Reading Royals weekly notes
This past week, the Royals were defeated in both ends of a home-and-home set with the Elmira Jackals by identical scores of 5- 4: (i) Friday (November 20) at Santander Arena in Reading; and (ii) Saturday (November 21) at First Arena in Elmira.
The two losses this week dropped the Royals’ record to two games over .500 at (8-6-0-0=16), which is tied (with Elmira) for third in the East Division and eighth in the Eastern Conference.
The back-to-back losses sustained by the Royals this week marked the first time this year that Reading has sustained consecutive losses.
The two losses to the Jackals this week dropped the Royals record against Elmira to 2-3-0-0 through five games played with seven more to go in the 12 game season series. The next time the Royals will face the Jackals is in a twogame at Santander Arena on December 18 and 19.
The Royals’ loss to the Jackals on Friday in Reading snapped a season-long five game win streak.
Saturday’s loss in Elmira was only the second regulation loss sustained by Reading at First Arena in the last nineteen games played there (14-2-2-1) dating back to February of 2013.
In each of the two losses sustained this week, Reading scored the game’s first goal. These games marked the first time this year that the Royals have scored first and failed to win (6-2-0-0).
On Friday, Maxim Lamarche scored the first goal of the game on the team’s second shot thirty seconds after the opening face-off. That is the earliest goal scored into the game this season by Reading.
In Friday’s 5- 4 loss in Reading, the Royals actually held two separate leads (1-0 and 2-1). In Saturday’s game, Reading held a 1- 0 lead after the first period before the Jackals rang off four straight goals. (That game marked the first time this year that Reading led after the first period and failed to win: 4-1-0-0.) These two games were the first ‘blown lead’ games of the season for Reading.
After the two 5- 4 losses this week, Reading has given up 5 or more goals in 5 of the 6 losses sustained by the team (0-5-0-0).
Overall, Reading has allowed forty total goals against in fourteen games played, which translates into a 2.86 team goals against average, which is twelfth in the league.
The two games played last week marked the first games this season in which Reading had scored four or more goals and failed to win (6-2-0-0).
Overall, the Royals have scored fifty-two total goals, which is 3.71 goals per game average—third best in the league.
In each of the two games played this past week, Reading scored a late-game pulled-goaltender sixth attacker goal to draw the score within one goal. On Friday, Robbie Czarnik scored with 1:32 left in regulation to make the score 5-4. On Saturday, it was Mike Pereira who scored the sixth attacker goal with 1:22 remaining to make it 5-4.
Although the Royals were outscored collectively by Elmira 6-1 in the second period in the two games played this week (and are getting outscored 15-20 in the second period this season), Reading outscored the Jackals 4-1 in the third period and are currently outscoring the opposition by a league-leading 15goals (21-6) in the third period.
Reading has a record of 2-3- 0- 0 in games decided by one goal.
Reading held the Jackals to just 23 shots on goal in Friday’s loss at Santander Arena, marking the tenth time (out of 14 games) this year that the Royals have held the opposition to twenty-five or fewer shots (6- 4-0-0).
The Jackals generated 28 shots in Saturday’s 5- 4 win in Elmira over Reading. That was the most shots that the Jackals have had against the Royals in the five games the two teams have played this year. Overall, in those five games, Elmira has generated 106 shots on Reading’s goal, which is an average of 21.2 shots per game. Yet, the Jackals have scored a total of 21 goals against Reading in those games, which translates into .802 save percentage for Read- ing’s goaltenders against Elmira.
Through fourteen games this season, Reading has allowed a total of 335 shots against, which translates into a 23.93 shots per game against—second best in the league.
Reading’s goaltenders have a team .881 save percentage, which is tied (with Greenville) for the second lowest save percentage in the league, behind only the Atlanta Gladiators (.879).
Friday’s 5- 4 loss to Elmira marked the third time this year that Reading has made an in- game goaltender substitution—and the second time the team has swapped out goalies against the Jackals. This past Friday, rookie Alex Vazzano came on in substitution of Connor Knapp, who played 40 minutes and made 12 saves on 17 shots. Knapp’s personal four game win streak was snapped in Friday’s loss to Elmira. Vazzano stopped all six shots he faced in the third period of play. Knapp played the full game in the 5-4 loss in Elmira on Saturday, making 23 saves on 28 shots. Knapp has a record of 4-4-0-0 with a 3.22 goals against average and a .897 save percentage.
On Friday, the Jackals capitalized on both ends of a five on three power play late in the first period to turn what was a 2-1 deficit into a 3-2 lead. Up to that point, Reading’s penalty killers had killed off 23 of the prior 24 chances with the man advantage for the opposition. Reading proceeded to kill off the remaining three power play chances for the Jackals on Friday and blanked Elmira’s power play in Saturday’s game (2-2), marking the ninth time this year that Reading’s penalty killers have kept the opposition’s power play off the board. Reading’s PK has killed 27 of the last 30 chances with the man advantage for the opposition, which is a 90.0% kill ratio.
Overall, Reading is killing penalties at a 85.7% (7 PPGA in 49 chances) (eighth best in the league). The Royals have killed off all 15 power play chances the team has faced on the road.
Reading has scored a power play goal in four straight games and in eight of the last ten games the team has played. Over the past four games, the Royals have gone 5 for 18 on the power play, which is a 27.8% scoring ratio. Overall, Reading’s power play is scoring at a 21.3% scoring ratio (13 for 61) (seventh best in the league). In nine home games, the Royals have gone 10 for 37 on the power play, which is a 27.0% scoring ratio—second best in the league.
Adam Comrie, who played principally as a forward for the first time this season in the two games played this past week, extended his goal scoring streak to three with his team-leading eighth goal of the year (which tied the game at three in the second period) on Friday. Comrie also picked up an assist on the Royals’ fourth goal— scored with the goaltender pulled and the sixth attacker on the ice—on Saturday to extend his current point streak to six games (3g-5a=8pts). Comrie is tied for the scoring lead for the Royals (with Mike Pereira) (and is tied for the league lead amongst all defensemen ) with 16 points (8g8a). His forty-five shots on goal leads the Royals and is fifth amongst d-men in the league.
Mike Pereira, who is tied with Adam Comrie for the team lead with sixteen points (6g-10a), is riding a six game point streak (3g5a=8pts). He extended his assist streak to five straight games when he picked up a helper on Reading’s first goal on Friday. Although that assist streak was snapped on Saturday, Pereira scored the Royals’ fourth goal with the goaltender pulled and the sixth attacker on the ice on Saturday. Pereira, who played plus- 3 (+3) in the two games this past weekend, leads the Royals in plus-minus at plus-11 (+11), which is tied for second best in the league.
Robbie Czarnik scored the Royals’ fourth goal on Friday—which was his fifth goal over a span of seven games. Czarnik also assisted on the power play goal scored by Riley Armstrong in that game to rack up his fourth multi-point game of the year. Czarnik is second on the team with forty-four shots on goal.
Cam Reid is riding a four game assist streak (0g-5a). He has picked up at least one point in nine of the twelve games he’s played for Reading this year.
Maxim Lamarche scored the game’s first goal thirty seconds into Friday’s game. Lamarche has scored four goals on just 20 shots, which is a 20.0% scoring ratio (which is fourth best amongst defensemen in the league). On Friday, Lamarche also recorded an assist on the Royals’ sixth attacker goal by Robbie Czarnik to register his first multi-point performance of the year.
Riley Armstrong exploded for a seven points in the two games played this weekend. He factored in all four goals scored by Reading on Friday (1g-3a), which included scoring the team’s second goal while Reading was on the power play to snap an eight game goal scoring drought. Friday’s game, which also ended a five game pointless streak, was Armstrong’s first multi-point performance of the season. Armstrong also assisted on all three third period goals scored by Reading on Saturday. Armstrong played to a collective plus- 5 (+5) in the two games this past weekend and has played to a plus in four straight games and in six of his last eight played (+10).
Defenseman Kevin Young is riding a three game point streak ( 1g3a). Young, who has eight points in his last seven games (1g-7a), leads the Royals with five power play assists.
Yannick Tifu, who was assessed with seventeen penalty minutes in Friday’s game (a team season-high), scored his second power play goal of the year in Saturday’s game in Elmira.
Defenseman Jordan Heywood, who had nine goals with Reading last year, scored his first goal of the season when he scored the game’s first goal on Saturday while Reading was playing with the man advantage. Adam Berkle engaged in his first pro fight when he took on Josh Chapman 5:02 into the third period of Saturday’s game in Elmira.