Royals kick off 2026 with overtime win over Hitmen
Victoria, BC. — The Victoria Royals rang in the new year at the Save-on-Foods Memorial Centre this afternoon, hosting the Calgary Hitmen in their only meeting of the regular season. A tightly contested battle saw the teams trade goals through 60 minutes of regulation, but the Royals came out on top in overtime to kick off 2026 in the win column.
Calgary got on the board first with a goal from Harrison Lodewyk just before the nine-minute mark of the opening frame. Roan Woodward evened the score with his 21st goal of the season at 13:44, assisted by Timofei Runtso and Reggie Newman. The Hitmen responded with a goal from Ty Meunier less than two minutes later, but Heath Nelson netted the equalizer goal off the pass play from Caleb Matthews and Ashton Brown in the dying seconds of the frame to knot the game at two headed into the first intermission.
The second period saw the Royals and Hitmen trade man-advantage opportunities, but strong penalty kills performances on both sides — including a big block from Royals blueliner Timofei Runtso — meant the frame remained scoreless through nearly 18 minutes of play. A hooking call drawn on shorthanded Royals breakaway prompted Roan Woodward’s second penalty shot in two games. Woodward was able to find the back of the net to give the Royals the 3-2 lead after two periods of play.
The Hitmen brought the game back square with a goal from Kale Dach around the midway mark of the third period, and the teams remained knotted at three to force an overtime frame.
After holding the Hitmen shotless through the overtime frame, Timofei Runtso notched the game-winning goal just before the four-minute mark of overtime, assisted by Nolan Stewart and Roan Woodward, to secure the 4-3 Royals win.
Scoring Summary
1st Period
8:54 Calgary Hitmen Gol
Harrison Lodewyk (10) assisted by Hunter Aura and Ben MacBeath
13:44 Victoria Royals Goal
Roan Woodward (21) assisted by Timofei Runtso and Reggie Newman
15:30 Calgary Hitmen Goal
Ty Meunier (9) assisted by Hunter Aura
19:34 Victoria Royals Goal
Heath Nelson (10) assisted by Caleb Matthews and Ashton Brown
2nd Period
17:31 Victoria Royals Goal
Roan Woodward (22) penalty shot
3rd Period
11:29 Calgary Hitmen Goal
Kale Dach (21) assisted by Ben MacBeath
Overtime
3:55 Victoria Royals Goal
Timofei Runtso (7) assisted by Nolan Stewart and Roan Woodward
Shots on Goal
Royals – 27
Hitmen – 29
Powerplay
Royals – 0/3
Hitmen – 0/2
Goalie Stats
Royals
Jake Pilon – 26/29
Hitmen
Aidan Hesse – 23/27
What’s Next
Continuing the homestand, the Royals will host the Tri-City Americans this Saturday, January 3rd, with puck drop set for 4:05 PM at the Save-on-Foods Memorial Centre.
