Worcester Railers HC vs. Reading Royals

March 14th, 2026

Santander Arena

Meeting 6 of 10 vs. Reading this season

Railers are 3-2-0-1 vs. Royals this season

WORCESTER OPENS WEEKEND WITH 5-2 WIN OVER ROYALS

Gahagen records season-high 41 saves.

READING, PA — The Worcester Railers HC (26-23-5-2) beat the Reading Royals (29-17-6-1) by a 5-2 final on Saturday, March 14th at Santander Arena, in front of a crowd of 4,299. The Railers will kick off the second game of their visit to Reading at 3:00 p.m. on Sunday, March 15th.

Worcester struck first as Jesse Pulkkinen (1-1-2) found the top shelf at 7:35 in the first (1-0). Reading’s Connor McMenamin (1-0-1) answered with a backdoor goal three minutes later to tie the game (1-1). The Railers retook the lead midway through the second as Matt DeMelis (1-0-1) scored on the doorstep of Yaniv Perets. Declan McDonnell picked up his first point as a Railer under a minute into the third and put Worcester ahead by two. Yvan Mongo (1-0-1) responded 56 seconds later and kept the game close for Reading (3-2). Worcester responded at 5:56 as Riley Piercey (2-1-3) finished off an assist by Max Dorrington and returned the game to a two-goal lead for the Railers. Piercey secured a second tally for himself in the final minutes of play on an empty net and capped off the Railers' win with a 5-2 final score. 

Worcester got the game going in their favor early as they picked up the game’s first goal 7:35 into the opening frame. Jesse Pulkkinen (8th) lit the lamp as he shot it top shelf following a cross-ice pass from Riley Piercey. Reading made it a tie game just over three minutes later on the power play on a backdoor goal from Connor McMenamin (9th) as Connor Federkow took a seat for roughing. The puck managed to sneak underneath the pad of goaltender Parker Gahagen along the far post for a delayed reaction from the crowd. McMenamin’s goal at 10:54 would be the last for the period. Shots on goal favored Reading with 14 to Worcester’s 3. The Railers garnered two penalties while the Royals received just one. 

Worcester repeated their first-period performance as the middle frame began. Seven minutes into play, Cam McDonald carried the puck up the far boards and set up Matt DeMelis (16th) on the doorstep of Yaniv Perets. DeMelis’ goal clinched the second tally for the Railers as he swept the puck under the pads of Perets and gave Worcester the lead for the second time. Reading did not capitalize on their two power play opportunities of the period and trailed the Railers by one as the second period came to a close. The Royals led in shots on goal for a second time with 17, while Worcester trailed with seven. Once again, Worcester skated away with two penalties to Reading’s single call. 

The start of the final frame was action-packed as the Railers and the Royal went back and forth with scoring within the span of the first six minutes. Newcomer Declan McDonell (1st) opened up scoring for both sides at 0:59 as he carried the puck from center ice single-handedly and snuck between the pads of Perets (3-1). Yvan Mongo (2nd) mirrored McDonnell’s play 56 seconds later as he carried the puck from center ice and hit the top shelf on a breakaway (3-2). Worcester once again found themselves with a two-goal lead at 5:56 as Riley Piercey (5th) finished off a shot from Max Dorrington (4-2). The goal went under review as the puck took an odd bounce, but was ultimately determined to be a good goal (4-2). As the final minutes on the clock ran down, Reading pulled Perets for the extra attacker. The decision backfired as Piercey (6th) sent the puck sailing down the ice and rolling into the empty Royals’ net at 18:57. The final horn sounded and Worcester skated away with a 5-2 victory in their first of two matchups of the weekend against Reading. 

NOTES: Three stars: 3rd Star: Jesse Pulkkinen (1-1-2, +3, 1 shots), 2nd Star: Riley Piercey (2-1-3, +4, 3 shots), 1st Star: Parker Gahagen (41 saves, 2GA, .953 SV%)… Final shots were 43-23 in favor of Reading… Yaniv Perets (11-8-1-1) made 18 saves on 22 shots for Reading, while Parker Gahagen (15-8-4-1) made 41 saves on 43 shots for Worcester… Worcester went 0-for-2 on power plays while Reading went 1-for-4… Xavier Jean-Louis made his Railers debut… Declan McDonnell scored his first goal as a Railer in the third period… Anthony Hora, Michael Ferrandino, Riley Ginnell, AJ Schlepp, Cole Donhauser, Tristan Lennox, Drew Callin, and Gabe Blanchard did not dress for Worcester… The Railers are now 3-2-0-1 this season vs. the Royals and 2-1-0-0 at the Santander Arena…

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