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Reading Royals

Royals Win Season Opener 3-2 In Trenton

October 20, 2006 - ECHL (ECHL)
Reading Royals News Release


Trenton, NJ - The Reading Royals won the 2006-07 season opener in come-from-behind fashion, scoring two third period goals-including a three-on-five short-handed game winner by Greg Hogeboom-to defeat the Trenton Titans, 3-2. In a physical contest between two North Division historical and geographic rivals, the Royals were able to pull out the victory, despite being out shot 37 -22, thanks in large part to spectacular goaltending by Yutaka Fukufuji (1-0-0, 35-37).

Trenton scored on their first shot of the game when former Royal, Mike Pandolfo, created an offensive zone turnover that resulted in a clean shot for Trenton's John Laliberte from between the hash marks. Laliberte's shot beat Fukufuji to the glove side 1:35 into the game to give the Titans a 1-0 lead. The Royals answered with a power play goal late in the first when Greg Hogeboom tapped the puck to a streaking Arpad Mihaly, who carried on the right wing side into the offensive end. Mihaly stopped up short and dropped the puck to the trailing Jason Becker who found himself with significant space in the slot. Becker fired the puck behind Trenton goaltender, Joel Martin, to tie the game at one 13:15 into the first.

In the second, Trenton regained the lead at 2-1, when the Titan's Troy Riddle was able to free the puck after a defensive zone face-off and break up ice with speed, while the teams were playing four aside. Riddle carried the puck to the mid-portion of the right circle and ripped a snap shot short side on Fukufuji 11:43 into the period.

In the third, the Royals tied things (again) when Malcolm MacMillan, while skating through the neutral zone, prevented an icing by getting the tip of his stick on a puck that appeared to be headed the length of the ice. This forced the Titan's goaltender, Martin, to play the puck, which MacMillan was able to keep alive in the offensive end. Defenseman Shawn Thompson ended up with it at the left wing point and sent a hard wrister towards the net. Martin made the stop on Thompson's shot, but the puck slipped to the left side of the net, where Kevin Saurette was able to gain control and slide it into the goal from an extremely sharp angle along the goal line. Reading then took the lead for the first time in the game, when the team was playing in a long sequence two men down. While Trenton was controlling the puck in their offensive end, Greg Hogeboom won a battle in the left circle that resulted in the puck sliding towards the left point. As the puck slid towards the blue line, the Trenton point man lost his footing and Hogeboom was able to slip behind him, pick up the puck and head out on a break. Hogeboom carried to the mid-point of the right circle in the offensive end and uncorked a rocket that beat Martin high glove side 3:53 into the third, giving Reading the lead at 3-2. The remainder of the game was exciting up an down hockey with a hefty sprinkling of highlight reel stops by Yutaka Fukufuji-and a couple of rough and tumble tilts-as the Royals were able to hold off the Titans down the stretch.

The Royals and Titans face-off once again tomorrow night in Reading (7:05 pm) in the team's "Proud To Be A Royal" home opener presented by TH Properties, when everyone in attendance gets a PTBAR/THP T-Shirt as part of the team's effort to ‘white-out' the Sovereign Center. For more information, contact the Royals' office at 610-898-7825 or visit the Royals website, www.royalshockey.com.

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