Friday night at the Arena for an eminently forgettable two-game weekend of hockey, on this night the Royals again hosted Wheeling and trailed 4-0 entering the third period. Goals by Yvan Mongo and Ryan Chyzowski brought the club within striking distance but the visitors had other ideas. Four additional scores by the Nailers were answered only by a single tally from Devon Paliani, when the smoke cleared the final was 8-3. Emotions boiled over at one point in the second period, on the night the teams combined for seventy-five penalty minutes on nineteen total infractions. On Saturday the three-game series ended with Star Wars Night at the Arena, unfortunately for the Royals the result was once again from a Galaxy Far Away. In a virtual rerun of Friday's game the Nailers ran out to a 3-0 lead after one period. Early in the second stanza Tyson Fawcett netted his 100th career goal but the West Virginians scored the next five. Adam Brubacher's goal late in the third period was the last marker before the horn mercifully sounded on an 8-2 Royals loss. New goaltender Ryan Kenny (a short-term Royal from '22-23 recently reacquired from SPHL Fayetteville) allowed five goals in thirty minutes of play and took the decision, Nolan Maier (Friday's goalie of record) finished it in relief. The club's mark stands at 16-19-4, at home 8-10-2. The boys have off until Friday the 2nd when a three-game series with the Adirondack Thunder begins, Friday in Glens Falls and Saturday/Sunday at the Arena. Take care, thanks for reading.
