars finished the California road trip 3-2-0-1 and with seven out of a possible 12 points. 

It was an inauspicious start for the Stars when the Reign opened the scoring against the run of play at 13:11 of the first period when Martin Chromiak was able to force a turnover in the neutral zone and earned a breakaway. 

Nikita Alexandrov would add to that lead a mere 44 seconds later to put Texas into a 2-0 hole early in the match. 

Antonio Stranges was able to cut into the deficit early into the second period when he beat a defender to a puck behind the net and promptly completed a wrap-around to tuck the puck in and make it 2-1. 

The Reign would extend their lead with some magic of their own when a shot from Kenny Connors deflected high above the ice before eventually settling somewhere in Stars goaltender Arno Tiefensee’s pads. In the brief moment of confusion where no one had eyes on the puck, it suddenly worked itself free and dropped across the goal line before play could be blow dead. 

Alexandrov scored his second goal of the game to make it 4-1 and put the Stars in a hole they ultimately would not be able to overcome. 

The Stars would get third period goals from Shlaine and Scott to make the Reign sweat a little before ultimately cashing in on an empty net twice to ultimately put Texas away 6-3. 

Overall it was a decent road trip for the Stars who now head home for a set of four games at the H-E-B Center starting with a date against the San Jose Barracuda Friday night. 

Tonight’s lines
Lind-Hyry-Hughes
Seminoff-Shlaine-Wheatcroft
Stranges-Scott-McKenzie
Chisholm-Becker-Ertel

Taylor-Looft
Bertucci-Karow
White-Punnett

Tiefensee 

Injuries, scratches and notes
Tuomaala (lower body injury)
Capobianco, Kolyachonok (callup)
Bergsland, Martino, Hanas (scratch)

Tonight’s attendance was 5,721.

AHL Gamesheet - Texas at Ontario - December 9 2025