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Week 3 USPHL Pacific Division Recap

  • Lyanna Yeow
  • Oct 6, 2025
  • 9 min read

The 2025-26 USPHL regular season continued strong with the Ventura Vikings and the Fresno Monsters sweeping their series and a hard-fought shootout win by the Ontario Jr. Reign. Read about the exciting wins and highlights from the games during October 3-5, 2025!


Long Beach Bombers vs. Ventura Vikings Two-Game Series

The Ventura Vikings and Long Beach Bombers faced one another in a two-game series this past weekend which started on Friday, October 3, 2025 and ended on Saturday, October 3, 2025. Read about how The Ventura Vikings swept the Long Beach Bombers 2-0 in this two-game series. 


The Vikings started this series with a 2-0 lead going into the second period with 14 shots on goal. They then extended their lead by one additional goal going into the last period of regulation (3-0). The Vikings closed out the game with two more goals scored during the third period (5-0). The team’s overall effort ultimately helped their goaltender, #31 Aiden Biswanger, to secure his first Vikings shutout of the 2025-26 regular season. After a 5-0 victory in Game 1 of this series, the Ventura Vikings extended their two-game winning streak into a three-game winning streak.   


The two-game series was closed out with another dominant performance by the Vikings as they took Game 2 with a final score of 9-1. #10 Nicholas Mardani opened up the game with a goal scored in the latter half of the first period which was then followed by another Vikings’ goal scored by #2 Josh Holiday (2-0). The Vikings continued to take control of the game as they extended their lead to four goals after #10 Mardani and #9 Cosimo Repaci scored early in the second period (4-0). The Bombers’ first and final goal of this game was scored by #8 Hugo Aulestiac which momentarily cut their goal deficit by three goals (4-1). #51 Joe Lawrence regained the Vikings’ four goal lead after scoring midway through the second period (5-1). The Vikings closed out this series with four unanswered goals during the third period of the game which were scored by #72 Aidan Pi-Keesee (1G), #47 Reese Tittle (1G), and #16 Griffin Gagnon (2G). In regards to goaltending, #28 Alexander Wendt, helped secure the Vikings’ 9-1 win after he saved 19 out of 20 shots on goal. After a victorious two-game series, the Ventura Vikings are now on a four-game winning streak while the Long Beach Bombers continue to struggle with their five-game losing streak. 


Ontario Jr. Reign vs. Henderson Force Three-Game Series

The Ontario Jr. Reign traveled to America First Center for a three-game series against Henderson Force which started on Friday, October 3, 2025 and ended on Sunday, October 5, 2025. Read about Henderson Force’s dominant performance during the three-game series and the Ontario Jr. Reign’s resilience which secured their first shootout win of the regular season.  


The first period of Game 1 remained at a scoreless standstill until #26 Reese Hicks put the Force up 1-0 midway through the period. Less than a minute later, #73 Sixten Warmhed made it a two-goal game with another goal scored by the Force. The Jr. Reign were able to cut their goal deficit back to one-goal after #71 Mason Geng scored a power play goal with five minutes left in the first period (2-1). The Force answer back with their first power play goal of the game scored by #55 Loui Lundahl and an additional goal scored by #73 Warmhed which made it a 4-1 game. The last Jr. Reign goal of the game was a power play goal scored by #11 Mason Welsh (4-2). Force’s #77 Riku Permi and #55 Lundahl contributed to the team’s 6-2 win with two goals scored late in the third period of the game. In regards to goaltending, #21 Ralfs Kalnins was in net for the Force and saved 58 out of 60 shots on goal while #29 Nicholas Perry was in net for the Jr. Reign and saved 39 out of 45 shots on goal. After their Game 1 win, Henderson Force found themselves with a four-game winning streak. 


The first period of Game 2 ended with a 1-1 standstill after Jr. Reign’s #71 Geng answered back to the Force’s opening goal scored by #87 Martin Szcus. Jr. Reign’s #83 Noah Neil and #11 Welsh continued the team’s goal-scoring momentum as they broke the tied standstill and momentarily made it a 3-1 game. The Force were able to answer back and tie the game with two goals scored by #55 Lundahl and #28 Nicholas Gallagher during the latter half of the period (3-3). The teams continued to remain at a tied standstill after the Force’s #73 Warmhed answered back to Jr. Reign’s #9 Christian Yi’s goal which was scored early in the third period (4-4). The Force found themselves with their first lead in the game after #73 Warmhed successfully scored a power play goal (5-4). The Jr. Reign answered back with a power play goal scored by #71 Geng midway through the period (5-5). Although #26 Reese Hicks was able to regain the Force's lead less than a minute after the Jr. Reign’s 5th goal, they were unable to answer back when #71 Geng scored his second power play goal of the game and his first hat-trick of the 2025-26 regular season (6-6). After a lengthy battle, the Ontario Jr. Reign ended Henderson Force’s four-game winning streak after they took Game 2 with a 7-6 shootout win. 


After a tough shootout loss, the Force went into Game 3 of this series with vengeance as #55 Lundahl and #24 Nikodem Wroblewski scored two unanswered goals by the end of the first period (2-0). The second period remained at a 2-0 standstill in the Force’s favor after the period remained scoreless. Force’s #55 Lundahl made it a three-goal game after breaking the standstill five minutes into the last period of regulation (3-0). The first and only Jr. Reign goal of the game was scored by #15 Walker Chitwood during the final minute regulation (3-1). Unfortunately for the Jr. Reign, this last push was not enough to offset their goal deficit as #45 Simon Lassus Engstrom scored the Force’s final goal of the game with two seconds left in the period (4-1). In regards to goaltending, #21 Ralfs Kalnins was in net for the Force and saved 36 out of 37 shots on goal while #29 Nicholas Perry was in net for the Jr. Reign and saved 37 out of 41 shots on goal. Although the Ontario Jr. Reign were able to end Henderson Force’s four-game winning streak, Henderson Force remained on top after winning this three-game series 2-1. 


Fresno Monsters vs. Lake Tahoe Lakers Three-Game Series

The Fresno Monsters traveled to South Lake Tahoe Ice Arena where they faced the Lake Tahoe Lakers in a three-game series which started on Friday, October 3, 2025 and ended on Sunday, October 5, 2025. Read about how the Fresno Monsters ended the Lake Tahoe Lakers’ three-game winning streak after sweeping them 3-0 in this series!


The Monsters kicked off Game 1 with a power play goal scored by #20 Vertti Sakko and closed the first period with a late goal scored by #21 Brian Erte (2-0). Monsters’ #20 Sakko completed his first hat-trick of the 2025-26 regular season with back-to-back goals which ultimately made it a 4-0 game midway through the second period. The Monsters’ momentum was continued by #13 Jonathan Andersen, who also scored back-to-back goals with a little over a minute apart from one another (6-0). With three minutes left in the second period, #20 Sakko scored another power play goal which was followed up by goals scored by #15 Adrian Gomez and #92 Alex McIssac which ultimately helped extend the Monsters’ lead, 9-0, going into the last period of regulation. #71 Nils Tunbratt made it a 10-0 game for the Monsters with a goal scored thirty-six second into the third period. The Monsters’ 11th goal of the game was also the team’s second hat-trick of the night when #13 Andersen recorded his first hat-trick of the regular season (11-0). The Lakers remained scoreless and were still unable to answer back when #71 Tunbratt closed out the night with their 12th goal of the game (12-0). Goaltender, #31 Noah Hammarstrom, secured the Fresno Monsters’ 12-0 shutout after saving all 37 shots on goal that he faced by the end of this game. 


Game 2 was opened up with a 2-0 lead for the Monsters after #7 Tyson Baumbach scored an early goal and #5 Keegan Iwahashi extended the team’s lead a couple minutes after the opening goal was scored. The Lakers made it a one-goal game when #15 Carver Alford scored midway through the period, however, the Monsters regained their three-goal lead when #71 Tunbratt scored a power play goal with two minutes left in the first period (3-1). The Monsters extended their lead to 5-1 after #71 Tunbratt and #14 Botond Levente Molnar scored five minutes into the second period. The Lakers were able to cut their deficit and made it a 5-2 game when #18 Kade Packer scored a power play goal. The Monsters regained their four-goal lead after #13 Andersen scored their 6th goal midway through the period (6-2). Although Lakers’ #14 Leo Matthew Duggan IV was able to answer back when Monsters’ #96 William Lindgren scored a power play goal late in the second period, the Monsters were able to extend their lead once again after #20 Sakko scored a goal with six seconds left in the period (8-3). The Lakers’ last goal of the game was scored by #15 Alford three minutes into the third period of the game which momentarily made it a four-goal game (8-4). The Monsters closed out Game 2 with a final score of 11-4 after #14 Molnar (1G), #11 Palla Xaver (1G), and #71 Tunbratt (1G) scored three unanswered goals during the remainder of the third period. In regards to goaltending, Monsters’ #30 Niksa Slade secured the team’s win after saving 35 out of 39 shots on goal while Lakers’ #32 Aaron Ing saved 46 out of 57 shots on goal. The Fresno Monsters found themselves with a two-game winning streak after their dominant win against the Lake Tahoe Lakers in Game 2 of this series. 


Monsters’ #55 Josef Nystrom and #13 Andersen kicked off Game 3 with two power play goals scored in the beginning half of the first period which gave the team a two-goal lead (2-0). With three minutes remaining in the first period, #20 Sakko scored another goal which put the Monsters up 3-0 going into the second period. The Monsters proceeded to take over the second period and extended their lead to 5-0 with goals scored by #71 Tunbratt and #96 Lindgren. This series was ended with a Monsters’ 9-0 shutout when #55 Nystrom (1 PPG), #15 Gomez (1G), #21 Erte (1G), and #77 Matteo Ferreira-Tavares (1G) scored four unanswered goals during the last period of regulation. After a remarkable performance in net, #31 Noah Hammarstrom recorded his second shutout of the 2025-26 regular season after saving all 28 shots on goal that he faced by the end of this game. The Fresno Monsters are now on a three-game winning streak while the Lake Tahoe Lakers are on a three-game losing streak. 


Overall, Week 3 of the 2025-26 USPHL Pacific Division was full of dominant performances and thrilling wins. Some memorable moments from this past week included Ventura Vikings’ 5-0 shutout against the Long Beach Bombers, Ontario Jr. Reign’s shootout win against Henderson Force, and the two Fresno Monsters shutouts recorded during their regular season debut. There were three hat-tricks recorded this week by Fresno Monsters’ #13 Jonathan Andersen and #20 Vertti Sakko on October 3, 2025 as well as Ontario Jr. Reign’s #71 Mason Geng on October 4, 2025. Things to look forward to going into Week 4 of the Pacific Division include: a rematch between the San Diego Sabers vs. Ventura Vikings; a three-game series between the Lake Tahoe Lakers vs. Ontario Jr. Reign; and a three-game series between the Long Beach Bombers vs. Iron County Yeti. 


Below are the next scheduled USPHL match-ups and where to watch them:

Friday, October 10, 2025

  • The San Diego Sabers will face the Ventura Vikings on Friday, October 10, 2025 at 7:30 PM PST. This game will take place at Iceoplex Simi Valley

  • The Long Beach Bombers will face the Iron County Yeti on Friday, October 10, 2025 at 7:30 PM PST. This game will take place at KJ’s Ice Barn 

  • The Lake Tahoe Lakers will face the Onatiro Jr. Reign on Friday, October 10, 2025 at 8:30 PM PST. This game will take place at Ontario Center Ice Arena 

Saturday, October 11, 2025

  • The Long Beach Bombers will face the Iron County Yeti on Saturday, October 11, 2025 at 7:30 PM PST. This game will take place at KJ’s Ice Barn

  • The San Diego Sabers will face the Ventura Vikings on Saturday, October 11, 2025 at 8:00 PM PST. This game will take place at Iceoplex Simi Valley

  • The Lake Tahoe Lakers will face the Ontario Jr. Reign on Saturday, October 11, 2025 at 8:30 PM PST. This game will take place at Ontario Center Ice Arena

Sunday, October 12, 2025

  • The Long Beach Bombers will face the Iron County Yeti on Sunday, October 12, 2025 at 12:30 PM PST. This game will take place at KJ’s Ice Barn

  • The Lake Tahoe Lakers will face the Onatiro Jr. Reign on Sunday, October 12, 2025 at 4:00 PM PST. This game will take place at Ontario Center Ice Arena


Stay tuned for the next weekly recap of the 2025-26 regular season for the USPHL Pacific Division!


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