Four Power Play Goals Fuel Royals' Win in Gwinnett, 6-3

Teams     Per: 1          2          3

REA:              3          1          2= 6 

GWT:             2          0          1= 3

Records

REA: 25-13-1-1=52 (3rd East Division)

GWT: 14-22-1-1=30 (7th East Division)

Goaltenders

REA:  Reiter (Win) 1-0-0-0 (20/23)

GWT: Patterson (ND) (4/7) (9:17)

            Brown (Loss) 5-7-0-0 (18/21) (50:43)

Power Play:

REA: 4-6

GWT: 0-4

Duluth, GA – The Reading Royals (­­­­­­­­win, 25-13-1-1=52) of the ECHL, affiliate of the Philadelphia Flyers of the National Hockey League and the Lehigh Valley Phantoms of the American Hockey League, defeated the Gwinnett Gladiators (loss, 14-22-1-1=30), 6-3, at The Arena at Gwinnett Center in Duluth, Georgia.

In the only appearance of the year at The Arena at Gwinnett Center, the Royals started out like a house on fire scoring on three of the team’s first seven shots and then held off the resilient Gladiators by bagging a total of four power play goals—three of which came in the team’s final three chances with the man advantage. Goaltender Kenny Reiter, in his first game as a Royal, picked up the win, as Adam Hughesman became the eleventh different player to bag a two-goal game this year and Olivier Labelle scored his team leading fifteenth of the season, which proved to be his second power play game winner in the last three games. With this, the thirteenth road win of the year for Reading (13-5-1-0), the Royals stretched the team’s current win streak to four and pushed the team’s record to a season high twelve games over .500.

First Period (3-2, Reading)

4:18 (1-0, Reading) Reading Goal

Hatch (5); Walrod (snap shot from low slot)

Reading took an early lead on the team’s third shot of the night when Kevin Walrod gained some space down the left wing side and carried deep into the offensive zone. Walrod then continued below the goal line and around the Gwinnett net going left to right and coming out on the other side where he threaded a pass to the mid-slot. Matt Hatch, who filled the gap in the gut, received the pass and fired the puck under and through starting goaltender Kent Patterson for his sixth of the year.

5:53 (2-0, Reading) Reading Goal (Power Play)

Hughesman (13); Reid (rebound of snap shot out of left circle)

1:35 later, Reading took a 2-0 lead on the team’s first power play chance of the night when Cam Reid sprang Adam Hughesman with a long cross-ice stretch pass from the defensive blue line. Hughesman carried into the left circle and ripped a snapper on Patterson who rejected the original bid; but the rebound went directly back to Hughesman who fired it five-hole Patterson for his first of what would be two PPGs on the night.

9:17 (3-0, Reading) Reading Goal

Lamarche (3); Mullane and Wiles (snap shot from mid slot)

The Royals took a three goal advantage before the half-way mark of the first period on the team’s seventh shot of the game. Sean Wiles and Pat Mullane traded tap passes through the mid-slot before Mullane dropped a perfect feed to the trailing defenseman, Maxim Lamarche, who had all sorts of space to carry deep into the slot and rip a snap shot glove side for his third goal of the year—that would also serve to chase the goaltender Patterson in favor of substitute Adam Brown.

14:54 (3-1, Reading) Gwinnett Goal

Pierro-Zabotel (17); Carey (center lane net drive punch home from top of the crease)

Undeterred, Gwinnett bounced back for a pair late in the first to make it a one goal game. The first came when Greg Carey broke with speed into the offensive zone and fired a shot out of the left circle that was rejected by goaltender Kenny Reiter. The puck fell behind the Royals’ net, where Carey retrieved and sent the puck to the top of the crease, where a hard-driving Casey Pierro-Zabotel drove it home for his first of what would be two in the game.

18:07 (3-2, Reading) Gwinnett Goal

Stevenson (6); Berkstresser (center lane net drive redirect of pass from deep on the left)

The Gladiators drew within one on a goal somewhat similar to their first—at least with respect to the spot from which it was scored. Sean Berkstresser carried deep down the left side and a ripped a perfect 90-degree pass from the left wing wall to the top of the crease, where a hard-charging Dyson Stevenson redirected the puck behind Reiter for his sixth of the year.

Second Period (4-2, Reading)

15:46 (4-2, Reading) Reading Goal (Power Play)

Labelle (15); Reid and Heywood (rebound off snap shot from the right circle)

Reading regained the two goal advantage with the team’s second of what would prove to be four power play goals on the night late in the second frame. Cam Reid settled in the right circle and ripped a hot rivet on net that caught Brown in the left shoulder. The rebound fell to the low slot where Olivier Labelle took a quick, hard swipe at the puck and drove it through Brown for his team leading fifteenth goal of the year—and what would prove to be his third game winner of the season.

Third Period (6-3, Reading)

2:02 (4-3, Reading) Gwinnett Goal

Pierro-Zabotel 2 (18); Nunn (one-time snap shot from the low left slot)

The Gladiators pulled back within one early in the third when Reading’s Reid gained possession behind the net and attempted to drop a saucer to defenseman Maxim Lamarche, who was setting for the breakout. Unfortunately for the Royals, Garry Nunn stepped between the two and picked off the pass, and made a quick feed from the left side of the cage back up into the low slot, where Pierro-Zabotel stepped up for a quick one-time snap shot that beat Reiter for his eighteenth of the year.

8:18 (5-3, Reading) Reading Goal (Power Play)

Hughesman 2 (14); Heywood and Lamarche (shot from right circle)

For the second time, Reading regained the two goal advantage—this time with the team’s third power play goal of the game. Jordan Heywood settled the puck at the right point and fired a diagonal down pass to the left circle where a waiting Adam Hughesman had all day to set up for a quick snap shot that beat Brown for his second of the night.

16:01 (6-3, Reading) Reading Goal (Power Play)

Mullane (14); Labelle and Cruthers (one-time snap shot from between the hash-marks)

Reading pushed the lead back to where it started at three goals on the team’s third straight power play goal. On this one Olivier Labelle set up Pat Mullane for a one-timer from directly between the hash-marks. Mullane didn’t get all of the shot and it appeared to deflect off a Gwinnett defender, but it went in nonetheless, fluttering over the extended blocker of goaltender Brown for Mullane’s fourteenth of the year.

NOTES:

• The scratches for tonight’s game were Gentry Zollars (defense) (ECHL Reserve) and Joe Howe (goaltender) (ECHL Reserve).

• The Royals are riding a four game win streak. The team has won five of the last six, thirteen of the last seventeen and sixteen of the last twenty-one.

• This win pushed Reading’s record to a season-high twelve games over .500 (25-13-1-1=52). The Royals are eight games over .500 on the road (13-5-1-0).

• Tonight’s game marked the fifth time this season that Reading has scored six goals in a single game, which is the team season high.

• The Royals set a team season high with four power play goals tonight (4-6).

• Over the last ten games, Reading’s power play has gone 13 for 43, which is a 30.2% scoring ratio.

• Tonight marked the twenty-fourth time this year that Reading’s penalty killers have blanked the opposition’s power play (4-4). Reading has compiled a record of 18-4-1-1 in those games.

• Six different Royals had multi-point performances in tonight’s game: Adam Hughesman (2g-0a), Olivier Labelle (1g-1a), Pat Mullane (1g-1a), Maxim Lamarche (1g-1a), Jordan Heywood (0g-2a), and Cam Reid (0g-2a).

• Adam Hughesman became the eleventh different player to record a two goal performance for the Royals this season, joining Brett Flemming, David Marshall, Adam Comrie, Brandon Alderson, Ryan Cruthers, Cam Reid, Jordan Heywood, Matt Hatch, Sean Wiles and Olivier Labelle.

• Olivier Labelle scored his team-leading fifteenth goal of the season this evening. That proved to be his second power play game winner in a span of three games. Labelle has three GWGs for the Royals this year.

• The Royals are 17-4-0-1 when scoring the game’s first goal (and 8-3-0-0 on the road).

NEXT UP FOR THE ROYALS

Reading Royals v Evansville Icemen

@ Ford Center – Evansville, Indiana

Wednesday, January 28, 2015 (8:15 pm Eastern Time)

NEXT UP: The Royals continue the team’s five game road trip on Wednesday (January 28 @ 8:15 pm Eastern Time), when they visit Ford Center in Evansville, Indiana, to take on the Evansville Icemen for the fourth and final time this year. Wednesday’s game can be heard live on CBS SportsRadio 1240 am and 98.5 in Reading, Pennsylvania, starting with the pre-game warm-up show presented by Highmark Blue Shield at 7:45 pm Eastern. As with all road games this season, Wednesday’s game will be televised live locally in Berks County Pennsylvania on BCTV courtesy of Boscov’s Travel and Apple Vacations. Streaming audio is available free of charge on the Royals’ website (follow the ‘headset’ icon); and streaming video is available on a pay-per-view basis through ECHL.TV.

For more information about the Royals, call 610-898-7825 or log onto www.royalshockey.com.

End 15 01-25