Royals comeback falls short in loss to Giants
Victoria will host Prince George for a two game set next weekend at the SOFMC
Victoria Royals forwards Tanner Scott and Brayden Schuurman recorded one goal each in a 4-2 loss to the Vancouver Giants at the Save-On-Foods Memorial Centre on Saturday.
Scott now has a total of 29 points on 12 goals and 17 assists over 61 games and Schuurman has 22 points on 12 goals and 10 assists in 32 contests.
A trio of goals in the second period by the Giants would ultimately make the difference on Saturday, despite a furious third period comeback attempt by the Royals, who out-shot their opponent 36 to 23 in the contest.
Royals Head Coach and General Manager Dan Price commended his group for the effort showed under challenging circumstances, with several key pieces out of the lineup and the demands of a back-to-back against rivals Vancouver:
“In the second and third I thought we really pushed,” said Price. “I believe we allowed only one scoring chance against in the third; that was really good to see the game build in that way…But there were a couple of lapses that Vancouver capitalized on…Vancouver played well, they deserve it too, but I feel like we deserved a better fate tonight.”
Vancouver defenceman Carson Haynes would finish as the top performer in the win, recording three points on a goal and two assists, while goaltender Brett Mirwald made 34 saves on 36 total shots.
Meanwhile, Victoria starting goaltender Nicholas Cristiano saved 19 of the 22 shots he faced in the game.
Victoria (15-39-6-1) would collect the only goal of the opening frame with Tanner Scott (12) scoring at the 2:43 mark to give the home side an early 1-0 lead. Forward Riley Gannon and defenceman Luke Rybinski recorded assists on the play.
Vancouver (24-28-5-2) would even the game on a goal by forward Skyler Bruce (12) at 0:56 of the second, which would be followed by a go-ahead goal by Giants forward Ty Thorpe (32) at the 13:24 mark of the frame.
The Giants would add one more before the end of the second, with Victoria native Ty Halaburda (18) striking at the 14:46 mark to give his team a 3-1 lead headed into the third period.
Victoria would answer back at the beginning of the third, cutting Vancouver’s lead to 3-2 on a powerplay goal by forward Brayden Schuurman (12), with defenceman Kalem Parker and forward Matthew Hodson on the assists.
The Royals would push to tie the game late in regulation, manufacturing a number of chances with the goalie out in the final minutes, however, the Giants defence would stand strong and deny Victoria a tying goal.
An empty-netter by defenceman Carson Haynes (3) at 19:42 of the third would ultimately seal the 4-2 win for Vancouver.
Looking ahead, the Giants will hit the road for a pair of matchups against the Kamloops Blazers and Kelowna Rockets next weekend.
Meanwhile, the Royals will remain at home for a two game set against the Prince George Cougars next Friday and Saturday nights at the Save-On-Foods Memorial Centre in Victoria. Tickets for both games can be purchased at selectyourtickets.com.
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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.
About Save-On-Foods Memorial Centre
Save-On-Foods Memorial Centre (SOFMC) is designed, constructed, developed and operated by GSL Group. SOFMC is Victoria’s premier entertainment facility and the largest arena in British Columbia outside Vancouver. The state-of-the-art 7,000 seat facility is home to the Victoria Royals of the Western Hockey League and regularly hosts large-scale concerts and other special events such as figure skating, curling, plays, trade shows and conferences. SOFMC also features a fine dining Lion’s Den Restaurant, as well as retail and meeting space.
