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WHL Victoria Royals

Royals Lose to Blazers in Gannon's 100th Game

February 6, 2022 - Western Hockey League (WHL)
Victoria Royals News Release


Victoria, BC - Victoria forward Riley Gannon celebrated his 100th game played on Saturday.

Kamloops Blazers forwards Daylan Kueffler and Matthew Seminoff had two goals each in their team's 8-2 victory over the Victoria Royals on Saturday.

Despite the defeat, Royals head coach Dan Price believes the final score was not reflective of the wider effort displayed by his players:

"I honestly feel, objectively, that it was a game we were in position to win," said Price postgame. "The first half of the game was quite even, I think Kamloops was a little bit better and got the early power plays...and the second half of the game I thought we were even a bit better, even though Kamloops scored as much as they did. Very good job of them to capitalize on their chances, I thought we had just as many, and [Dylan] Garand was outstanding."

Blazers (30-11-1-0) goaltender Dylan Garand stopped all but two of the 28 shots he faced in the game. The Victoria, BC native has a league-leading 24 wins, and has yet to lose in five starts against his hometown squad this season.

Meanwhile, the Royals (12-24-4-0) were celebrating forward Riley Gannon's 100th career game on Saturday. The Nanaimo, BC native signed with the club back in 2019 and has played with them ever since, registering 13 goals and 11 assists for 24 total points in his career. He becomes the 41st Royals player to appear in 100 games for the club.

Though Gannon failed to find the scoresheet on Saturday, teammates Brayden Schuurman and Keanu Derungs did not, scoring one goal apiece.

Victoria also benefited from the return of captain Tarun Fizer, who had been out with an injury since Dec. 15. He recorded a pair of assists in the loss.

The Blazers opened the scoring at 12:52 of the first on a powerplay goal by winger Daylan Kueffler (20), however that was the only point either team could manage in the first 20 minutes and the score would hold at 1-0 to start the second.

It would be a different story in the second as Kamloops would score three times to open up a commanding 4-0 lead headed into the final period. The first was courtesy of forward Connor Levis coming (10) at 1:36, while the second came off the stick of forward Matthew Seminoff (18) at 10:02. Finally, it would be Daylan Kueffler registering his second of the night and 21st of the season at 19:14 to round out the period for his team.

The Blazers would keep up the pressure in the third, scoring four more times on the way to their eighth straight win. However, The Royals did show some life in the final frame, managing two goals of their own. Matthew Seminoff (23) would record his second of the game at 10:02 to make it 5-0 for his team. This was followed by Victoria's first score of the game by forward Brayden Schuurman (23) at 12:24.

Just when the Royals looked to have gained some momentum, Kamloops would score a trio of goals in quick succession to open up an 8-1 advantage. The first by forward Luke Toporowski (25), the second by centre Drew Englot (8) at 16:54 and the third by forward Dylan Sydor (8) at 17:21 of the period.

Royals forward Keanu Derungs would score his 12th of the year at 19:06 to recoup some pride for his team, however the game would ultimately end with an 8-2 victory for Kamloops.

Royals goaltender Campbell Arnold made 29 of 37 saves in the loss, and was briefly replaced with backup Jayden Kraus following the Blazers eighth goal. It was Kraus' first appearance in a WHL crease, and he recorded four saves in the game's final minutes.

The two teams will face off for the second day in a row tomorrow afternoon for Minor Hockey Day in Victoria, puck drop is set for 4:05 pm at the Save-On-Foods Memorial Centre.

For tickets to upcoming Royals games, visit the Victoria Royals ticketing page or call the Select Your Ticket box office at 250-220-7777. Visit the Royals promo page for all special ticket offers.

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Western Hockey League Stories from February 6, 2022


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