Royals Silence Vees in First Shutout of the WHL Season
Victoria, B.C. — The Victoria Royals opened their 2025/2026 regular season campaign tonight at the Save-on-Foods Memorial Centre, hosting the Penticton Vees in their first game since being promoted to the WHL. A strong showing from the Royals defence and goaltender Ethan Eskit gave the Royals their first win of the regular season and Eskit the first shutout of the WHL season.
A scoreless first period saw goaltender Ethan Eskit stop 12 Vees shots and the Royals’ penalty kill hold Penticton to only 1 shot on 3 attempts. The Royals had 2 shots on goal through the first period, but were unable to get on the board, keeping the game tied at 0 headed into the first intermission.
The teams remained scoreless through over 19 minutes of play in the second frame, with Eskit continuing to secure his crease by saving a number of dangerous attempts from the Vees offense. With less than 15 seconds to play in the second, Wyatt Danyleyko netted the first goal of the game and of the Royals’ regular season off assists from Timofei Runtso and Nolan Stewart. The Royals led 1-0 after 40 minutes of play.
Hayden Moore extended the Royals’ lead to 2 on the first shot of the third period, less than 30 seconds into the frame, with assists coming from Reggie Newman and Roan Woodward.
Two consecutive shots around the midway mark of the third period resulted in two more goals to give the Royals the 4-0 lead. At 8:46, Reggie Newman netted his first goal since becoming captain, assisted by Roan Woodward and Hayden Moore, and Max Finley followed just over a minute later with the fourth goal of the game, assisted by Layne Schofield and Wyatt Danyleyko.
Daniel Morozov struck on a late-frame power play to bring the final score to 5-0 for the Royals, assisted by Reggie Newman and Roan Woodward. Eskit remained unbeatable through the final period, marking his first shutout as a Royal and the first of the WHL season.
Scoring Summary
1st Period
No Scoring
2nd Period
19:46 Victoria Royals Goal
Wyatt Danyleyko (1) assisted by Timofei Runtso and Nolan Stewart
3rd Period
0:25 Victoria Royals Goal
Hayden Moore (1) assisted by Reggie Newman and Roan Woodward
8:46 Victoria Royals Goal
Reggie Newman (1) assisted by Roan Woodward and Hayden Moore
10:09 Victoria Royals Goal
Max Finley (1) assisted by Layne Schofield and Wyatt Danyleyko
17:48 Victoria Royals Goal
Daniel Morozov (1) assisted by Reggie Newman and Roan Woodward
Shots on Goal
Royals – 28
Vees – 26
Powerplay
Royals – 1/1
Vees – 0/2
Goalie Stats
Royals
Ethan Eskit – 26/26
Vees
Jesse Sanche – 23/28
What’s Next
The Royals will travel to Vancouver next weekend to face the Vancouver Giants at the Langley Events Centre on Friday, September 26th. The following night, both teams will head back to Victoria to complete the home-and-home series, with puck drop being set for 6:05 PM on Saturday, September 27th at the Save-on-Foods Memorial Centre.
