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ECHL Reading Royals

Royals Come Back for Win in Wheeling, 3-2

December 19, 2010 - ECHL (ECHL)
Reading Royals News Release


Wheeling, WV - The Reading Royals of the ECHL (1st Atlantic Division, 18-9-0-036), affiliate of the Toronto Maple Leafs and Boston Bruins of the National Hockey League and the Toronto Marlies of the American Hockey League, defeated the Wheeling Nailers (1st North Division, 15-12-0-030), 3-2, at WesBanco Arena in Wheeling, West Virginia. The Nailers built a 2-0 lead before the Royals struck pay dirt and proceeded to ring off three straight and pull out the team's ninth come-from-behind win of the year. The Royals are 11-0-0-0 when holding the opposition to two goals or less. Goaltender Matt Dalton (win, 10-6-0-0, 32/34) made a number of big stops in registering his tenth win of the year. Wheeling's Patrick Killeen (loss 12-6-0-0, 27/30) dropped to 1-2-0-0 in three games against the Royals this season. The Royals were blanked on the power play for the fourteenth time this season (0-6), but bagged the game winner with the team's sixth short-handed goal of the season. Reading's penalty killers kept the opposition's power play off the board for the eleventh time this year.

Wheeling struck 4:22 into the game, when Reading coughed one up deep in the defensive zone providing a clean shot for Casey Pierro-Zabotel, who fired on net. Dalton made the save, but Nick Peterson was there to jam in his tenth in the season. The Nailers stretched their lead to two at the 7:07 mark of the second. Sebastien Bisaillon fired a seeing-eye chip shot from the right point that made it all the way through a wall of bodies to Dalton, who made the stick stop; but the rebound fell to the top of the cease, where Pierro-Zabotel easily slid it back in for his sixth of the season.

Reading broke through at the 9:44 mark of the first, when Vladimir Nikiforov sprang Matt Caruana with a long break-out pass. Caruana charged to the net, made his move, and slid the puck on goal; but Killeen made the save. The rebound bounced to the left side of the crease, where a driving Andrew Sarauer chipped it in for his seventh of the season.

The Royals tied things 3:20 into the second, when Rob Slaney carried deep into the right circle and uncorked a blast that beat Killeen high to the short side for his second of the year. Reading picked up what proved to be the game winner on the team's first penalty kill of the night. Eleven seconds into the Nailers power play, Ryan Cruthers broke up the play at the defensive blue-line and sprang Saurauer for a short-handed break. After tracking down the rolling puck, Sarauer went backhand-forehand and jammed it in for his second short-handed goal of the season (and his first GWG). The Royals played smart, simple and solid from that point forward-and tapped in to the skills of Dalton when needed to register the team's thirteenth one-goal win of the year (13-4-0-0).

The Royals have the week off for the holiday and return to action next Sunday (December 26 @ 5:00 pm) when the Royals will complete the team's five game road trip against the Trenton Devils at Sun National Bank Center. The Royals game night broadcast will kick off with the pre-game warm-up show presented by The Works at Wyomissing on the Royals Broadcast Network (WRAW 1340 am in Reading, www.1340wraw.com) at 4:30 pm. You can also catch all of the Royals away games this season on Royals TV exclusively on BCTV courtesy of Boscov's Travel, and Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines. Season tickets for the Royals' 2010-11 season are currently available. To become a part of Royals hockey, call 610-898-PUCK or log onto www.royalshockey.com.

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