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Royals gain ground in competitive East Division

December 29, 2014 - ECHL (ECHL) News Release


On the heels of a five-game winning streak, and an 8-1-0 run in their last nine games, the Reading Royals have moved into third place in the East Division with a record of 17-9-2 for 36 points. Reading is three points behind Greenville and trails division-leading Florida by five points.

Reading was in action twice last week, and won a pair of games against Elmira. In the front end of the home-and-home series on Friday, the Royals scored the game's first four goals on their way to a 5-2 road victory. Cam Reid scored twice for his first multi-goal game of the season while Matt Hatch and Pat Mullane each added a goal and an assist. Connor Knapp earned the win in goal with 24 saves.

On Saturday, the Royals picked up their fourth straight win on home ice with a 4-3 victory against the Jackals. Jordan Heywood led the way offensively with two goals and Hatch had his second straight multi-point game with two assists. Joe Howe turned aside 25 shots to record the win in his first appearance with Reading.

Reading features a balanced offensive attack with no players among the league's top 20 scoring leaders. Mullane paces the team with 27 points (11g-16a) and is one of six Royals to have at least 20 points this season. Reid, who has four goals in his last five games, is tied with Mullane for the team lead with 11 goals. Adam Comrie, who was recalled by Lehigh Valley of the American Hockey League last week, is tied for second among ECHL defensemen with seven goals, five of which have come on the power play to lead the league's blue liners.

The Royals host Elmira on Wednesday before hitting the road for games at Evansville on Friday and Indy on Saturday.

A look ahead

Games to watch in the ECHL during the week ahead. Watch ECHL games live on ECHL.TV.

Eastern Conference

Fort Wayne at Toledo (Saturday)

Toledo hosts the second of its two outdoor games as part of Winterfest. After dropping a 2-1 decision to Kalamazoo on Saturday, the Walleye will be looking to salvage a split of the two games. Fort Wayne enters the week with a four-point lead o Toledo for first place in the North Division.

Western Conference

Idaho at Colorado (Friday and Saturday)

The top two teams in the Pacific Division meet for a pair of games in Loveland. Colorado has won three straight and is 7-3-0 in its last 10 games to move to within three points of Idaho for the division lead.

Divisions

North Division

- Josh Shalla leads Cincinnati with 12 goals.

- The Cyclones are 9-1-1 when leading after two periods.

- Cincinnati hosts Evansville on Monday, visits Kalamazoo on Wednesday and Friday and hosts Wheeling on Saturday.

- Brandon Wong leads the IceMen with 21 points (9g-12a).

- Evansville has outscored its opponents 31-21 in the third period.

- The IceMen are at Cincinnati on Monday and host Quad City on Wednesday, Reading on Friday and Kalamazoo on Saturday.

- Thomas Frazee is on a three-game point streak (4g-2a).

- The Komets are 15-2-1 when outshooting their opponent.

- Fort Wayne hosts Quad City on Monday, Indy on Wednesday and Wheeling on Friday before visiting Toledo on Saturday.

- Mathieu Brisebois is tied for first among defensemen with two shootout goals.

- Indy is third on the power play at 22.7 percent (25-for-110).

- The Fuel are at Fort Wayne on Wednesday and host Toledo on Friday and Reading on Saturday.

- Matt Caria scored the game-winning goal in the first outdoor game in ECHL history on Saturday at Toledo.

- The K-Wings are fourth on the penalty kill at 87.4 percent (90-for-103).

- Kalamazoo hosts Cincinnati on Wednesday and Friday and is at Evansville on Saturday.

- Tyler Barnes has 22 points (10g-12a) in his last 13 games.

- Toledo is second with 4.15 goals per game.

- The Walleye are at Brampton on Tuesday and Wednesday and Indy on Friday before hosting Fort Wayne on Saturday.

- Derek Army leads Wheeling with 10 goals.

- The Nailers lead the league with seven shorthanded goals.

- Wheeling is at Gwinnett on Monday, Fort Wayne on Friday and Cincinnati on Saturday.

East Division

- Nick Tuzzolino leads defensemen with 90 shots on goal.

- Elmira is 11-2-2 when scoring first.

- The Jackals visit Reading on Wednesday, Gwinnett on Friday and Saturday and Greenville on Sunday.

- Brant Harris tallied his first career hat trick on Sunday at Orlando.

- The Everblades are the league's fourth-least penalized team with 13.48 penalty minutes per game.

- Florida is at Gwinnett on Tuesday, South Carolina on Wednesday and Greenville on Friday and Saturday.

- Vinny Saponari has points in eight of his last nine games (2g-13a).

- Greenville is 8-1-1 in December and has outscored its opponents 33-17 during the month.

- The Road Warriors host South Carolina on Tuesday, Florida on Friday and Saturday and Elmira on Sunday.

- Casey Pierro-Zabotel leads Gwinnett with nine goals and 27 points.

- The Gladiators are the only team to have not advanced to a shootout this season.

- Gwinnett hosts Wheeling on Monday, Florida on Tuesday and Elmira on Friday and Saturday.

- Jacob Cepis is on a seven-game point streak (3g-9a).

- Orlando is third with 33.03 shots per game.

- The Solar Bears are idle until Jan. 9.

- Matt Hatch scored his first pro goal on Friday at Elmira.

- The Royals are 11-2-0 when scoring four or more goals.

- Reading hosts Elmira on Wednesday and visits Evansville on Friday and Indy on Saturday.

- Jeff Jakaitis is 7-0-1 in his last eight starts.

- South Carolina is 11-1-1 in its last 13 games.

- The Stingrays are at Greenville on Tuesday and host Florida on Wednesday.

Central Division

- Jamie Schaafsma is on a four-game goal streak (4g).

- The Americans lead the league in goals per game (4.33) and are tied for third in goals-against per game (2.67).

- Allen hosts Rapid City on Wednesday and Friday and Wichita on Sunday.

- Mathew Maione is fourth among defensemen with 75 shots on goal.

- Brampton's nine-game road trip ended on Sunday at Quad City.

- The Beast host Toledo on Tuesday and Wednesday and visit Tulsa on Friday and Missouri on Saturday.

- Dallas Ehrhardt has scored goals in back-to-back games after going without a goal in his first 61 professional games.

- The Mavericks are 7-0-2 in one-goal games.

- Missouri travels to Wichita on Tuesday, hosts the Thunder on Wednesday, is at Quad City on Friday and hosts Brampton on Saturday.

- Joe Perry is on a six-game point streak (2g-8a).

- Quad City is tied for third with one shorthanded goal against.

- The Mallards are at Fort Wayne on Monday and Evansville on Wednesday, host Missouri on Friday and visit Wichita on Saturday.

- Landon Oslanski is tied for first among defensemen with 11 power-play points (3g-8a).

- The Rush are fifth on the penalty kill at 87.0 percent (94-for-108).

- Rapid City is at Tulsa on Tuesday, Saturday and Sunday and at Allen on Wednesday and Friday.

- Scott Macaulay is tied for third among defensemen with 21 points (4g-17a).

- Tulsa is tied for second in the league with four shootout wins.

- The Oilers host Rapid City on Tuesday, Saturday and Sunday and Brampton on Friday.

- Tim Boron is 4-0-1 with a 1.55 goals-against average and a .942 save percentage in his last five starts.

- The Thunder are tied for sixth with 2.75 goals-against per game.

- Wichita hosts Missouri on Tuesday, is at Missouri on Wednesday, hosts Quad City on Saturday and travels to Allen on Sunday.

Pacific Division

- Greg Wolfe has nine points (5g-4a) in the last six games.

- Alaska is 7-0-1 in its last eight home games.

- The Aces host Utah on Wednesday, Friday and Saturday.

- Ryan Watson had a team season-high four assists on Saturday against Stockton.

- The Condors have scored four goals with their goaltender pulled.

- Bakersfield hosts Stockton on Friday and Ontario on Saturday.

- Curtis Gedig is tied for second among rookies with eight power-play assists.

- Colorado is fourth on the power play at 22.0 percent (27-for-123).

- The Eagles are at Utah on Monday and host Idaho on Friday and Saturday.

- Colin Shea scored his first professional goal on Saturday vs. Ontario.

- The Steelheads are 6-for-21 (28.6 percent) on the power play over their last seven games.

- Idaho visits Colorado on Friday and Saturday.

- Joe Cannata leads the league with a 1.88 goals-against average and a .929 save percentage.

- Ontario is 11-1-1 when leading after one period.

- The Reign are at Stockton on Tuesday and Wednesday and Bakersfield on Saturday before hosting the Thunder on Sunday.

- Jack MacLellan leads Stockton with 30 points (8g-22a).

- The Thunder are 9-0-0 when leading after two periods.

- Stockton hosts Ontario on Tuesday and Wednesday and visits Bakersfield on Friday and Ontario on Sunday.

- Alex Krushelnyski is tied for first among rookies with two shorthanded goals.

- Utah is tied for fifth with five shorthanded goals.

- The Grizzlies host Colorado on Monday and are at Alaska on Wednesday, Friday and Saturday.

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