Make no mistake, Borzecki is worth watching

   To say it looked brutal would be a gross understatement. Perhaps gross would be the only way to describe it.

   Adam Borzecki’s eye, fresh from getting hit with a high stick two weeks ago, looked as if it had been whacked a few dozen times with a meat tenderizer.

   Think Rocky Balboa after 15 rounds with Apollo Creed. Then throw in a few more jabs from Ivan Drago.

   The official medical report on the Reading Royals’ defenseman was multiple fractures in his nose and lacerations around his eye.

 One look at him and you wondered how long he would be in street clothes. But Borzecki, a 6-2, 210-pound mountain of a blue liner, missed all of one game. He returned to the lineup just three days later wearing a face shield while wearing down opposing skaters. No trumpets sounded. No announcement welcomed him back. There was no fanfare whatsoever. Which was fitting. Because Adam Borzecki’s solid play is something that goes relatively unnoticed by the casual fan. He has a mere 14 points. He doesn’t make fabulous rushes up the ice. He just does his job well every game, every shift.

   "He’s a rock back there," Reading coach Derek Clancey said. "I give him a lot of credit coming back the way he did. A lot of guys would have missed a lot more time.

   "It’s an important time of year and he knows he has to be in there. He found a way to deal with it. I’m sure his vision wasn’t 100 percent, but he wanted to battle for his teammates. Those are the kinds of guys you need to win championships."

   And to borrow a phrase from the top of the cliche bag, defense wins championships. The Royals’ "D" is pretty darn good, which qualifies as a huge understatement considering it has allowed the fewest goals in the league.

   But there are times it looks shaky. There are times when there are more turnovers than at the local pastry shop.

   Part of that is youth. Part of that is not taking the simplest path to make the simple play.

   But Borzecki, a veteran with a wealth of American Hockey League experience, rarely makes such mistakes.

   Which is part of the reason why he doesn’t get everyone’s attention.

   "You rarely see him make a rush, and he always makes the right pass to get the puck out," Clancey said. "He’s been solid all year. That’s what you get from a veteran. "If our guys took his example on a daily basis, we’d be in real good shape." By the way, Borzecki’s eye is in a lot better shape, too.

Fan’s choice awards

The Reading Royals held their fourth annual fan’s choice awards earlier in the week. In case you missed it, here are the winners: Rookie of the Year, Barry Brust; Defensive Player of the Year, Reagan Rome; Iron Man of the Year, Jon Francisco; Offensive Player of the Year, Graig Mischler; Unsung Hero, Larry Courville; MVP, Barry Brust; Fan’s Choice, Jon Francisco.

   Did anyone notice that the Royals have been pretty darn good in first periods this season?

   Well, if you want stats to back it up, entering Saturday’s game the Royals had outshot their opponents 730-549 and outscored them 63-38 in the opening period this season.

   Reading was outshooting the opposition 734-636 and outscoring it 71-55 in the second period. In the third period, Royals held a 643-626 shot advantage and was outscoring the opposition 68-35.

   Contact Matt Malinowski 610-371-5064 or mmalinowski@readingeagle.com.