NOTES FROM EASTERN CONFERENCE
QUARTERFINAL V GREENVILLE ROADWARRIORS
After winning the first two games of the Eastern Conference quarterfinal (ECQ) best-of-seven series with the Greenville Road Warriors at theSovereign Center on Friday (April 5) and Saturday (April 6), the Royals dropped Game Three (2-4) at BI-LO Center in Greenville, South Carolina on April 10 before putting back-to-back shutouts together in Game Four (3-0) on Thursday (April 11) and Game Five (5-0)on Sunday (April 14) to clinch the first round series, four games to one.
2. The 2013 Kelly Cup Playoffs mark thje eighth time in the 12-year history of the Royals that the team has qualified for the post-season. This marks the sixth time in those eight years that the Royals have advancedbeyond the first round of the playoffs.
3. The recently completed ECQ with Greenville was the sixteenth playoffseries that the Royals have played in team history. Reading has compiled arecord of 9-7 in those series. It was the first ever playoff matchup betweenthe Royals and Road Warriors, although Reading did play the JohnstownChiefs (who moved to Greenville in 2010) in a one-game ‘Wild-Card’ playoff
game on April 5, 2004, which Reading won, 2-1.
4. Sunday’s 5-0 series clinching win for the Royals was the 40th playoffwin in team history. In 74 total playoff games, Reading has gone40-30-4. Reading is 20-12-2 on home ice in playoffs; and 20-18-2 on theroad.
5. This marks the first im in the 25 year history of the ECHL that a teamhas won all four games in a best of seven series by shutout. The league recordfor shutouts by a team in a single playoff season is five set by Richmond Renegades in 1999.
6. The four first round shutouts by the Royals’ established a new team record for shutouts in a single playoff season. Twice previously (in 2004 and2005), the Royals had two shutouts in the team’s playoff run.
7. Reading’s four shutout victories have been recorded by two different goaltenders: (i) Riley Gill in Games One and Two; and (ii) Mark Owuya inGames Four and Five.
8. Riley Gill is currently riding a consecutive scoreless streak in playoffs of 120.00. When you include the final game of the reegular season (a 2-3shootout loss to the Elmira Jackals on March 30), Gill has not given up a goal in 128:08.
9. GoaltenderMark Owuya is currently riding a consecutive scoreless streak of 134:12 (dating back to the 5:48 mark of the third period in that 4-2loss in Game Three of ECQ).
10. The ECHL record for shutouts in a single season by one goaltender is five, which was established by Maxime Gringas of the Richmond Renegades in 1999. The longest consecutive scoreless streak for a goaltender in ECHLhistory is held by Travis Scott of the Mississippi Sea Wolves, whowent 199:59 without giving up a goal in 1999.
11. The Royals team record for the consecutive scoreless string in playoffs is held by Barry Brust, who went 169:27 without giving up a goal over aspan of four games in the North Division Semi-Final Series against the Toledo Storm from April 14 – April 19, 2005.
12. Royals goaltenders have now recorded a total of nine shutouts in the 2012-13 season (five in the regular season and four in the playoffs). Three different goalies have blanked the opposition this season for the Royals: Brandon Anderson (2), Riley Gill (5) and Mark Owuya (2). The team record for shutoutsin a single season was set in 2004-05 with ten (eight regular season and two in playoffs). BarryBrust holds the team record for total shutouts in a single year with six (four in regular season andtwo in playoffs).
13. The four goals allowed by the Royals to the Greenville Road Warriors in the ECQ (one of which was an empy netter) is the fewest goals ever given up in a playoff series resolved in five games in the 25 year history of ECHL hockey. The previous record was held by the Johnstown Chiefswho held the Peoria Rivermen to just five goals in the five-games played in the 2002 Northwest DivisionSemi-Finals by the Johnstown Chiefs.
14. Reading’s 0.80 team goals against average in the first five playoff games of the 2013 ECHL KellyCup Playoffs currently leads the league.
15. The 19 total goals scored (15 by Reading and four by Greenville) in the first round tied the fewest total goals scored in a playoff series resolvedin five games, which was established in that2002 Northwest Division semifianl series betweenJohnstown and Peoria (which Johnstown won three
games to two). MORE ECQ NOTES 1. The team that scored first turned out victorious in each of the five games played in the ECQ between the Royals and Road Warriors. Yannick Tifuhad two of those ‘first goals’ (both of which were game winners) in Games One and Four; Alex Berry scored the ‘FG’ (and GWG) in Game Two; and Stan Gallo bagged the series-clinching F/GWG on Sunday. Greenville’s Sabastien Piche notched the first goal in Greenville’s lone win in the series (Game Three).
2. The 4-2 win by the Road Warriors in Game Three Greenville lastWednesday, stretched the Royals road playoff losing streak to six straight games, dating back to Game Four of the 2011 ECQ series against the Cincinnati Cyclones (04/09/11), which the Royals won (in double overtime) in Cincinnate by a 2-1 score. Since that game, the Royals had lost both roadgames to the Kalamazoo Wings in the 2011 Eastern ConferenceSemi-Finals; and then lost all three road games to the Elmira Jackals
in last season’s ECQ. 3. The Royals six game road playoff losing streak was snapped onThursday (04/11) in Game Four of the ECQ series with the 3-0 win in Greenville. That was the fifth road playoff shutout in Royals’ team history. (Sunday’s Game Five win was the tenth playoff shutout inteam history-six of which have come on the road.)
4. Reading entered Sunday’s Game Five leading the series three games to one. This marked the 12th time in team playoff history that Reading had an opportunity to eliminate the opposition (with a win) with no corresponding risk to being eliminated (with a loss). The Royals are now 6-6 in those games, i.e. closing the series out six times-while the opposition has staved off elimination six times.
5. The Royals have now played in 20 total elimination games – i.e. where either or both team(s) in the series could be knocked out with a loss-and Reading has gone 9-11 in those games.
6. The Royals outshot the Road Warriors in all five games of the first round ECQ. Reading generated 175 shots over the five games (average = 35.00per game-tied for third in the league) and held the Road Warriors to just 113 shots, which is a league-leading average of 22.60 shots against per game.
7. Reading broke a string of 10 consecutive power play chances without a goal when Stanislav Galiev scored what proved to be
the game winner 17:12 into the first period in Sunday’s 5-0 win.Overall in the first round ECQ series, the Royals went 2 for 25 with the man advantage, which is an 8.0% scoring ratio (13th amongst the 16 teams teams who participated in the first round ECHL playoffs.
8. The Royals PK did not allow a power play goal against in the 15 chances with the man advantage that Greenville had in the first round series. Including the regular season, the Royals’ penalty killers have blanked the opposition’s power play in 16 of the last 17 games, and have only given up twopower play goals against in the last 67 chances with the man advantage for the opposition, which translates into a 97.0% kill ratio.
9. The Royals now advance to the best-of-seven Eastern Conference semifinals where the team will face the Florida Everblades.This will be the third playoff match-up in the respective team histories of the Royals and Everblades. Florida defeated the Royals in the best of five 2005 National Conference Fianls, 3-2. In 2010, in what was then known as the American Conference semifinals, Reading defeated Florida in the best-of-seven series, four games to none.
10. Reading and Florida met twice during the 2012-13 regular season. The Royals defeated the Everblades at the Sovereign Center on December 5,2012, by a final score of 4-2. On Feb. 27, 2013, at Germain Arena in Estero, Florida, Reading won by an identical score over the Everblades.
11. Historically, the Royals have faced the Everblades 21 times in the regular season during the 12 year history of the team. Reading hascompiled a 9-9-3 record in that span.
12. This marks the sixth time in the eight trips to the post-season that Reading has reached the second round. Reading is 2-3 in the five prior tripsto the second round.
PLAYER NOTES FROM ECQ 1. Yannick Tifu recorded seven points (4g-3a) in the first round ECQ, scoring at least one point in four of the five games played-and recording multi-point performances in three of those games (including Games Four and Five in Greenville). Tifu scored two ‘first goals’ in the first round series(Game One and Four), both of which proved to be game winners-and heassisted on the GWG in Game Five (by Stan Galiev). In 59 career pro playoff games, Tifu has recorded 50 points (19g-31a).
2. Nikita Kashirsky registered at least one point (and one assist) in each of the five games in the first round ECQ series, which included two separate multi-point performances (Games Two and Four). Kashirsky assisted on the GWG in Games One and Four. In his last thirty-nine games with theRoyals (including regular season games), Kashirsky has recorded forty-eight points (18g-30a). In thirty-five career pro playoff games, he has 28points (9g-19a).
3. Stanislav Galiev is riding a four game playoff point streak (2g-3a)-and a threegame assist streak (3a). He recorded his first pro playoff game winner, while theRoyals were on the power play 17:12 into the first period of the decisive Game Five.He also assisted on Yannick Tifu’s goal in that game (the third for the team) to register his first pro playof multi-point performance. Galiev’s twenty-five shots on goal is tied for the league lead amonst first-year plrays in playoffs. His plus-five performanceis second amongst rookies in the league.
4. Defenseman Brett Flemming scored both goals for the Royals in the 4-2 loss in Game 3 in Greenville. That was the first professional multi-goal game ever for Flemming, who scored two goals in 50 regular season games with the Royals. Flemming also scored the Royals second goal in the decisive Game Five-a huge four-on-fourmomentum grabbing goal 23 seconds into the second period on a breakaway.(Flemming already has more goals than he scored in playoffs with South Carolina lastseason-2g-3a in 9 games.) Flemming also assisted on the Royals’ fourth goal in Game 5 (by Ethan Cox) to record his first pro playoff multi-point game (1g-1a).
5. Dustin Stevenson, who assisted on both of Brett Flemming’s goals in Game 3, recorded four assists in the first round playoff series. That already gives him more points than he had in nine playoff games with the South Carolina Stigrays last season (1g-2a=3pts in 9 games). Stevenson led all defensemen on the team in the firstround of playoffs in plus-minus, playing to a plus-six.
6. T.J. Syner scored his second pro playoff goal with 1:25 remaining in regulation to ice the Raoyls’ 3-0 win in Game Four of the ECQ with Greenville. Syner also recorded the primary assist on Flemming’s goal in Game Five when he sprang Flemming on a long breakaway with a perfect pass fromdefensive blue line.
7. Defenseman Mark Mitera recorded an assist in three of the five first round games, includingpicking up a helper on the power play game winner by Stan Galiev in the decisive Game Five.
8. Barry Almeida scored his first pro playoff goal 7:48 into the third period of Sunday’s decisiveGame Five to give the Royals a 5-0 lead.
9. Ethan Cox scored his first playoff goal as a Royal (in ten playoff games with the team-includingfive last season) to give Reading a 4-0 lead 12:43 of the second period of Game Five. Cox had threegoals in the 13 playoff games it took for the Alaska Aces to win the Kelly Cup in 2011.
10. Defenseman Dominic Jalbert recorded his first pro playoff point when he received the primaryassist on the game winning goal by Yannick Tifu in Game Four last Thursday in Greenville. Jalbertalso engaged in his first pro fight (with Greenville’s Jeremy Gouchie) 10:21 into the third period of
Game Five. 11. Kirk MacDonald registered his first playoff point as a Royal when he assisted on the team’sfourth goal (by Ethan Cox) in Sunday’s 5-0 win. That was MacDonald’s first playoff point since the2009 AHL Calder Cup playoffs with the Providence Bruins.
12. Defenseman Bobby Shea engaged in his first pro playoff tilt when he took on Greenville’s Matt Lowry 11:34 into the second period of Game 3 in Greenville.
13. In two games played in the first round playoff series against Greenville (Games One and Two), goaltender Riley Gill compiled a record of 2-0-0with a 0.00 goals against average and a 1.000 save percentage (both of which lead the league), stopping all 45 shots he faced in thosegames.
14. Goaltender Mark Owuya played Games Three, Four and Five in the first round series and compiled a record of 2-1-0 with a second-best in theleague 1.01 goals against average and a third best in the league .958 save percentage.
