Reign: Wheaton, Howe up; Johnston down.

Terry Wheaton, a 42-year-old goaltender from Corona, must have impressed Karl Taylor enough during the team’s open tryouts back in September to earn a second shot. After practicing with the Reign yesterday, Wheaton will be the emergency backup goaltender to Kellen Briggs tonight in Bakersfield.

His stay could be short, depending on how long it takes John Murray to get from Syracuse, N.Y. to Ontario. Murray hasn’t hit the transactions wire yet, but since the Columbus Blue Jackets activated goalie Steve Mason for their game tonight with the Red Wings, and sent Dan LaCosta (whose roster spot Murray was filling) back to their AHL affiliate in Syracuse, it’s probably just a matter of time.

(As an aside, Steve Mason and Terry Wheaton will probably never meet each other. Wheaton is even old enough to be the 21-year-old Mason’s dad. But for one day their paths intertwined quite a bit. Because of Steve Mason’s bout with mononucleosis, Wheaton gets to live his dream of being a pro hockey player for a night. It simply doesn’t get any better than that. That’s what I love about sports.)

Also, Mike Howe was activated from 3-day IR and traded places with Denny Johnston. Howe has missed 10 games with an upper-body injury.

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About J.P. Hoornstra

J.P. Hoornstra covers the Dodgers, Angels and Major League Baseball for the Orange County Register, Los Angeles Daily News, Long Beach Press-Telegram, Torrance Daily Breeze, San Gabriel Valley Tribune, Pasadena Star-News, San Bernardino Sun, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin, Whittier Daily News and Redlands Daily Facts. Before taking the beat in 2012, J.P. covered the NHL for four years. UCLA gave him a degree once upon a time; when he graduated on schedule, he missed getting Arnold Schwarzenegger's autograph on his diploma by five months.