Game 12 Preview: Reading at Brampton

Brampton, ON – The Reading Royals (7-3-1-0, 15 pts., 4th North) are north of the border for the first time and shake things up with the Brampton Beast (5-7-1-1, 12 pts., 5th North) Friday at 7:15 p.m. The Royals are also at the Beast Sunday at 2:00 p.m.

Reading has won consecutive games and mashed Manchester, 5-3, on Wednesday. Five players scored for the Royals, Michael Huntebrinker had his first goal and multi-point game (1g, 1a) and Nick Luukko recorded a professional-high three assists.

This is the first time the clubs match since the North Division Semifinals in the 2017 Kelly Cup Playoffs. Five games were decided by one goal and the Royals lost the opening-round series, 4-2. Eight Royals and ten Beast players that appeared in the series are back.

See the Royals at home on Tues., Nov. 21 at 7:00 p.m. against Adirondack and meet the players after the game with special postgame autographs, brought to you by Rieck’s Printing. Tickets are available here.

Following Thanksgiving, the Royals are home on Black Friday, Nov. 24, for another game against Adirondack. It’s Penny Days, where select Royals items will be on sale as “buy one, get one for a penny” (details forthcoming). Also, it’s a PA lottery voucher giveaway game to the first 2,500 fans 18+.

Call the Royals office at 610-989-PUCK (7825) and ask for your ticket guys to learn about the best deal in sports! It’s a five-game pack to Reading’s five-biggest games for $69.95, plus we’ll buy you dinner.

All those firstsThree notable “firsts” happened in the Royals’ 5-1 win at Manchester.

• Nick Luukko had his first three-point game (3a). It is the fifth multi-point game of Luukko’s career. The third-year defenseman has two goals and five points this season. Luukko’s outburst matched the highest assists total by a Royals player this season.
• Michael Huntebrinker had his first professional goal and multi-point game. A 2017 graduate of Minnesota State, Huntebrinker tallied three assists in seven games for the Royals at the end of last season. He has three points (1g, 2a) this season.
• Loic Leduc recorded his first professional multi-point game (2a) and had his second fighting major of the season. The fourth-year defenseman had last recorded an ECHL point on Jan. 2, 2016 against Evansville (683 days). Last season, Leduc skated in 32 games for the Bridgeport (AHL), scoring one goal and three points.

Stick ‘em upLoic Leduc has Reading’s only two fighting majors this season and last fought Matt Schmalz Wednesday at Manchester. His bout against Schmalz came after Michael Huntebrinker scored his first professional goal to make it 3-1 Royals. The fight resulted because Manchester’s Jordan Smotherman body checked Matt Wilkins after the goal light went on.

Reading averages fewer than nine PIMs per game, lowest in the league.

Scouting the BeastBrampton has won three straight games to climb out of the North Division cellar. The Beast started the campaign 0-5-1-0, but has won five of eight since (5-2-0-1).

Scott Jacklin has two goals and a squad-best nine points during the recent uptick. Defenseman Matt Petgrave leads the bunch with four goals over the eight-game stretch.

During the first six games (when the Beast were winless), leading scorer Brandon Marino had five goals. Since then, he has one. The 31-year-iold leads the team with six goals and 12 points.

The Beast are allowing 3.93 goals per game (bottom five in the league) and four goalies have already played. Andrew D’Agostini 4-2-0-0 with a 2.97 GAA and .904 sv%. Marcus Hogberg has played in three games (0-3-0-0, 5.30 GAA, .863 sv%).

Brampton is the ECHL affiliate of the Montreal Canadiens.

The best deal in sports!Call the Royals offices and ask for your ticket guys to learn about the best deal in sports. Get tickets to Reading’s five-biggest games for $69.95, plus we’ll buy you dinner. Call 610-898-7825 for more information.

About the RoyalsThe Royals have been owned by serial entrepreneur Jack Gulati since 2014 and are in their 17th ECHL season. Proudly affiliated with the NHL’s Philadelphia Flyers and AHL’s Lehigh Valley Phantoms, Reading plays in the Santander Arena, located in downtown Reading, PA at 700 Penn Street. The Royals won the Kelly Cup in 2013, have made the playoffs in eight straight seasons and are four-time division champions.

Reading Royals Mobile AppHead to the App Store and Google Play to download the new Reading Royals app on your smartphone! Stay up-to-date with team news, receive notifications and purchase tickets for your next experience at Santander Arena.

Broadcast CoverageAll Royals game can be heard on Rumba 1340 AM and the iHeartRadio app by searching “Rumba 1340”. The pregame show starts 15 minutes before puck drop. Watch Royals games on ECHL.tv. Reading away games locally on BCTV.