ECHL Reading Royals

Royals Drilled by Nailers, 5-1

Published on December 2, 2011 under ECHL (ECHL)
Reading Royals News Release


Reading, PA - The Reading Royals of the ECHL (7-10-2-218, 3rd Atlantic Division), affiliate of the Toronto Maple Leafs and Boston Bruins of the National Hockey League and the Toronto Marlies of the American Hockey League, were defeated by the Wheeling Nailers (11-5-0-022, 1st Atlantic Division), 5-1, at Sovereign Center in Reading, Pennsylvania. In the first matchup of the season between the Royals and Nailers, Wheeling had their way with Reading, building 5-0 lead through two periods, with the only bright spot for Reading coming on a third period goal to break up the shutout bid. The regulation loss dropped the Royals record to 0-4-1-2 in the last seven games.

Goaltender Joe Palmer (Loss, 4-5-1-2, 11/14 in 20:44), playing in his eight straight game for the Royals, got the start but was pulled early in the second after giving up three goals on fourteen shots. Karel St. Laurent (no decision, 22/24 in 39:10) came on in substitution and got a rude welcoming on the first shot he faced, but settled down and played a strong third period. Wheeling's Patrick Killeen (win, 6-3-0-0, 20/21) made a credible bid for the shutout, but that was broken up by a third period goal from Dale Mitchell. For the third straight game, Reading's power play failed to find pay dirt (0-4). The Nailers struck on their first power play chance of the night (1-5) to extend their lead to 3-0 early in the second.

Wheeling struck 9:44 into the game after a multi-player scramble at the top of the Royals' crease ended when Chris Barton dug the puck out of the pile, pulled it back a stride and then went upstairs from in tight for his thirteenth of the year. Twenty-four seconds later, the Nailers' Patrick Johnson snuck one through on the short side from an extremely sharp angle deep on the left side for his fourth of the season.

Forty-four seconds into the second, while playing on their first power play of the night, Wheeling stretched their lead to three when Barton slid one to top of the crease from just above the goal line deep in the right corner. Somehow the puck snuck through for Barton's second of the night and fourteenth of the year, which chased Palmer.

4:25 into the second, Wheeling went up 4-0 on the first shot of the night on substitute goaltender Karel St. Laurent, which came while the Nailers were playing short-handed. Reading rimmed a puck in the offensive zone while working on the power play. The puck slid up the right wing wall, where it was misplayed by a Royals' forward, allowing the Nailers' Adam Ross to take off on an odd-man short-handed rush. Ross carried deep into the right circle and fired a bullet over St. Laurent's right shoulder for his first of the year.

With 6:02 left in the second, the Nailers went up 5-0 when Denver Manderson shot from in tight at the left side of the net. The puck slid under St. Laurent but hit the left pipe and ricocheted to the top of the crease, where a crashing Christiaan Minella punched it back in for his third of the year. The frustration built for Reading and boiled over with 3:31 left in the second when a hit by Ryan Cruthers sent Andrew Hotham into the end wall and ignited a multi-player fracas that resulted in Cruthers and Dennis McCauley being tossed from the game.

Reading broke up the shutout 1:56 into the third, when Olivier Labelle carried into the offensive zone and dropped a pass to a trailing Dale Mitchell, who ripped it high glove side over Killeen for his second of the season. But that would be all in this one for the Royals, whose record fell to 2-7-0-1 at the Sovereign Center after ten home games.

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