.JPG) |
| Ben Walker and Steven Hodges with an opportunity to score Tuesday night. |
Pregame show at 6:40 on The Zone @ 91.3fm or online at www.thezone.fm
“We have to go in and win a hockey game, we have to make sure we raise our level of desperation.” - Dave Lowry, Royals Head Coach
The Royals fell 5-4 in overtime Thursday night in front of a sell out at Bear Mountain as Dylan Willick scored the game winner.
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| Polivka made 43 saves Tuesday at the Bear |
“We have to hit the road and go into a tough building and win a game, that’s all that matters right now.” - Ben Cooper, Royals Assistant Coach
Kale Kessy had a hatrick as his line with Colin Smith and JC Lipon combined for 9 points as the Blazers doubled the Royals in shots 48-24.
Patrik Polivka made 43 saves, as Victoria never trailed until the final goal, holding leads of 2-0, 3-2 and 4-3.
The Royals were without 30 goal and 60 point man Brandon Magee (Upper) last game to add to their injury woes. He joins D Tyler Stahl (Lower, day to day), regular season leading scorer (65pts) Alex Gogolev (Lower, indefinite), F Luke Harrison (Upper, indifinite) and D Ryan Gagnon (Upper).
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| Logan Nelson with a big hit on Brendan Ranford |
The Royals power play has been good, going 2 for 4 last game and operating at over 26% (5/19), while the Blazers are at 19% (4/21).
All four contests have essentially been one goal games, falling 3-2 in the opener, then an empty net goal to drop a 6-4 decision in Kamloops the following night. Victoria won 2-1 on home ice Tuesday, before the 5-4 overtime loss.
General Manager Cam Hope knows the club has only won once in Kamloops this season, and while it may add confidence to the group, the statistic becomes just that.
“This is the time of year you forget about history and big picture thinking, and you narrow your focus down to the game, the shift, and what you’re doing at any moment in your shift. Every detail counts. Anything you do with the puck or away from the puck, can change the game. Your focus narrows down to a razor sharp point.”
Victoria looks to stay alive down 3-1 as the series shifts to Kamloops Saturday night.
Series Stats:
Goals (15-12) in favour of Kamloops
Shots (153-100) in favour of Kamloops
Team PIM/GM: Vic 12.5 / Kam 11.5
Series Schedule:
Friday, March 22nd Victoria 2 @ Kamloops 3
Saturday, March 23rd Victoria 4 @ Kamloops 6
Tuesday, March 26th Kamloops 1 @ Victoria 2
Thursday, March 28th Kamloops 5 @ Victoria 4 Overtime
Saturday, March 30th Victoria @ Kamloops 7:00 p.m.
Monday, April 1st Kamloops @ Victoria (Bear Mountain Arena) 7:05 p.m. (if necessary)
Wednesday, April 3rd Victoria @ Kamloops 7:00 p.m. (if necessary)
| Previous Meetings This Season | Kamloops 5 @ Victoria 4 (Mar 28 2013) Final OT Kamloops 1 @ Victoria 2 (Mar 26 2013) Final Victoria 4 @ Kamloops 6 (Mar 23 2013) Final Victoria 2 @ Kamloops 3 (Mar 22 2013) Final |
How the 2 teams match up
Kamloops
|
Victoria
|
|
| Past 10 Games | 3-1-0-0 | 1-2-1-0 |
| Streak | 1-0-0-0 | 1-0-1-0 |
| Last Game | 5-4 W @ Victoria (Mar 28 2013) Final OT | 5-4 L vs Kamloops (Mar 28 2013) Final OT |
| Home Record | 2-0-0-0 | 1-1-0-0 |
| Away Record | 1-1-0-0 | 0-2-0-0 |
| GF | 15 | 12 |
| GA | 12 | 15 |
| PP (Overall) | (4/21) 19.0 | (5/19) 26.3 |
| PP (Home) | (3/11) 27.3 | (2/11) 18.2 |
| PP (Away) | (1/10) 10.0 | (3/8) 37.5 |
| PK (Overall) | (5/19) 73.7 | (4/21) 81.0 |
| PK (Home) | (3/8) 62.5 | (1/10) 90.0 |
| PK (Away) | (2/11) 81.8 | (3/11) 72.7 |
| Leading Rookie | Friesen (0-0-0) | Soy (1-1-2) |
| Most PIM | Grist - 6 | Kanzig - 6 |
| Team PIM/GM | 11.5/Game | 12.5/Game |
| Leading Scorers | Lipon (3-7-10) | Crooks (2-3-5) |
| Smith (0-8-8) | Hodges (2-2-4) | |
| Kessy (4-2-6) | Walker (2-2-4) | |
| Ranford (1-4-5) | Nelson (1-3-4) | |
| Edmundson (2-2-4) | Carroll (1-1-2) | |
| Last 5 Games | 5-4 W @ Victoria (Mar 28 2013) Final OT | 5-4 L vs Kamloops (Mar 28 2013) Final OT |
| 2-1 L @ Victoria (Mar 26 2013) Final | 2-1 W vs Kamloops (Mar 26 2013) Final | |
| 6-4 W vs Victoria (Mar 23 2013) Final | 6-4 L @ Kamloops (Mar 23 2013) Final | |
| 3-2 W vs Victoria (Mar 22 2013) Final | 3-2 L @ Kamloops (Mar 22 2013) Final | |
| Leading After 1st | 1-0-0-0 | 1-0-1-0 |
| Leading After 2nd | 1-0-0-0 | 0-0-1-0 |
| Tied After 1st | 1-0-0-0 | 0-1-0-0 |
| Tied After 2nd | 1-1-0-0 | 1-1-0-0 |
| Trailing After 1st | 1-1-0-0 | 0-1-0-0 |
| Trailing After 2nd | 1-0-0-0 | 0-1-0-0 |
| Out Shooting Opponents | 3-1-0-0 | 0-0-0-0 |
| Out Shot by Opponents | 0-0-0-0 | 1-2-1-0 |
| 1-Goal Games | 2-1-0-0 | 1-1-1-0 |
| 2-Goal Games | 1-0-0-0 | 0-1-0-0 |
| 3-Goal Games | 0-0-0-0 | 0-0-0-0 |
Victoria Royals
| # | Player | GP | G | A | PTS | PIM | +/- |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 15 | Jamie Crooks | 4 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 14 | 1 |
| 11 | Steven Hodges | 4 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 12 | -1 |
| 10 | Ben Walker | 4 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 0 | -2 |
| 19 | Logan Nelson | 4 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 6 | -2 |
| 21 | Austin Carroll | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 |
| 8 | Tyler Soy | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 |
| 27 | Brett Cote | 4 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 1 |
| # | Player | GP | W | L | OTL | SL | MIN | GA | GAA | SV% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 33 | Patrik Polivka | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 255:43 | 14 | 3.28 | 0.908 |
Kamloops Blazers
| # | Player | GP | G | A | PTS | PIM | +/- |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 34 | JC Lipon | 4 | 3 | 7 | 10 | 4 | 6 |
| 9 | Colin Smith | 4 | 0 | 8 | 8 | 2 | 3 |
| 22 | Kale Kessy | 4 | 4 | 2 | 6 | 16 | 2 |
| 19 | Brendan Ranford | 4 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 10 | 2 |
| 7 | Joel Edmundson | 4 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 12 | 5 |
| 15 | Tim Bozon | 3 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 14 | 0 |
| 11 | Dylan Willick | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3 |
| 14 | Matt Needham | 4 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 1 |
| 21 | Cole Ully | 4 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| 13 | Marek Hrbas | 4 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 |
| 3 | Sam Grist | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 1 |
| # | Player | GP | W | L | OTL | SL | MIN | GA | GAA | SV% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 38 | Cole Cheveldave | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 256:40 | 12 | 2.81 | 0.880 |
