The Reading Royals, proud affiliate of the Philadelphia Flyers, play the Newfoundland Growlers in St. John’s at 5:30 p.m. Friday at Mary Brown’s Centre. This is the second of three matchups this week against the league leaders.
Wednesday, the Royals lost, 4-2, after a scoreless first half of the game. After Bobby Lynch opened the scoring on a power play 12 minutes into the second period, Jacob Pritchard answered back with a solo effort under a minute later. The tie was short-lived, as Zach O’Brien’s seventh goal of the season put the Royals down again 30 seconds later.
Ty Pelton-Byce and Todd Skirving’s goals made it 4-1, but with 11 minutes remaining in the third period, the Royals went on a full two-minute five-on-three power play. Pritchard scored again for his first career multi-goal game, but the comeback stopped there. Pat Nagle made 27 saves on 31 shots in his return to the team in purple.
The Royals are third in the North Division following the Trois-Rivieres Lions’ win over the Florida Everblades Thursday, which put the Lions into second by one point. Reading holds a record of 6-5-4-1 and 17 points. Newfoundland continues to lead the North and the ECHL with a torrential 14-2-0-0 record and 28 points.
Fans can listen to the game at mixlr.com/readingroyals or watch at FloSports through bit.ly/RoyalsFloSports.
About the Royals
The Reading Royals, proud affiliate of the Philadelphia Flyers and Lehigh Valley Phantoms, are entering their 20th season in the ECHL. They won their first Kelly Cup championship in 2013 and have clinched playoff berths in 10 of the previous 11 seasons. They are four-time division champions. The Berks County Convention Center Authority (BCCCA), founded in 1996, owns the Royals and oversees operations at Santander Arena.