The Reading Royals returned to the Santander Arena on Tuesday night for the final time in the second round against the Newfoundland Growlers in game three of the Kelly Cup playoffs. Coming into this game, the Royals trailed the series 2-0.
Fourteen seconds into the first period, Keenan Suthers (5) put the Growlers up 1-0 with assists from Isaac Johnson and Jonny Tychonick. Two minutes and six seconds later, Max Newton (5) scored for the Royals, tying the game 1-1 with an assist from Alec Butcher.
Ten minutes and twenty-six seconds later, Tommy Miller (2) put the Growlers back up 2-1 with assists from Jonny Tychonick and Jack Badini.
Four minutes and three seconds later, the Growlers extended their lead to 3-1 when Nolan Walker (4) scored a power play goal with an assist from Mikko Kokkonen. The Royals had six shots but trailed the Growlers 3-1 after one period.
In the second period, Newfoundland scored three more goals in seven minutes and thirty-eight seconds by Tyler Boland (1), Isaac Johnson (4), and Brandon Kruse (1). The Royals had five shots but continued to trail the Growlers 6-1 after two periods.
Ten minutes and eleven seconds into the third period, Evan Barratt (5) scored a power play goal that made it 6-2 Growlers. Max Newton and Garrett McFadden assisted with Barratt’s goal. Eight minutes and ten seconds later, Brendan Hoffmann (3) scored a shorthanded goal and it was now 6-3 Growlers. The Royals had nine shots on goal in the third period.
The Royals lost to the Growlers by the final score of 6-3. They are now down 3-0 in the series as the series shifts to Newfoundland. The Royals can be eliminated from the playoffs on Thursday night.
Reading finished the night with 20 shots, 1-6 on the power play, and goalies Pat Nagle and Kaden Fulcher combined with 28 saves. On the other side, the Growlers had 34 shots, 1-3 on the power play, and Dryden McKay made 17 saves.
The Royals and Growlers play game four on Thursday from the Mary Brown’s Centre at 5:30 pm. Tickets for the game are available on StubHub and Viagogo.
