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In a close-fought ECHL matchup, the Adirondack Thunder defeated the Reading Royals 4-3 in overtime on Friday night. Brannon McManus scored the game-winning goal in the extra period to seal the victory for the Thunder in front of a sellout crowd at Harding Mazzotti Arena.
Why it matters
The Thunder’s win extends their winning streak to three games and keeps them in the hunt for a playoff spot in the competitive ECHL Eastern Conference. The Royals, meanwhile, missed an opportunity to gain ground in the standings with the overtime loss.
The details
McManus opened the scoring for Adirondack in the first period, but the Royals tied it up early in the second. The teams traded goals throughout regulation, with the Thunder taking a late 3-2 lead on a power-play goal by Patrick Grasso. However, the Royals forced overtime on a late power-play goal by Kyle Haskins. In the extra period, McManus scored his second goal of the night on the power play to give the Thunder the victory.
- The game was played on Friday, March 22, 2026.
- McManus scored the opening goal 12:36 into the first period.
- The Royals tied the game 1:27 into the second period.
- Salhany scored a power-play goal for the Thunder at 11:22 of the second period.
- Grasso scored a power-play goal for the Thunder at 6:09 of the third period.
- Haskins scored a power-play goal for the Royals with 4:14 left in the third period to force overtime.
- McManus scored the game-winning goal in overtime on the power play.
The players
Brannon McManus
A forward for the Adirondack Thunder who scored the game-winning goal in overtime.
Tyler Brennan
The goaltender for the Adirondack Thunder who made 28 saves in the win.
Jacob Frasca
A forward for the Reading Royals who scored a goal to tie the game in the second period.
Kyle Haskins
A forward for the Reading Royals who scored a late power-play goal to force overtime.
Yaniv Perets
The goaltender for the Reading Royals who made 33 saves in the loss.
What they’re saying
“We knew it was going to be a tough game against a good team like Reading, but the guys really battled hard and found a way to get the win in overtime.”
— Brannon McManus, Forward, Adirondack Thunder
“It’s a tough loss, but we’ll regroup and get ready for our next game. We had our chances, but just couldn’t capitalize when it mattered most.”
— Jacob Frasca, Forward, Reading Royals
What’s next
The Adirondack Thunder will host the Kalamazoo Wings for a three-game series next weekend, March 28-30, at Harding Mazzotti Arena.
The takeaway
The Thunder’s overtime victory showcases the team’s resilience and ability to win close games, which will be crucial as they continue to battle for a playoff spot in the tight ECHL Eastern Conference race.
‘ The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties ’
‘ Some details of this article were extracted from the following source nationaltoday.com ’
