PORTLAND, ME – November 11, 2022 – Despite leading 2-0 after one period, the Mariners couldn’t hold on over the final 40 minutes and suffered a 5-3 loss to the Reading Royals on Friday night at the Cross Insurance Arena. Jacob Gaucher and Max Newton scored two goals each for the Royals, who netted five of the game’s last six goals.

The Mariners jumped out to lead at 5:23 of the first when Reid Stefanson batted a pass from Alex-Olivier Voyer out of midair and past Reading netminder Pat Nagle. Voyer then found the net for himself at 11:13 with a power play goal, ripping off a wrister from the left circle to double the Maine lead and break an 0 for 12 power play drought. Maine led 2-0 after one.

The second period belonged to the Royals and they scored three unanswered goals to flip the game. It began at 9:54, when Mike Chen emerged off the right wall and fed Jacob Gaucher across the crease to beat Josh Boyko for the first time in the game. Under two minutes later, Tyler Kirkup’s long range one-timer slid between Boyko’s pads to tie it at two. At 17:42, Max Newton wristed a shot that deflected off of Mariners defenseman Andrew Peski and floated past Boyko to give Reading its first lead of the game. The Royals outshot Maine 16-7 in the second period.

Defenseman Jacob Wilson scored the first goal of his professional career just 47 seconds into the third period to even things up at three, coming down the right wall and using a screen from Nick Jermain to beat Nagle. It took just over a minute for Reading to reclaim the lead, however, as Gaucher got his second of the game forcing a puck just across the goal line to the right of a scrambling Boyko. Newton added his second at 11:29 for insurance, finished a one-timer in the slot.

Nagle made 24 saves on 27 shots to earn the victory while Boyko finished 32/37 in his debut. The Mariners dropped their third in a row, falling to 4-5-0 on the season. A crowd of 3,776 came out for Military Appreciation Night, which featured a standing ovation for 98-year-old veteran and season ticket holder John Crumpton, of Oxford, whom the Mariners awarded a jersey in the third period. Crumpton served in the Navy during WWII, Korea, and Vietnam.

The Mariners wrap up the homestand with one more against the Royals on Saturday night at 6 PM. It’s “Take A Hike Night,” presented by L.L. Bean. After a road trip to Newfoundland next week, the Mariners will return home for three games around Thanksgiving on November 23rd, 25th, and 26th.

Individual game tickets can be purchased online, at the Ware-Butler Box Office inside the Cross Insurance Arena, or by calling 207-775-3458. Family Four Packs are available for all Saturday and Sunday games and can be purchased here. Season-long ticket plans are also still available. More information on ticketing options is available by calling 833-GO-MAINE, emailing mariners-sales@comcastspectacor.com, or by visiting MarinersOfMaine.com.