Preview: Royals vs. Nailers, January 23rd - Game 39/72
ECHL Reading Royals

Preview: Royals vs. Nailers, January 23rd - Game 39/72

Published on January 21, 2026 under ECHL (ECHL)
Reading Royals News Release


Reading, PA - The Reading Royals (19-15-4-0, 42 pts), proud ECHL affiliate of the Philadelphia Flyers and Lehigh Valley Phantoms, open a two-game road series against the Wheeling Nailers (25-9-1-0, 51 points) on Friday, January 23rd at 7:10 p.m. at WesBanco Arena.

The Royals return home for a two-game series against the Greensboro Gargoyles on Friday, January 30th at Santander Arena at 7:00 p.m. which concludes on Saturday, January 31st at 7:00 p.m.

Royals Right Now:

The Royals enter game 39 of the regular season with a win in two of their last three games (2-0-1) and a point earned in five of their nine games played to open 2026 (3-4-2). The Royals have also earned a point in 10 of their last 15 games (8-5-2-0) and 23 of their 38 games this season (19-15-4-0).

Previously, the Royals took four of a possible six points in a series victory against the Greensboro Gargoyles with wins in the opener on Friday, January 16th, 6-0, and finale on Monday, January 19th, 3-2, around a dropped game two of the set on Saturday, January 17th, 4-1.

At home, the Royals have won 10 of their last 13 games with a point in 11 of the 13 games (10-2-1). On the road, the Royals have dropped eight-straight games (0-7-1), with a win in one of their last 11 road affairs (1-8-2) and six wins in their 17 road games overall (6-8-3).

Forward Carson Golder leads the Royals in goals (13) and points (26) while Ben Meehan leads the Royals in assists (19).

Previous Game Recap

Scouting the Nailers:

Greensboro has opened their regular season at 25-9-1-0 for 51 points, which is the second most in the Eastern Conference and third most in the ECHL. Previously, the Nailers dropped both games against the Norfolk Admirals in a two-game road series after winning five-straight games, including six of their seven overall contests prior.

Since falling to the Royals on Dec. 10th, for one of their nine regulations losses on the regular season with three coming against Reading (3-3-0-0), the Nailers have won seven of their 12 games played (7-5-0-0).

ECHL affiliates to the Pittsburgh Penguins (NHL) and Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (AHL), Wheeling is led behind the bench by first-year head coach Ryan Papaioannou (25-9-1), named the 21st Head Coach in team history on August 14th.

-

All games will be streamed live on the Royals Broadcast Network available on the following platforms:

FloSports: flosports.link/3yarTg4

Mixlr: mixlr.com/readingroyals

Check out the Reading Royals Statistics

Share: Facebook | Twitter/X | LinkedIn | Reddit | Email



ECHL Stories from January 21, 2026


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

OurSports Central