READING, Pennsylvania – The Reading Royals (27-9-2-2) raced out to a 3-0 lead and never looked back as they went on to defeat the Cincinnati Cyclones (22-14-3-1) by a 4-1 final score in front of 3,841 at Sovereign Center on Friday night.
A late power play goal gave the Royals a 1-0 lead in the opening frame; David Marshall caught a pass in the left corner, fed the puck across the middle and found Nikita Kashirsky in front – who tapped in his second goal of the season past Brian Foster (L, 32 saves, 13-6-3) at the 18:30 mark.
Reading extended their advantage midway through the second period, as Adam Comrie’s wrist shot from the high slot beat Foster over the glove to make it 2-0 at 7:04. Then, at 12:01, Yannick Tifu’s centering pass from behind the net banked off of the Cincinnati net minder and rolled over the goal line, making it a 3-0 Royals lead – a cushion they carried to the second intermission.
The Cyclones finally got on the board in the third period when David Pacan rushed in on a shorthanded breakaway; the Cincinnati rookie fired a shot that was initially denied by Drew MacIntyre (W, 18 saves, 3-1-0), but the rebound fluttered in the air and over the goal line, making it a 3-1 game just 29 seconds in. However, Reading would prevent a Cyclones comeback as Tifu rushed into the offensive zone and potted another goal past Foster at the 13:55 mark to cap the scoring at 4-1. The Royals would hold on to win by the same margin.
The Cyclones Radio Network Stars of the Game are as follows:
First Star: Yannick Tifu (2 goals for Reading)
Second Star: Nikita Kashirsky (1 goal, 1 assist for Reading)
Third Star: Adam Comrie (Game winning goal for Reading)
Cincinnati will now make its way into Trenton, New Jersey where they’ll play back-to-back games against the Titans starting tomorrow night at 7:05pm Fans can hear all the action of the game on the Cyclones Radio Network (FM 100 The FAN, CyclonesHockey.com, America One) beginning at 6:45pm.
The Cyclones will return to the ice at U.S. Bank on Friday, January 25 when they play host to the Evansville IceMen at 7:30pm.
