WHL Victoria Royals

Royals Clipped by Hitmen in Shootout

Published on February 20, 2020 under Western Hockey League (WHL)
Victoria Royals News Release


Victoria, BC - The Victoria Royals fell 3-2 in a shootout to the Calgary Hitmen, as affiliated goaltender Connor Martin turned aside 38 of the 40 shots he faced in his first career WHL game.

Game Summary

Gamesheet - bit.ly/37Hp0CX.

Game Galleries - bit.ly/3bQh8Ct.

Scoring:

Royals - Kaid Oliver 1g-0a, Gary Haden 1g-0a, Phillip Schultz 0g-1a.

Calgary - Mark Kastelic 2g-0a, Riley Stotts 0g-1a, Carson Focht 0g-1a, Jett Woo 0g-1a, Orca Wiesblatt (Shootout Winner).

Goaltending:

Royals - Connor Martin (SOL) - 65:00 mins, 38 saves on 40 shots. Stopped three of six shootout attempts.

Calgary - Jack McNaughton (W) - 65:00 mins, 22 saves on 24 shots. Stopped four of six shootout attempts.

Powerplay:

Royals - 1/3 = 33.3%.

Calgary - 1/3 = 33.3%.

Notes

At Home vs. Calgary: Since the 2011-12 season, the Royals have now posted a 6-2-1-1 record at home against the Calgary Hitmen and have outscored them by a margin of 49-32. Victoria has not lost in regulation to the Hitmen at the Save-On-Foods Memorial Centre since their inaugural season.

WHL Debut: Royals' goaltender Connor Martin made his WHL debut in tonight's game against his hometown team. The Calgary, AB product was recently recalled from the Calgary Canucks of the Alberta Junior Hockey League (AJHL). Martin was listed by the Royals in the summer of 2017 and signed a WHL Standard Player Agreement on August 30, 2018.

Central Division: Tonight, Victoria played their sixth and final regular season game against a Central Division opponent. The Royals faced the Hitmen, Edmonton Oil Kings, Lethbridge Hurricanes, Medicine Hat Tigers, Red Deer Rebels and Swift Current Broncos and held a 4-1-0-1 record in those contests.

Penalty Shot: Victoria's Kaid Oliver scored his 19th goal of the season on a penalty shot in tonight's game. This was the second time this season that the Royals had been awarded a penalty shot. On February 8th, Carson Miller converted on a second period penalty shot against the Kamloops Blazers. Victoria is now 8/22=36.4% all-time on penalty shots.

Stepping Up: For the third consecutive game, the Royals dressed three affiliated players. Defenceman Ty Ettinger and forward Cage Newans both played in their fifth contest for Victoria tonight, while goaltender Connor Martin made his first appearance. Ettinger and Martin play in the AJHL for the Spruce Grove Saints and Calgary Canucks respectively, whereas Newans is a member of the Oceanside Generals of the Vancouver Island Junior Hockey League (VIJHL).

Roster Update: Forward Keanu Derungs made his return to the line-up tonight for the Royals after a two-game absence. Victoria was still missing injured forwards Brayden Tracey, Sean Gulka, Tarun Fizer and Ty Yoder, along with defenceman Jacob Herauf and goaltender Shane Farkas. Forward Graeme Bryks was injured in tonight's game and did not return.

Scoring Streaks: Royals' forwards Gary Haden and Phillip Schultz continued their scoring streaks in tonight's game. Haden has now recorded seven points (2g-5a) in his last five contests, while Schultz is currently riding a three-game scoring streak with four goals and two assists.

Up Next: Victoria will battle BC Division rivals the Kelowna Rockets on Friday and Saturday. The Royals' annual Pink in the Rink Night presented by Peninsula Co-op is on Saturday. Puck drop for both games is scheduled for 7:05 p.m. Tickets can be purchased in person at the Select Your Tickets box office, over the phone by calling 250-220-7777, or online at www.selectyourtickets.com.

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Western Hockey League Stories from February 20, 2020


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