ECHL Reading Royals

When The Sun Is In The Seventh House, And Jupiter....

April 2, 2007 - ECHL (ECHL)
Reading Royals News Release


As it turns out in this final week of the regular season, the Royals really don't need the entire original cast from Hair the Musical to extol the dawning of the Age of Aquarius-or for the planets and stars to align in any particular form or fashion-to make the playoffs. No, despite riding a five game winless streak, with three games to go (two of which are against the team they have to track down to get into the playoffs, the Johnstown Chiefs), the Royals are right back where they started: if they win their remaining games in regulation, they're in. It's that simple-and that difficult. For the Royals have had their difficulties of late pulling off those wins. The team has to look back to a 3-1 victory over the Johnstown Chiefs at the Sovereign Center on March 17 for the last time the Royals ended up on the positive side of the scoreboard. In that game, the Royals scored the game's first goal (and won) at home-both of which are things that Reading has had some difficulty with over the course of the season. In fact, in twenty of the thirty-five home games the Royals have played this year, the opposition has scored the game's first goal. That was certainly the case in the two losses sustained this week by the team. In Wednesday's 4-1 loss to Trenton, the Royals fell behind 3-0 after one period, marking the eighth home game this year that Reading has given up more than one goal to the opposition in the first period, and the team has gone 0 - 8 - 0 in those games. Of course, just scoring at all has been a bit of an issue for the Royals of late, as the team has been held to two goals or less in fifteen of the last twenty-seven games. But all of that statistical mumbo jumbo means just about nothing at this point. We're back to just one thing-just win and you're in. Nonetheless, we may want to pull out all the stops: rummage around for that 60's psychedelic garb moth-balled in the attic, grow out whatever hair we might have left out, sing at the top of our lungs, and see if we can't summon some sort of overwhelming astrological moment in time....

TOP TEN NOTES OF THE WEEK

1. With the two losses this week, the Royals winless streak was extended to five games (0 - 4 - 1). The longest winless streak of the season for Reading stretched over six games (0 - 5 - 1) from January 27 through February 11, 2007.

2. The Royals have lost three consecutive home games (0 - 3 - 0) dating back to a 4-1 loss to Wheeling on Sunday, March 18. In the last three home losses the Royals have scored only 1 goal in each of the games (1-4 v. Trenton on Wednesday; and 1-5 v. Dayton on Friday).

3. Despite the Royals' five game winless streak-and the fact that the team is in sixth place in the North Division at the start of this week-the Royals will still qualify for the Kelly Cup Playoffs, if the team wins in regulation in the final three games of the regular season.

4. In the last 27 games, the Royals' offense has been held to two goals or less fifteen times. In those 27 games, Reading scored a total of 67 goals, which is a 2.48 goals per game average. Over the course of the entire season, the Royals average 3.03 goals per game (tied for fifteenth in the league). (Overall, the Utah Grizzlies are the lowest scoring team in the ECHL, averaging 2.57 goals per game).

5. Over the course of the season, the Royals have been held to two goals or less twenty-seven times. The team has a record of 2 - 20 - 5 in those games. The Royals have held the opposition to two goals or less 21 times, and the team has compiled a record of 19 - 1 - 0 in those games.

6. In Reading's 4-1 loss to Trenton on Wednesday, the Titans outscored the Royals 3-0 in the first period. This marked the eighth time this season that the Royals have allowed more than one goal to the opposition in the first period of a home game (and the fifth time the opponent has scored more than two goals in the first period at the Sovereign Center). The Royals are 0 - 8 - 0 in those games.

7. In home games this season, the Royals have been outscored by the opposition by a total of 14 goals in the first period (30 goals for - 44 goals against). Reading is a (-25) overall on the season in the first period (59 goals for - 84 goals against).

8. In both games played this week, the opposition scored the game's first goal. The Royals have given up the game's first goal in twenty of the thirtyfive home games played this season. The team has compiled a record of 8 - 12 - 0 in those games. Overall, the Royals are 12 - 24 - 4 when giving up the game's first goal.

9. In Wednesday's 4-1 loss to Trenton on Wednesday, goaltender Curtis Darling came into the game at the start of the second period as a substitute for starting goaltender, Jeff Pietrasiak. For Darling, who made all nineteen stops he was called upon to make that night (in 37:27 worth of game time), that marked his first appearance as a pro. Darling got his first start as a pro on Friday night and sustained the loss to the Dayton Bombers. Darling stopped 29 of the 33 shots he faced that night in 57:34 of game time.

10. Eric Werner, who was re-assigned to the Royals from the Manchester Monarchs last Wednesday, scored the lone goal for Reading in each of the two games played last week. For Werner, his goal on Wednesday against the Trenton Titans marked his first goal for Reading this season in his fourth game with the team. Werner his currently riding a two game goal scoring streak and a four game point streak (2g - 2a).

CLOSING NOTES

1. Reading out-shot the opposition in both games played by the team last week (37 - 28 v. Trenton) and (40 - 34 v. Dayton). With respect to the Dayton game, that was only the second time all season that a team has had forty or more shots on the Bombers, who lead the ECHL with an average of 27.06 shots against per game. This season, the Royals have a record of 15 - 19 - 4 when out-shooting the opponent.

2. The Royals were 0 - 6 on the power play against the Titans on Wednesday night, marking the twenty-eighth time this season that Reading's PP has been blanked by the opposition. The Royals lone goal on Friday night was scored while on the power play. Reading has scored 62 power play goals in 413 opportunities with the man advantage for a 15.0% scoring ratio which is tied for twenty-first in the league.

3. After giving up one power play goal to the Titans (in five tries) on Wednesday, the Royals' PK allowed two goals to the Bombers (in six chances with the man advantage) on Friday. That marked the fifteenth time this season that Reading has given up more than one power play goal to the opposition. Over the course of the season, the Royals have allowed 69 power play goals against in 398 chances for the opponents, an 82.7% kill ratio, which is sixteenth in the league.

4. Malcolm MacMillan picked up assists on both of the goals scored by the Royals this week. On the season, Malcolm has ten goals and twenty-three assists (33 points). He has surpassed his point total with the Royals last year (12g-17a=29pts), and he is fast approaching the season high for his four year pro career, which was established in Port Huron (UHL) (10g- 26a=36pts) (2004-05).

5. Manchester clinched a berth in the AHL's Calder Cup Playoffs with a 4-2 win over Hartford on Sunday.

Check out the Reading Royals Statistics



ECHL Stories from April 2, 2007


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