Royals Snap Pats Streak in Victoria
Regina, Saskatchewan – The Regina Pats (13-10-1-0) struggled to find their game against the Victoria Royals (14-11-2-0) and fell by a 5-0 count, seeing their five game win streak come to an end.
First Period
With the team in B.C., the Pats took an opportunity to glimpse the future as they called up 2014 13th Overall pick Jordan Hollett to guard the pipes. The young goaltender stopped the first nine shots he faced, but Travis Brown greeted Hollett with a howitzer on the powerplay that opened the scoring for the Royals. Much like the night before in Vancouver, the Pats struggled to find their game. Just when it seemed like they were building momentum, Taylor Crunk scored on a two-on-one to build a 2-0 lead heading to the intermission. The shots on goal favoured Victoria, 12-10 after the first.
Second Period
The middle frame didn’t go much better for the Blue and White as Jared Dmytriw skated in on a two-on-one and fired off the shoulder of Hollett. The puck popped up into the air and skipped into the Regina net just 3:30 into the period. Odd man rushes continued to be a theme and the Royals took advantage of it. Tyler Soy came up with a great read to break up a Pats rush and turn the play the other way. Soy crossed the blue line on a three-on-two and dished off to a wide open Austin Carroll and the Calgary Flames prospect launched the puck into the goal over Hollett who sprawled to attempt the save. After two, the score sat 4-0 for the Royals with the shots tied 19-19 at the end of two periods.
Third Period
With the game all but sewn up, the Royals put another stich in the Pats as Travis Brown took a nice cross ice feed and sent it to the back of the goal for a 5-0 lead. The Blue and White upped their rate of fire the rest of the way, outshooting Victoria by a 14-7 margin. The night, however, belonged to goaltender Jayden Sittler as the Royals’ call-up turned away all 33 shots he faced on the night for his first career WHL shutout. Dryden Hunt almost broke up the bid in the final minute as he ripped a one-timer, but Sittler fought off the chance with a great glove stop to hold the 5-0 score line.
The Pats get some time off and return to action Wednesday evening in Prince George. Tune into that game on 620 CKRM or WHL Live Web TV starting at 8:35 p.m. CST
