Goaltending & Power Plays Propel Reno to Sweep of San Diego

Phillip Goodman
Feb 1
5 min read

By Phillip Goodman

February 1, 2026

Justin Sand was perfect in net while Rob Hallowell and newcomer Alex Boyko had three points each leading the Reno Ice Raiders to a 5-0 win over the San Diego Renegades on Friday night. On Saturday, Justis Gyori was one save shy of perfection and Matt Robinson's hat trick gave Reno the 5-1 win on Saturday.

The weekend series against San Diego Renegades presented by Nevada Retina Associates

saw 33 penalties and 80 PIMs combined in the heated contests. For the second straight series against Reno, Renegade goaltender Jack Walsh did his best to keep his squad within striking distance. Walsh stopped 72 of 82 Ice Raiders shots, allowing one goal or less in four of the six periods he played.

Rob Hallowell got the scoring started for Reno on Friday 1:19 into the first period. He took a cross-ice feed from Alex Boyko and ripped it over Walsh for the 1-0 lead. Walsh would go on to make 14 saves in the period.

Reno started the second on a Brewer's Cabinet Power Play. Will McDonnell rifled a shot over Walsh after taking a tremendous pass from behind the net from Boyko for the 2-0 lead. Hallowell got his second point of the night on the play.

Five minutes later on another Brewer's Cabinet Power Play, Andrew Peterson snuck a shot through Walsh's legs. Hunter Sine and Bobby Watson got the assists to go up 3-0.

Rob Hallowell tallied his second goal of the night again with a laser of a wrister from the top of the left circle, assisted by Boyko to make it 4-0.

Just over a minute later Hunter Sine and Bobby Watson executed a perfect cross weave through the offensive zone and Hunter Sine found Bobby Watson wide open for the slam dunk and 5-0 score.

"It felt good to get the monkey off the back and get a shutout, it's been a while," said Justin Sand. The last Ice Raiders' shutout was a tandem effort of Justis Gyori and Zack Kellerup against Sin City back in Dec. of 2024.

Sand added, "I got lots of encouragement from the boys. They always tell me when I'm on. I can also tell when the boys are feeding off my play so it's always a good feeling."

Jack Walsh kept the Ice Raiders off the board through almost the entire first period Saturday night. On a late Brewer's Cabinet Power Play, Bobby Watson motored through the neutral zone and slot until a defender poked the puck right to Adrian Nicholas trailing the play and his wrister beat Walsh for the 1-0 lead.

Five minutes into the second, Bobby Watson led a rush and fed a wide open Charlie Montgomery who wasted no time with a catch-and-release wrister for the 2-0 lead.

After Nathan Hogge laid out a Renegade for the TM Print Co Hit of the weekend, the Renegades responded with their only goal of the series. A point shot by SD was blocked and Zak Villars found the rebound before Gyori could reset. The 2-1 score would be as close as San Diego would get because the rest of the night belonged to Matt Robinson.

Matty Robs netted two less than 90 seconds apart in the middle frame. The first was a wrister from the left circle after curling off the wall and beating a defender to the middle. The second came on a Brewer's Cabinet Power Play when the puck squirted out of an eight-man pile-up in Walsh's crease and Robinson lifted the shot over the scrum and into the twine for the 4-1 lead.

Four minutes into the third, Robinson started a breakout from the defensive end with a long out to Montgomery. Monty fed Jake "Minty Fresh" Minton in the slot who slid it to back Matty on the wing for the hatty.

"Every year I've been here we've had a couple new guys come in, they fit right in, and it's such a good group in the locker room so games like this weekend end up being a blast," Robinson said after Saturday's win and No. 1 Star honors.

Both games at The Jennifer M. O’Neal Community Ice Arena were sold out with Saturday's game already sold out the Thursday before the weekend began.

"Without our fans, there might be guys who reconsider playing, it's such an unbelievable environment here," said Robinson. "Sellout crowds make it all worth it and these fans are the best in the league. I love it."

The Ice Raiders head to Mansfield, Texas next weekend for a pair against the Barracudas. The Ice Raiders took both games from Mansfield back in November here in Reno and won both games in Mansfield last February. Reno gets the following weekend off then goes to Park City for one indoor game then first ever Mountain Hockey League Winter Classic outdoor game. Reno comes home Feb. 27 and Feb. 28 for a pair against the Breckenridge Vipers presented by Peterson Wealth Management.

Friday's LT Automotive Three Stars of the Game

Justin Sand, 19 Saves for the shutout
Rob Hallowell, 2G, 1A
Alex Boyko, 2A

Saturday's LT Automotive Three Stars of the Game

Matt Robinson, 3G
Bobby Watson, 2A
Justis Gyori, saved 24 of 25 SOG

Friday's Brain Bean Stats

Reno - 2-for-5 on the Brewer's Cabinet Power Play, 4-for-4 on Peterson Wealth Management Penalty Kills
Reno won 38 of 74 draws (51.4%)
Point scorers
- Bobby Watson - 1G, 1A
- Hunter Sine - 2A
- Andrew Peterson - 1G
- Will McDonnell - 1G

Saturday's Brain Bean Stats

2-for-3 on the Brewer's Cabinet Power Play, 5-for-5 on Peterson Wealth Management Penalty Kills
Reno won 34 of 69 draws (49.3%)
Point scorers
- Jake Minton - 2A
- Charlie Montgomery - 1G, 1A
- Adrian Nicholas - 1G
- Roger Hutchison - 1A
- Jeff Jiron - 1A
- Julian Herrera - 1A
- Alex Gunnoe - 1A

After going 0-for-15 on Brewer's Cabinet Power Plays in three games against Sin City and Santa Rosa, Reno has 5 power play goals in their last 10 attempts (at home). Reno is 16-for-16 in Peterson Wealth Management Penalty Kills over the last four games in Reno.

Previous hat tricks by Ice Raiders (at home)