Royals get to overtime in game 2, drop in extra session, 3-2

St. John’s, NL – The Reading Royals earned a point in their second game of the season, taking the Newfoundland Growlers to overtime in a 3-2 defeat Saturday at Mile One Centre. Matthew Gaudreau and Frank DiChiara scored the first two goals of the game for Reading. Mac Hollowell tallied the winner at 2:51 of overtime, assisted by Colt Conrad. Hollowell shot the puck in from the high slot over Kirill Ustimenko’s glove hand. Ustimenko made 32 saves, including four in overtime, in his first North American professional game.Patrick Munson (win) blocked 39 of 41 shots in his first-ever ECHL game for the Growlers.The 2019-20 season is presented by Tower Health UPMC Health Plan. The Royals play the final game of the three-game trip in Newfoundland on Tues., Oct. 15 at 5:30 p.m. Reading’s first home game on Oct. 19 vs. Maine features a massive block party, games, food, drinks and a special “Downtown Alive” concert on Penn Street before the home opener.Single-game tickets and mini-plans are on sale by visiting royalshockey.com/promotions, calling 610-898-7825 and visiting Santander Arena and The Weidenhammer Box Office at 700 Penn Street, Reading, PA.Box ScoreGaudreau earns first Royals goalReading opened the scoring at 15:46 of the first; from a sharp angle at the bottom of the left circle, Matthew Gaudreau sniped it short-side over the right shoulder of Patrick Munson, assisted by Pascal Laberge and Garrett Mitchell. Laberge passed it cross ice from the bottom of the right dot to Gaudreau. The 5-foot-9, left-handed shot Gaudreau is beginning his third professional season and has 25 career ECHL goals.Ustimenko debutMaking his Royals debut, Kirill Ustimenko blocked his first 20 shots faced and did not allow a goal for the first 39 minutes. Aaron Luchuk got him with 46.6 seconds remaining in the second, nicking it over Ustimenko’s shoulder at the right post. Ustimenko was drafted in the third round of the 2017 NHL Entry Draft by Philadelphia. In overtime, he helped the Royals kill off an early 4-on-3 penalty kill with four saves. Garrett Mitchell made a couple of sliding blocks while stick-less, giving Reading a perfect 3-for-3 effort on the penalty kill. Reading was 0-for-2 on the man up.Growlers bark lateNewfoundland’s Matt Bradley scored his second goal of the weekend to tie the game at two, slamming home a right door step shot in the final eight minutes of the third. Aaron Luchuk (1g, 1a) put a whirl-around shot from the left dot off the pad and to Bradley at the right circle. Bradley leads the Growlers in goals this season. That strike forced overtime in a two-goal Newfoundland come-from-behind win. Friday, the Royals overcame a pair of deficits (3 goals, 1 goal) to earn two points.  Reading’s new five-game mini-plan includes a meal for every game, a Reading Royals Hat, an exclusive fan experience, an autographed team picture and a guaranteed giveaway for each of the 5 games. Purchase your seat or seats today by calling 610-898-7825 or by visiting https://bit.ly/2LSHBp8.About the RoyalsThe Royals are entering their 19th ECHL season and are proudly affiliated with the NHL’s Philadelphia Flyers and AHL’s Lehigh Valley Phantoms. The Royals won the Kelly Cup in 2013, have made the playoffs 14 times, and are four-time division champions. The Berks County Convention Center Authority (BCCCA), founded in 1996, owns the Royals and oversees operations at Santander Arena and the Santander Arena Performing Arts Center.Listen to all Royals broadcasts at Mixlr.com/ReadingRoyals or by downloading the Mixlr App from the App Store or Google Play. All Royals away games are broadcasted on BCTV (Ch. 15 Comcast, Ch. 19 Service Electric) and Mixlr.