Defensemen Maxim Lamarche and Jesper Pettersson Loaned to Reading

Reading, PA – The Reading Royals of the ECHL, affiliate of the Philadelphia Flyers of the National Hockey League, today announced that defensemen Maxim Lamarche and Jesper Pettersson have been loaned by the Flyers from the Lehigh Valley Phantoms of the AHL to the Royals.

In separate transactions also undertaken today, the Royals (i) signed forward Kris Newbury to an ECHL Standard Players Contract; (ii) placed Todd Perry on the 21-Day Injured Reserve List; (iii) placed forward Zach Hall on the ECHL Reserve List; (iv) placed defenseman Bobby Gertsakis on the ECHL Reserve List; and (v) released defenseman Matt Chiarantano from his SPC.

Maxim Lamarche

This marks the third stint in Reading for Lamarche (6’3/217) (24), a fourth year pro from Laval, Quebec, who served as the team’s captain last season. He began the season in Reading and scored four goals and assisted on six others (ten points) in the first twenty-one games of the season before he was recalled to Lehigh Valley. While with the Phantoms, he proceeded to bag his first career AHL goal—a second period power play goal that gave Lehigh Valley a 4-3 come-from-behind lead that the team would not relinquish over the Hershey Bears on December 18, 2015. While with Lehigh Valley, Lamarche recorded six total points (1g-5a) and twenty-one penalty minutes in twenty-nine total AHL games before being loaned to the Royals on March 29. He finished out the regular season with Reading, which included scoring a goal and picking up an assist in 4-3 loss to the Wheeling Nailers on April 8.  Lamarche, who ended up leading the Royals by playing to plus-15 (+15) in twenty-seven total regular season games, led all defensemen on the team with eleven points (3g-8a) in fourteen playoff games with the team.

In his first season with the Royals, 2014-15, Lamarche recorded a personal career-high thirty-two points (9g-23a) and fifty-six penalty minutes in sixty games with the Royals, earning him Defenseman of the Year honors for the team. Lamarche led the Royals in plus-minus, playing to a plus-24 (+24), which tied for the best single season plus-minus in Royals’ history. In eighty-seven career regular season games with the Royals (forty-fourth all-time) he has recorded forty-four points (14g-30a) and ninety-six penalty minutes. In his time with the Reading, he has played to a collective plus-39 (+39), which is second all-time only to Bryant Molle (+55 in 191 regular season games with Reading).

Lamarche, who split his rookie season (2013-14) between the Elmira Jackals of the ECHL and the then-Adirondack Phantoms of the AHL, has recorded a total of sixty points (18g-42a) and 166 penalty minutes in 185 total pro games, forty-eight of which have been played in the AHL (1g-7a=8pts, 32 pims).

Prior to turning pro, Lamarche played five seasons in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League, the vast majority of which was played with Baie-Comeau Drakkar. In his overage season with Baie-Comeau, Lamarche led all defensemen on the team with forty-three points (9g-34a) in fifty-three regular season games, while playing to a plus-31 (+31). Lamarche added eleven points (3g-8a) in nineteen post-season contests for Baie-Comeau, who advanced all the way to the championship finals before being knocked off by the Halifax Mooseheads, who would also go on to win the 2103 Memorial Cup. In 252 career QMJHL games, Lamarche registered 113 points (20g-92a) and 269 penalty minutes.

Jesper Pettersson

Pettersson (5’9/189) (22), who hails from Stockholm, Sweden, will be entering his third year of North American pro. Last year, Pettersson split the season between the Lehigh Valley and Reading, where he registered twenty points (4g-16a) and twenty penalty minutes, while playing to a plus-12 (+12) in forty-three ECHL games. He also played twenty-four games (1g-2a) for the Phantoms. A seventh round pick of the Flyers in 2014, Pettersson has registered thirty points (7g-23a) and sixty-seven minutes in 118 total pro games. Prior to coming to North America, Pettersson had an extensive run in the Swedish junior ranks, which including playing with the Swedish Junior National Team that claimed the Silver Medal in the 2014 World Junior Championships Under-20 tournament.

Season Sixteen for the Royals kicks off THIS EVENING Saturday, October 15) with a rock and roll bang as the Pat McGee Band hits the stage for the Opening Night Block Party, which will be set up on Penn Street directly adjacent to Santander Arena. Things will heat up at 4 pm and lead directly into the pre-game activities for the Royals season opener against the Elmira Jackals (@ 7:00 pm). Fans will be treated to what promises to be the most exciting season-launching, pregame presentation in team history, and everyone will be part of the effort to take the energy to the next level with “BOOM-BOOM” sticks that will be given out to all in attendance courtesy of Reading Health System.