Preview | Feb. 23 | Winterhawks @ Royals

Victoria, BC – It is Nickelodeon night at the Save-on-Foods Memorial Centre as the Victoria Royals (27-22-4-4) play host to the Portland Winterhawks (37-14-2-1) in a Friday evening showdown. The Royals will don their Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Jerseys as it will be a turtle takeover in Victoria. Puck drop is slated to take place at 7:05 PM at the SOFMC.

ROYALS LAST GAME

Victoria is looking to bounce back from their most recent outcome which saw them fall 3-1 to the Kamloops Blazers on Monday afternoon at the Sandman Centre. Victoria was able to open the scoring as Tyson Laventure (24) notched a powerplay tally as he parked himself in front of the Blazers net and redirected a Justin Kipkie shot from the blue line.  Kamloops responded six minutes later as Kai Matthew (8) pulled the Blazers level with Matteo Koci and Josh Kelly providing assistance on their first of the afternoon. Midway through the second, Kamloops would grab their first lead of the contest as Matteo Koci (4) notched his second point of the game with a powerplay marker of their own. A third period tally from Kai Matthew (9) would be the final nail in the coffin as Kamloops defeated Victoria by a 3-1 scoreline to wrap up their eight game season series.

THE LAST TIME THESE TEAMS MET

It has been quite awhile since Victoria and Portland squared off, their lone meeting to this point took place on November 22nd at the Veterans Memorial Coliseum. The Winterhawks opened the scoring early, as Josh Davies earned the opening goal just prior to the two-minute mark of the contest. Victoria was able to weather the storm, as they responded with an equalizer at the midway mark of the first as Cole Reschny picked up the marker with Dawson Pasternak and Justin Kipkie drawing assists on the Royals opening goal. Late in the period, Portland would restore their advantage as Diego Buttazzoni gave them a 2-1 advantage heading into the middle stanza. The Winterhawks would expand their lead to a pair of goals with Josh Davies doubling his tally midway through the second. The Royals showcased resilience in the final frame as Casper Evensen Haugen and Dawson Pasternak both added goals in the opening moments of the third to pull the game level at three’s. Both sides pushed for a regulation victory, but couldn’t find a late winner. Overtime wouldn’t solve the fortune, which pushed the game to a shootout. The teams went back and forth in a four round shootout, with Portland prevailing on a Gabe Klassen goal. Victoria and Portland will meet three more times in the Royals final 11-games of the 2023-24 regular season.

PLAYERS TO WATCH

VICTORIA

• Royals’ 2023 CHL Import Pick (1st round – 9th overall) Casper Evensen Haugen is having a second half to remember for Victoria. The 18-year-old from Oslo, Norway returned from the World Juniors in January, and hasn’t looked back since. He has tallied 14 points in his last 14 games played for Victoria, bringing his season total up to 24 points. He drew the secondary assist on the Royals lone goal on Monday afternoon.
• Tyson Laventure has been quite the addition to the Royals lineup since being acquired from the Swift Current Broncos prior to the trade deadline. In 14 games with the Royals, Laventure has earned nine goals and eight assists for 17 points. The 21-year-old notched his team-leading 24th goal of the season during the Royals last game against Kamloops.

PORTLAND

• 20-year-old forward James Stefan has been a force to be reckoned with this season for Portland, amassing 39 goals and 44 assists for 83 points in his 53 games played. His last eight game span has been one to watch, as he has notched nine goals and added nine assists for 18 points which has helped Portland claim victory in six of those eight games.
• Netminder Jan Spunar has had quite the sophomore season for the Winterhawks. The product of Olomouc, Czechia was the Winterhawks first-round selection during the 2022 CHL Import Draft. This season, he has suited up in 22 games, boasting a 15-5-0-1 record. His 1.83 GAA and .929 save percentage has him sitting first in the WHL for both categories.

SEASON RECORDS

vs PORTLAND

• Nov. 22 @ POR • 4-3 SOL
• Feb. 23 VS POR • 7:05 PM
• Feb. 24 VS POR • 6:05 PM
• Mar. 2 @ POR • 6:00 PM

LAST 5 GAMES

ROYALS

• 3-1 L @ Kamloops (02-19-2024)
• 3-2 W v. Kelowna (02-17-2024)
• 3-2 W v. Kelowna (02-16-2024)
• 5-1 L v. Vancouver (02-14-2024)
• 9-6 L @ Prince George (02-10-2024)

WINTERHAWKS

• 4-0 L @ Everett (02-18-2024)
• 8-3 W v. Vancouver (02-17-2024)
• 3-1 L @ Vancouver (02-16-2024)
• 10-2 W v. Everett (02-13-2024)
• 4-1 W v. Seattle (02-10-2024)

ROYALS UPCOMING SCHEDULE

• Feb. 24 v. POR • 6:05 pm
• Mar. 01 @ TRI • 7:05 pm
• Mar. 02 @ POR • 6:00 pm
• Mar. 05 @ SPO • 7:05 pm
• Mar. 08 @ EVT • 7:05 PM

WATCH AND LISTEN

Radio broadcast

Royals games will be broadcast on 91.3 FM the Zone this season with Marlon Martens calling all of the action.

Online video stream

All Royals games will be available on WHL Live.  WHL Live is available to fans anywhere in the world, providing high-quality streaming of WHL games on Apple TV, Roku, and Amazon Fire TV platforms, via mobile with iOS and Android, and on web using Safari or Google Chrome web browsers. Visit watch.chl.ca for complete details and subscription options.