The Reading Royals, proud affiliate of the Philadelphia Flyers, play the Trois-Rivieres Lions Saturday, Nov. 27 at 3:00 p.m. against the Trois-Rivieres Lions at the Colisee Videotron. This is the third-straight game between the two clubs.
The previous two games have been some of the most lopsided losses in Royals history. After The Lions won, 5-1, Wednesday, the Lions beat the Royals, 9-1, Friday. It is only the third time in Reading’s 20-year history that it lost by eight goals or more. The last time was an 8-0 loss to Florida in 2012. The only worse deficit in Royals history was a 13-2 loss to Cincinnati in 2002. Including Friday, the Royals have allowed eight or more goals five times in club history.
Kirill Ustimenko was pulled after making 16 saves on 21 shots early in the second period. Hayden Hawkey let in 4 goals on 19 shots.
Grant Cooper and Cam Strong recorded the only points for the Royals on Friday. Strong won a right-circle faceoff in the offensive zone, and the puck slid right to the tape of Cooper’s stick in the right half-board. Cooper wristed the disc on net, beating former NHL goaltender Kevin Poulin high. This made it 6-1 late in the second period.
Reading currently sits second in the North Division with a 6-4-3-1 record at 16 points. Newfoundland leads the division and the ECHL with 24 points (12-2-0-0). Trois-Rivieres sits fourth in the division with 12 points, 1 above Worcester and Adirondack.
Fans can listen to the game at mixlr.com/readingroyals or watch at FloSports through bit.ly/RoyalsFloSports.
Friday, the Royals claimed Danick Paquette off waivers after the Lions released him following his only game played for the team, Wednesday against Reading.
Paquette played 19 games for the Royals in 2012-13 alongside head coach Kirk MacDonald. Drafted in the third round in the 2008 NHL Entry Draft by the Atlanta Thrashers, Paquette is known as a tough and physical winger who can bring some size to any team he plays for.
He has played in the LNAH, known as a “fighting league” in Quebec, since 2018. Before then, he played for the Coventry Blaze in the EIHL in England in 2017-18. His last full season ECHL experience came with the Tulsa Oilers in 2016-17, where he scored 13 goals and 15 assists in 46 games. In 2013-14, he scored 23 goals and 26 assists in 67 games for the Utah Grizzlies, but more notably, his 277 penalty minutes were the most in the ECHL that season.
The newest Royals forward will join the team during its Quebec adventure.
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.