ECHL Reading Royals

Royals Explode in Second for Road Win Over Wheeling, 6-3

December 16, 2011 - ECHL (ECHL)
Reading Royals News Release


Johnstown, PA - The Reading Royals of the ECHL (9-12-3-223, 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, defeated the Wheeling Nailers (14-8-0-028, t-1st Atlantic Division), 6-3, at Cambria County War Memorial Arena in Johnstown, Pennsylvania. The Royals, playing with just fourteen skaters, including two who were playing in their first game with the team, scored first and exploded for four second period goals to build enough cushion to hold off the Nailers and run Reading's road record to 7-4-2-1.

Goaltender Joe Palmer (win, 5-5-1-2, 51/54) was spectacular in the waves of offensive pressure from Wheeling. The Nailers' Peter Delmas (no decision, 8/11in 24:57) started and played the first 24:57, allowing three goals, before apparently pulling himself after conferring with the Wheeling athletic trainer. Patrick Killeen (loss, 8-5-0-0, 9/11, 1 eng in 41:25) took the loss after coming on in substitution in the second and allowing the short-handed penalty shot goal by Yannick Tifu that proved to be the game winner. In a penalty filled affair, Reading's power play broke through for a second period PPG from Olivier Labelle (1-8). The Royals PK killed off eight of the nine power play chances for the Nailers, who finally broke through late in the third with a five-on-three PPG.

After a series of golden chances at both ends of the ice were rejected by the respective goaltenders, the Royals broke through 16:13 into the first when Justin Kemmerer, playing in his first pro game, stole the puck in the neutral zone and battled through several checks as he carried deep into the offensive zone on the left wing side. Kemmmer threw a perfect pass to the top of the creasing where a hard-charging Todd Griffith-playing in only his second game as a Royal-redirected the puck behind Delmas for his first of the year.

Reading, who came into tonight's game playing to a collective minus-10 (21-31) in the second period exploded for four straight in the second stanza. The first came 4:40 into into the period, when Griffith took a feed from another Royal playing in his first game with the team, Andrew Favot, and drilled it through on the short-side for his second goal of the game. Seventeen seconds after that, Louis Liotti took a feed from Denny Urban as he entered the offensive zone and ripped one behind Delmas for his second of the year.

Reading took a 4-0 lead with the twentieth penalty shot goal in the eleven year history of the team-and the seventh that has been scored while the team was playing short-handed. Yannick Tifu charged off the short-handed races and was hauled from behind, resulting in the penalty shot 7:44 into the second. Tifu picked up on the center dot, slowly carried into the offensive end and used multiple stick-handling dekes to get Killeen to commit to the ice early and then fired over top of him for his first as a Royal and fourth of the year.

10:12 into the second, the Royals built the lead to 5-0 with the seventh power play goal of the season for Olivier Labelle. After a long sequence of offensive zone puck possession with the man advantage, Yannick Riendeau slipped a pass to Denny Urban, who ripped a blast towards the net. Labelle was planted out front for the deft deflection and his team leading twelfth goal of the year.

Wheeling finally solved Palmer 13:05 into the second, when Cody Chupp found Paul Crowder for a shot from in tight that appeared to deflect off the skate of a Royal and end up in the net for Crowder's sixth of the season.

Early in the third, Wheeling's Denver Manderson took a pass in the left circle and uncorked a blast that beat Palmer to the short-side high to make it a 5-2 game 1:48 into the final period. The Nailers power play finally broke through on their second extended sequence of five-on-three when Paul Crowder was able to get a clean look from the interior portion of the left circle and blow it by a well-screened Palmer with 3:07 left in regulation. But the Royals PK killed off the back-end of that five-on-three and got an empty netter from Yannick Tifu with 32 seconds left to win for the second consecutive time out on the road against Wheeling.

The Royals and Nailers go at it for the fourth time in two weeks on Saturday (December 17, 2011 @ 7:05 pm) at the Sovereign Center in Reading, Pennsylvania. The first 1000 adults 18 and older will receive a snow globe courtesy of Toys for Tots. Fans are encouraged to bring an unwrapped new toy to donate to Toys for Tots that night. It's also the Teddy Bear Toss, when fans are permitted to bring stuff animals to the game which can be thrown on the ice. All of those stuffed animals will be collected and donated to Toys for Tots.

The game night broadcast on Saturday will start at 6:35 pm with the Red Robin Gourmet Burger Pre-Game Warm-up Show on ESPN Radio 1240 am in Reading. Streaming audio is available free of charge courtesy of America One through the Royals' website, www.royalshockey.com.

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