Game 13 Preview: Reading at Brampton

Royals finish Canadian weekend

Brampton, ON – The Reading Royals (7-4-1-0, 15 pts., 4th North) and wrap up the weekend with another game at the Brampton Beast (6-7-1-1, 14 pts., 5th North) Sunday at 2 p.m. Reading has been in Canada since Wednesday, arriving after a morning win over Manchester.

The Royals are coming off a 3-1 loss to the Beast Friday. Steven Swavely scored his third of the season with 5.4 seconds left to break up Marcus Hogberg’s shutout. Reading was 1-for-5 on the power play.

Adam Comrie earned a helper on the Swavely marker and is one point away from tying Simon Tremblay as the Royals’ all-time points leader by a defenseman. Tremblay had 86 career points with Reading.

The games between the Royals and Beast this weekend are the first since the 2017 Kelly Cup Playoffs. Brampton defeated Reading in the North Division Semifinals, 4-2.

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.

Path to “86”

With Adam Comrie one point away from matching Simon Tremblay’s mark for points by a Royals defenseman (86), it is worth noting the differences in how the pair reached such offensive heights.

Tremblay played for the Royals in their first two seasons (2001-03), while Comrie has skated for the Royals in four different seasons. Comrie has never skated in more than 39 games in a season with Reading. In two seasons, Tremblay played in 111 games, compared to 110 for Comrie.

During the 2001-02 season, Tremblay had 42 points (10 goals). The next season, he had nine goals and 44 points. Comrie has 39 career goals with Reading, the most by a Royals defenseman. In his first season with the Royals, 2012-13, he had a defenseman-best 17 tallies.Penalty kill

The Royals have killed off 16 of their last 17 penalties. Over the last eight games, the Royals have allowed one power-play goal (Jacksonville, Nov. 11). Since the streak began, Reading’s penalty kill has risen from 76.5% to 85.3%. Reliving the 2017 PlayoffsDespite losing in six games to the Beast in the 2017 North Divisional Playoffs, numerous positive themes emerged that have helped shape this season’s Royals club. Mark Dekanich played in all six games (2-2-2 record, 1.62 GAA, .954 sv%) and made a professional-high 50 saves in Game 5, albeit in a 2-1 2OT loss. Returner Chris McCarthy led the bunch with five points (5a) in the playoffs.  The Royals’ leading returning scorer Ryan Penny won Game 4 with a third-period, power-play goal at 14:35.

The only contest decided by more than one was the series-deciding Game 6 (3-1 L).

Jordan Henry topped the Beast with seven points (2g) in the series. Brandon MacLean led Brampton skaters with three goals. Brampton’s Zach Fuscale went 4-1 in the series with a 1.20 goals against average and .959 save percentage (7 GA).

Ramp it upThe Royals play the Beast nine times this season, a substantial increase given the clubs have only met 13 times in the regular season. Reading went 1-1-1-0 last regular season against Brampton. The year before, the clubs met four times (2-0-2-0). The Royals were 3-1-1-0 against the Beast in 2014-15, Brampton’s first in the ECHL.

One-goal it

Including the 2017 Kelly Cup Playoffs, the Royals and Beast have met 20 times and 11 have been decided by a goal. Reading has four wins in the one-goal games.

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.