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WHL Victoria Royals

Royals Fall at Home to Thunderbirds Squad

February 20, 2023 - Western Hockey League (WHL)
Victoria Royals News Release


Victoria Royals goaltender Nicholas Cristiano faces the Seattle Thunderbirds
Victoria Royals goaltender Nicholas Cristiano faces the Seattle Thunderbirds
(Victoria Royals)

Victoria, BC - The Victoria Royals were defeated 7-0 by the Seattle Thunderbirds in a Family Day matinee contest at the Save-On-Foods Memorial Centre on Monday.

Seattle, who boasts 10 current NHL draft picks on their roster, benefited from an impressive performance by goaltender Thomas Milic, who stopped all 26 shots he faced on the way to recording his third shutout of the season, along with his 21st win.

Forward Gracyn Sawchyn finished as the top-scorer for the T-Birds, collecting two goals and an assist in the victory.

Meanwhile, starting goaltender Nicholas Cristiano made 34 saves on 41 shots for Victoria in the defeat.

Despite the final score, Royals Head Coach Dan Price was pleased with much of the effort shown by his club tonight, particularly over the final two periods:

"The second and third were really even periods," said Price following Monday's game. "[W]e made a lot of tactical adjustments between Saturday and today, so the first period was us executing some of those pretty well, but also making some mistakes...But by the second and third, once our players had a handle on those tactical adjustments, I thought the team played pretty well."

Seattle (42-9-1-1) would get out to a quick 1-0 lead on a goal by Jared Davidson (32) at the 0:54 mark of the first period.

That would be followed by a goal by forward Colton Dach (10) at 9:45 to put the Thunderbirds up 2-0.

Seattle would add two more in the back-half of the frame, with forwards Gracyn Sawchyn (16) striking at the 15:21 mark and Sam Popowich (8) scoring at 16:57 to give their team a 4-0 lead heading into the second period.

The Thunderbirds would continue to grow their lead in the second, with forward Tij Iginla (4) scoring at the 5:59 mark to make it 5-0 and forward Dylan Guenther (4) striking at 6:32 to make it 6-0 heading into the third.

Seattle forward Gracyn Sawchyn (17) would add one more for the visitors before the end of regulation, coming at the 16:23 mark of the third to bring the score to 7-0, where it would stand at the final horn.

Victoria's record moves to 15-35-5-1 following the defeat.

The Royals and Thunderbirds will wrap-up their three game set tomorrow night, Tuesday, Feb. 21, at the Save-On-Foods Memorial Centre. Puck-drop is set for 7:05 pm.

Tomorrow is the Royals CMHA Game Night! The Royals 4 for $40 ticket offer is still available for tomorrow night's game against the Thunderbirds. You can check out the deal.

Follow the Royals on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook, TikTok and visit victoriaroyals.com to find out more about ticket sales and to learn the latest news about the team.

Get Your Ticket Packs Now

Multiple ticket packages are available for purchase, including a Family Pack, Group Pack, VictoriaNow Family Section, Vizzy Section and Molson Ice Seats. Call our ticket office at 250-220-7889, send an email to tickets@victoriaroyals.com or visit our website to learn more victoriaroyals.com/ticket-promos.

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Victoria Royals goaltender Nicholas Cristiano faces the Seattle Thunderbirds
Victoria Royals goaltender Nicholas Cristiano faces the Seattle Thunderbirds
   



Western Hockey League Stories from February 20, 2023


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

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