ROYALS LOOK TO MELT ICE IN CRANBROOK
The Victoria Royals go for a sixth consecutive win Wednesday night when they face the Kootenay Ice in the first of four road games against Central
division opponents.
The Royals have become one of the hottest teams in the WHL since mid-January, with 12 wins in their past 15 games. The Royals record of 32-19-1-3 has them in fourth spot in the Western Conference, two points ahead of the Spokane Chiefs. Tonight is the Royals’ first game since they defeated the Chiefs 5-3 on Sunday in Spokane. While the Royals have been among the best in the WHL at home this season, their road record has steadily improved. With three straight wins away from home, the Royals can hit the .500 mark on the road this season with a win at Cranbrook. The Royals are currently 13-14-0-1 on the road this season.
Despite the fact the Royals have been without leading scorer Alex Gogolev the last three games and Logan Nelson since the end of December because of injuries, the Royals moved past Tri-City and Spokane in the Western Conference standings with wins over both clubs this past weekend. One of the great races on the team is for the lead in goals between Jamie Crooks and Brandon Magee. Both have notched 28 on the season and Crooks has produced five in the last four games. Ben Walker has found his touch in the offensive zone after he missed 11 games because of injury. Walker has a goal in each of the last three games and has three goals and six assists over a four game point streak. Patrik Polivka has backstopped the Royals in each of their five straight wins, with just nine goals allowed over that time and a .941 save percentage.
The Kootenay Ice have made a big effort to keep their playoff streak going. The Ice, who have been in the post-season in every year since the franchise moved to Cranbrook from Edmonton in 1998, sat last in the Eastern Conference for much of the season. However, the have gone 16-4-1-0 since December 29 and find themselves five points behind Lethbridge and Medicine Hat for the eighth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. Last season’s WHL Rookie of the Year, Sam Reinhart, has been on a roll with three points in the last two games and recently enjoyed a 16-game point streak. Reinhart leads Kootenay with 28 goals and 61 points this season.
This is the only game this season between the Royals and Ice. Victoria will play three games in three nights this weekend against Red Deer, Calgary and Edmonton. The next Royals’ home game goes Friday, February 22nd when the B.C. Division-leading Kelowna Rockets visit Save-On-Foods Memorial Centre.
We are Royal Blue! Are you? Guarantee yourself the best seats for upcoming Royals games by visiting www.selectyourtickets.com, calling 250-220-7777 or visiting the Select Your Tickets box-office at the Save-On-Foods Memorial Centre. Mini-Packs, Vouchers and special rates for groups of 10+ are available by visiting www.victoriaroyals.com or calling 250-220-7889.
