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WHL Victoria Royals

Royals Welcome Giants to Town for Midweek Rivalry Matchup

December 13, 2022 - Western Hockey League (WHL)
Victoria Royals News Release


Victoria Royals left wing Tanner Scott
Victoria Royals left wing Tanner Scott
(Victoria Royals)

Victoria, B.C. - The Victoria Royals will begin a three-game home stand with a matchup against their Mainland rivals, the Vancouver Giants, on Wednesday night at the Save-On-Foods Memorial Centre.

Victoria (5-22-3-0) has experienced a heavy workload to begin December, playing four games in five days last week. They will continue that theme this week with three games more scheduled in a four day span before the team departs for the holiday break.

While the demanding schedule may impair some teams, the Royals have seemed to thrive under the workload, winning two of their last three games over BC Division rivals Kelowna and Kamloops last week.

Forward Jake Poole has been a key factor to the team's recent success, posting multi-point performances and scoring both game-winning goals in Victoria's back-to-back wins over the Blazers and Rockets.

The McAuley, MB product leads the team with 28 points (16 goals, 12 assists) over 28 games this season.

Goaltender Nicholas Cristiano has been another major contributor for the Royals since joining the team in late November.

The Langley, BC native has held opponents to three goals or less in five of his last six starts, totalling a 2-6-0-0 record with a 3.68 goals against average (GAA) and a .886 save percentage (SV%) across 10 appearances on the season.

The Royals will play their third straight division opponent when they kick-off the week against the Vancouver Giants (11-14-3-2) on Wednesday.

"The Royals-Giants rivalry is such a great element of our schedule," said General Manager and Head Coach Dan Price. "Both teams always get up for these games. And we see each other several times throughout December so I know both teams will be trying to set a tone on Wednesday. It's going to be physical, for sure."

While Vancouver is set to be without team captain Zack Ostapchuk, who has been selected to join Team Canada at the 2023 IIHF World Junior Championships in Halifax, NS, they still retain leading-scorer Samuel Honzek, who has collected 41 points (16 goals, 25 assists) in 30 games this season.

The Giants also benefit from the sturdy play of Jesper Vikman, widely considered one of the best and most consistent goaltenders in the WHL. The 20-year-old Swede has posted a 9-9-0-1 record with a 3.27 GAA and a .905 SV% in 30 games this season and is expected to be the starter for Wednesday's contest.

Puck-drop for the game is set for 7:05 pm on Wednesday, Dec. 14 at the Save-On-Foods Memorial Centre in downtown Victoria. Tickets are available at selectyourtickets.com.

Players to watch:

Victoria:

#29 Teague Patton (F) - 30 GP, 17 PTS (6 G, 11 A)

#8 Kalem Parker (D) - 30 GP, 15 PTS (2 G, 13 A)

#9 Tanner Scott (F) - 30 GP, 12 PTS (5 G, 7 A)

Vancouver:

#8 Ty Thorpe (F) - 29 GP, 33 PTS (15 G, 18 A)

#47 Madzen Leslie (F) - 30 GP, 26 PTS (5 G, 21 A)

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, Holiday Pack, VictoriaNow Family Section, Vizzy Section and Molson Ice Seats. Call our ticket office at 250-220-7889, send an email to tickets@victoriaroyals.comor visit our website to learn more victoriaroyals.com/ticket-promos.

About the Victoria Royals

The Victoria Royals are a Canadian major junior ice hockey team in the Western Hockey League (WHL) owned and operated by GSL Group. The Royals play all their home games at Save-On-Foods Memorial Centre and have entered their 12th season of their existence.

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Victoria Royals left wing Tanner Scott
Victoria Royals left wing Tanner Scott
   



Western Hockey League Stories from December 13, 2022


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