Preview: Royals vs. Swamp Rabbits, February 27th- Game 51/72
ECHL Reading Royals

Preview: Royals vs. Swamp Rabbits, February 27th- Game 51/72

Published on February 26, 2026 under ECHL (ECHL)
Reading Royals News Release


Reading, PA - The Reading Royals (26-18-5-1, 58 pts), proud ECHL affiliate of the Philadelphia Flyers and Lehigh Valley Phantoms, open a two-game series against the Greenville Swamp Rabbits (21-22-5-1, 48 points) on Friday, February 27th at 7:00 p.m. at Santander Arena. The set concludes on Saturday, February 28th at 7:00 p.m.

Royals Right Now:

The Royals enter game 51 of the regular season having earned a point in five of their last six games (3-1-2), nine of their last 11 (7-1-2) and 14 of their 20 games played to open 2026 (10-7-3-1). The Royals have also earned a point in 19 of their last 27 games (15-8-2-1) since Dec. 13 and 32 of their 50 games this season (26-18-5-1). Most games with a point through the first 50 games of a Royals season since 2022-23 (32 games, 29-18-3-0, 61 points).

Previously, the Royals fell in overtime to Adirondack, 5-4, after they went 2-1-0 in a three-game series against Wheeling with a shutout win on Friday, February 13th (3-0 W), regulation loss Saturday, February 14th (6-3 L) and a 14-round shootout win on Sunday, February 15th (3-2 SOW).

At home, the Royals have won 13 of their last 16 games with a point in 14 of the 16 games (13-2-1). On the road, the Royals have won four of their last eight contests with a point earned in six of the last eight road games (4-2-1-1).

Forward Carson Golder leads the Royals in goals (13) while Ben Meehan leads the Royals in assists (26) and points (33).

Previous Game Recap

Scouting the Swamp Rabbits:

Greenville has opened their regular season at 21-22-5-1 for 48 points that rank 5th in the South Division and 11th in the Eastern Conference. Previously, the Swamp Rabbits took a three-game series against Tulsa two games to one for their only two wins over their last nine games (2-6-1-0) outscored 37-25 in nine-game span.

ECHL affiliates to the Los Angeles Kings (NHL) and Ontario Reign (AHL), Greenville is led by forward Keaton Mastrodonato in goals (17) and points (36) while defenseman Josh Atkinson leads the club in assists (28).

Behind the bench, Greenville is led by third-year head coach, first in Greenville, Chad Costello. Prior to Greenville, he was appointed Associate Coach of the Rapid City Rush on December 12th, leading the team to an 18-10-3-1 record while averaging 3.63 goals per game in that span. His efforts helped the Rush finish the season just shy of 20.0% on the power play and propelled the team to eventual ECHL franchise records with an 11-game winning streak and overall 13-game point streak from February 1st to March 1st. Prior to joining the Rush, Costello was the Head Coach and General Manager of the Allen Americans for a pair of seasons (2022-24), reaching the Kelly Cup Playoffs in both campaigns while compiling a 70-67-5-2 record in 144 contests.

Costello turned to coaching following a 14-year playing career, the majority of which was played in the ECHL where he notched 561 points (172g-389a) in 375 games, as well as won three consecutive ECHL scoring titles, each with 100-plus-point seasons from 2015-17, back-to-back Kelly Cup Championships in 2015 and 2016, June M. Kelly Playoff MVP honors for the latter, back-to-back ECHL MVP recognitions in 2016 and 2017, and four ECHL All-Star Team Selections (1st Team in 2015, 2016, 2017; 2nd Team in 2022). His #13 was retired by the Allen Americans on March 23, 2024.

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REA vs. GRN: Reading hoists a 13-10-3 all-time regular season record against Greenville with a 4-1 record in Kelly Cup Playoff games, which was earned in the Royals' five-game Eastern Conference Quarterfinals series win over the Swamp Rabbits in 2013.

In the previous meeting, the Royals swept the Swamp Rabbits in a two-game series at Greenville on January 24 (3-2 W) and January 25 (3-2 SOW) during the 2024-25 season. Reading last hosted Greenville on February 26, 2017 (6-3 L).

- 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

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ECHL Stories from February 26, 2026


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