Reading, PA – The Reading Royals of the ECHL, affiliate of the Philadelphia Flyers of the National Hockey League, today announced that the team has agreed to terms with defenseman Todd Perry.
The Royals have announced twelve players as signed to ECHL Standard Players Contracts for the 2016-17 season. In addition to Perry, Reading has announced the signing of forwards Justin Crandall, Olivier Labelle, Mike Pelech, Mike Pereira, Joe Rehkamp, Ian Watters and Matt Wilkins and defensemen Miles LIberati, Nick Luukko, Derik Johnson and Mike Marcou.
This marks the fourth stint in Reading for Perry (6’3/234) (29), a tenth year pro from Ingleside, Ontario. Last season, Perry registered thirteen points (2g-11a) and seventy-three penalty minutes in sixty-six regular season games with the Royals. He played in twelve of the team’s post-season games and picked up a pair of points (0g-2a) and ten penalty minutes. Perry has now played a total of 134 career games with the Royals (6g-30a=36 pts, 188 pims), which places him tied fourteenth (with Graig Mischler) in all-time regular season games played with the team. He has also appeared in thirty-six career playoff games (0g-6a=6pts, 56 pims) with Reading.
Perry first joined the Royals late in the 2009-10 season on assignment from the Toronto Marlies of the American Hockey League. He played five regular season games that year for Reading and was an integral member of the Royals’ squad that advanced to Game Seven of the American Conference Finals before getting knocked out one game shy of the Kelly Cup Finals. Perry signed with Reading for the 2010-11 season and served as an anchor defenseman for the team, racking up twenty-two points (4g-18a) (third amongst defensemen on the team) and a team-leading 115 penalty minutes, while playing to a plus-9 (+9) in sixty-three games.
Perry then took his talents abroad for four seasons, playing primarily in the Supreme Hockey League (VHL) (based in Eurasia), while also earning a stint in the KHL. Over those four years (2011-15), he played 145 regular season games (13g-30=43pts, 192 PIMs) in central Asia. Perry’s most notable year in Eurasia may have been 2012-13 when his team, Saryarka Karagandy, won the VHL regular season title and advanced to the playoff championship finals before getting knocked off.
Perry, who has 107 AHL games under his belt (3g-8a=11pts, 115 pims), kicked off his pro career in 2007-08 with the Columbia Inferno of the ECHL, another team that made a long, if somewhat unexpected, playoff run to the ECHL South Division Finals. In 441 total pro regular season games, Perry has racked up 118 points (28g-90a) and 568 penalty minutes. Prior to turning pro, Perry played three seasons of major junior in the Ontario Hockey League and was a member of the 2006-07 London Knights who won the OHL regular season championship. In 163 total games of major junior, Perry registered fifty-one points (6g-45a) and 340 penalty minutes.
Season Sixteen of “Hometown Hockey” kicks off for the Royals on Saturday, October 15, (7:00 pm) when the Elmira Jackals visit Santander Arena. Season Tickets for the Royals’ 2016-17 ECHL season are currently available. Call 610-898-7825 for more information or log onto www.royalshockey.com.