Royals Squeak Past Cyclones, 3-2

READING, Pennsylvania – Yannick Tifu’s second period goal proved to be the game winner as the Reading Royals (42-18-3-3) hung on to beat the Cincinnati Cyclones (40-18-5-3) by a 3-2 final score in front of 5,863 at Sovereign Center on Saturday night.

The Cyclones jumped out to an early 1-0 lead as Mathieu Aubin buried his own rebound past Riley Gill (W, 32 saves, 7-2-0) at the 5:56 mark. Unfortunately, the Royals power play answered back at 16:12 as Stanislav Galiev one-timed a slap shot under Michael Houser (L, 18 saves, 15-6-1-1) to even things at one after 20 minutes.

The Royals potted a pair of goals in a five-minute span to open the middle frame as Robbie Bourdon and Yannick Tifu each lit the lamp to give Reading a 3-1 edge. The Cyclones, however, answered back late in the period as Mattias Lindstrom cut out from behind the net and lifted home his 4th of the season at 17:44 to pull his team within a goal at the second intermission.

In the third period, both teams continued to stay strong defensively to the very end – forcing the Cyclones to pull Houser for an extra attacker. Despite a couple of great late-game chances, Gill and the Royals kept Cincinnati from lighting the lamp and held on for a 3-2 win.

The Cyclones Radio Network Stars of the Game are as follows:

First Star: Robbie Bourdon (1 goal , 1 assist for Reading)
Second Star: Yannick Tifu (Game winning goal for Reading)
Third Star: Mathieu Aubin (1 goal for Cincinnati)

Cincinnati continues its season-long road trip on Wednesday, March 20 as they visit the Gwinnett Gladiators at 7:05pm. Fans can hear all the action of the game on the Cyclones Radio Network (FM 100 The FAN, America One, CyclonesHockey.com) beginning at 6:45pm.

The Cyclones will return to the ice at U.S. Bank Arena on Friday, March 29 when they host the Evansville IceMen at 7:30pm! The game will also feature Cincinnati’s Largest Fish Fry! Call 513.421.PUCK or visit CyclonesHockey.com to reserve your seats! Fans can also get the latest team updates throughout the season on Facebook and Twitter (@CincyCyclones).

Click here for tonight's box score.