WHL Victoria Royals

Royals Defeat Blazers in Game 3

Published on March 27, 2013 under Western Hockey League (WHL)
Victoria Royals News Release


Victoria, BC - In a Tuesday night contest at Bear Mountain Arena, the Victoria Royals took on the Kamloops Blazers in Game 3 of their WHL Western Conference Quarter-Final series. The Royals started Patrik Polivka in net, while the Blazers countered with Cole Cheveldave.

The game opened with the Royals controlling the majority of the play. Kamloops replied with offensive pressure, but key saves from Polivka kept the game scoreless. Ben Walker broke the deadlock and gave Victoria the lead at the 18:23 mark. Logan Nelson led the rush down the left wing before he fed a pass to Walker in the slot where the Edina, MN native slotted his first of the post-season over the blocker of Cheveldave. The Royals' 1-0 lead stood as the two teams headed into the first intermission.

Kamloops pushed for the equalizer early in the middle frame, but the visitors were again denied by Polivka on several occasions. JC Lipon eventually evened the score for Kamloops with a powerplay goal at 12:52. Lipon received a pass at the left face-off circle in the Victoria zone before he fired a wrist shot that made its way through a maze of bodies and over the blocker of the Victoria netminder. There was a feverish pace to close out the period as each team created scoring opportunities, but after 40 minutes of play the game remained tied at one goal apiece.

The Royals regained the lead just 50 seconds into the third period on Tim Traber's first goal of the playoffs. Traber corralled a loose puck deep in the Blazers' zone and threw a shot on goal from the right corner that took a fortuitous bounce and deflected off of Cheveldave and into the net. Powerplay chances were exchanged back and forth between the two teams, but neither side could capitalize. Polivka continued his solid effort as he turned aside the Blazers' key opportunities as the final buzzer neared. In the dying seconds and with their goaltender pulled for the extra attacker, Kamloops was unable to break Polivka and the Royals' defence. Tempers flared with less than one second remaining as the two teams squared off and saw the officials dish out 90 minutes in penalties to set the tone for Game 4. Royals 2 Blazers 1.

Victoria went 0/70.0% on the powerplay while Kamloops was 1/616.7%. The Blazers outshot the Royals 40-28. Kamloops leads the best-of-seven series 2-1.

The Royals will meet the Kamloops Blazers on Thursday, March 28th for Game 4 of their WHL Western Conference Quarter-Final series. Puck drop is scheduled for 7:05 p.m. at Bear Mountain Arena.

Here Comes the Blue! The Victoria Royals take on the Kamloops Blazers in Round 1 of the 2013 WHL Playoffs. Tickets for Games 3 and 4, held at Bear Mountain Arena, are still available. With limited Round 1 seats available, Royals fans are encouraged to order tickets quickly by calling 250-220-7777, visiting www.selectyourtickets.com, or heading down to the Select Your Tickets box office. Ticket sales for a potential Game 6 on Monday, April 1st at Bear Mountain Arena will be made available at www.selectyourtickets.com beginning at 9:30 a.m. on Wednesday, March 27th.

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Western Hockey League Stories from March 27, 2013


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