Carroll Drafted by Flames

Listen to Austin Carroll's reaction here:
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ROYALS’ AUSTIN CARROLL DRAFTED BY CALGARY FLAMES IN 2014 NHL DRAFT!

Veteran Victoria forward selected 184^th overall.

For Immediate Release

Saturday, June 28, 2014

Victoria, BC – The Victoria Royals are proud to announce that 1994-born forward Austin Carroll was selected by the Calgary Flames in the seventh round with the 184^th overall pick today at the 2014 National Hockey League (NHL) Draft in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Carroll recently completed his third season with the Royals and saw action in 70 games last year, notching 57 points (34g-23a). The Scottsdale, AZ product led Victoria in both goals (34) and penalty minutes (114) in the 2013-14 season.

“It’s a dream come true,” Carroll said from his home in Scottsdale. “I’m originally from Calgary and it’s a huge honour to have this opportunity with such a great organization and my hometown team.”

In his three-year WHL career, Carroll has appeared in 199 games for the Royals and has registered 119 points (57g-62a) as well as 346 penalty minutes. Carroll has also appeared in 17 games in the WHL Playoffs where he has scored 12 points (8g-4a) and posted 24 minutes in penalties. Carroll is fourth all-time in franchise penalty minutes and tied for fifth in post-season scoring. The 6-3, 214 lb winger also attended the Flames’ 2013 Summer Development Camp.

“Austin has worked very hard to earn a chance at a professional hockey career,” General Manager Cameron Hope said, “and this recognition is a reward that he certainly deserves.”

Carroll was selected by the Chilliwack Bruins in the 2009 WHL Bantam Draft in the ninth round, 179^th overall. Before Carroll joined the Royals, he played one season with the Coquitlam Express of the BCHL where he skated in 42 games and posted 11 points (6g-5a) and 28 penalty minutes.

Season ticket packages for the 2014-15 season are on sale now! Call 250-220-7889, visit www.selectyourtickets.com, or head down to the Victoria Royals ticketing office at Save-On-Foods Memorial Centre for more information.

37 WHL PLAYERS SELECTED IN 2014 NHL DRAFT

37 WHL Players Selected In 2014 NHL Draft

Philadelphia, PA – The Western Hockey League is proud to announce that 37 WHL players were selected in the 2014 NHL Draft at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, PA.

Nine of the WHL players selected in the 2014 NHL Draft were chosen in the first round, including four players selected among the Top 10.

Sam Reinhart of the Kootenay Ice was the first WHL player selected in the 2014 NHL Draft, chosen by the Buffalo Sabres with the second overall pick.  Reinhart, a product of Vancouver, BC, becomes the highest drafted player in Kootenay Ice franchise history, and just the third Ice player to be chosen in the first round of the NHL draft.

A 6’1”, 183-lb centre, Reinhart finished tied for fourth in the WHL in scoring with 105 points, including 36 goals, and was named the WHL Player of the Year and Sportsman of the Year.  Reinhart joins his two older brothers, Griffin of the Edmonton Oil Kings (4th overall, New York Islanders, 2012) and Max, a former member of the Kootenay Ice (64th overall, Calgary Flames, 2010) in being drafted by an NHL Club.

Leon Draisaitl of the Prince Albert Raiders became the highest drafted German-born player in the history of the NHL Draft when the Edmonton Oilers selected him with the third overall pick.  Draisaitl put up 105 points during the 2013-14 WHL regular season.

Jake Virtanen of the Calgary Hitmen was the sixth overall pick in the 2014 NHL Draft, chosen by the Vancouver Canucks.  Virtanen, an Abbotsford, BC, product, led all NHL Draft-eligible players in the WHL with 45 goals during the 2013-14 season.

Red Deer Rebels’ defenceman Haydn Fleury rounded out the four WHL players selected among the Top 10, being chosen seventh overall by the Carolina Hurricanes.  Fleury netted eight goals and 46 points this season for the Rebels, and was named the Top Defenceman at the 2014 IIHF Under-18 World Championship.

24 WHL forwards were selected in the 2014 NHL Draft while 13 defencemen were chosen.

Since the NHL Draft’s inception in 1969, a total of 1,854 WHL players have been selected by NHL Clubs

2014 NHL Draft, WHL Players

1^st Round
#2. Buffalo Sabres – Sam Reinhart; Vancouver, BC; Kootenay Ice
#3. Edmonton Oilers – Leon Draisaitl; Cologne, GER; Prince Albert Raiders
#6. Vancouver Canucks – Jake Virtanen; Abbotsford, BC; Calgary Hitmen
#7. Carolina Hurricanes – Haydn Fleury; Carlyle, SK; Red Deer Rebels
#14. Dallas Stars – Julius Honka; Jyvaskyla, FIN; Swift Current Broncos
#17. Philadelphia Flyers – Travis Sanheim; Elkhorn, MB; Calgary Hitmen
#23. Colorado Avalanche – Conner Bleakley; High River, AB; Red Deer Rebels
#26. Montreal Canadiens – Nikita Scherbak; Moscow, RUS; Saskatoon Blades
#30. New Jersey Devils – John Quenneville; Edmonton, AB ; Brandon Wheat Kings

2nd Round
#32. Florida Panthers – Jayce Hawryluk; Roblin, MB; Brandon Wheat Kings
#45. Dallas Stars – Brett Pollock; Sherwood Park, AB; Edmonton Oil Kings

3^rd Round
#62. Nashville Predators – Justin Kirkland; Camrose, AB; Kelowna Rockets
#63. Detroit Red Wings – Dominic Turgeon; Cherry Hills, CO; Portland Winterhawks
#68. Toronto Maple Leafs – Rinat Valiev; Nizhnekamsk, RUS; Kootenay Ice
#72. San Jose Sharks – Alex Schoenborn; Minot, ND; Portland Winterhawks
#73, Montreal Canadiens – Brett Lernout; Winnipeg, MB; Swift Current Broncos
#74. Buffalo Sabres – Brycen Martin; Calgary, AB; Swift Current Broncos
#79. Tampa Bay Lightnigh – Brayden Point; Calgary, AB; Moose Jaw Warriors
#85. New York Rangers – Keegan Iverson; St. Louis Park, MN; Portland Winterhawks

4^th Round
#99. Winnipeg Jets – Chase De Leo; La Mirada, CA; Portland Winterhawks
#101. Winnipeg Jets – Nelson Nogier; Saskatoon, SK; Saskatoon Blades
#119. Tampa Bay Lightning – Ben Thomas; Calgary, AB; Calgary Hitmen

5^th Round
#122. New York Rangers – Richard Nejezchleb; Slavia Praha, CZ; Brandon Wheat Kings
#124. St. Louis Blues – Jaedon Descheneau; Edmonton, AB; Kootenay Ice
#131. New Jersey Devils – Ryan Rehill; Edmonton, AB; Kamloops Blazers
#133. Arizona Coyotes – Dysin Mayo; Victoria, BC; Edmonton Oil Kings
#139. Minnesota Wild – Tanner Faith; Wilcox, SK; Kootenay Ice
#149. San Jose Sharks – Rourke Chartier; Saskatoon, SK; Kelowna Rockets

6^th Round
#161. New Jersey Devils – Brandon Baddock; Vermillion, AB; Edmonton Oil Kings
#162. Nashville Predators – Aaron Irving; Edmonton, AB; Edmonton Oil Kings
#167. Minnesota Wild – Chase Lang; Nanaimo, BC; Calgary Hitmen
#168. Philadelphia Flyers – Radel Fazleev; Kazan, RUS; Calgary Hitmen
#169. Minnesota Wild – Reid Duke; Calgary, AB; Lethbridge Hurricanes

7^th Round
#184. Calgary Flames – Austin Carroll; Scottsdale, AZ; Victoria Royals
#186. Vancouver Canucks – MacKenze Stewart; Calgary, AB; Prince Albert Raiders
#193. Arizona Coyotes – Edgars Kulda; Riga, LAT; Edmonton Oil Kings
#200. New York Islanders – Lukas Sutter; Lethbridge, AB; Red Deer Rebels

Past WHL – NHL Draft Results
A total of 37 WHL players were selected in the 2014 NHL Draft, including nine in the 1st round.
A total of 33 WHL players were selected in the 2013 NHL Draft, including eight in the 1st round.
A total of 32 WHL players were selected in the 2012 NHL Entry Draft, including six in the 1st round.
A total of 33 WHL players were selected in the 2011 NHL Entry Draft, including five in the 1st round.
A total of 43 WHL players were selected in the 2010 NHL Entry Draft, including seven in the 1st round.
A total of 31 WHL players were selected in the 2009 NHL Entry Draft, including five in the 1st round.
A total of 37 WHL players were selected in the 2008 NHL Entry Draft, including nine in the 1st round.
A total of 37 WHL players were selected in the 2007 NHL Entry Draft, including nine in the 1st round.
A total of 24 WHL players were selected in the 2006 NHL Entry Draft
A total of 43 WHL players were selected in the 2005 NHL Entry Draft

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Regular Season Schedule 2014-15

ROYALS ANNOUNCE 2014-15 REGULAR SEASON SCHEDULE

Victoria opens home schedule on Friday, September 26^th versus Kamloops!

For Immediate Release

Wednesday, June 25, 2014

Victoria, BC – The Victoria Royals are pleased to announce the team’s schedule for the 2014-15 Western Hockey League (WHL) regular season.

The Royals will open their fourth WHL season with a game in Kamloops against the Blazers on Friday, September 20^th, before travelling to Vancouver on Saturday, September 21^st for a date with the Giants. Victoria’s home opener is set for Friday, September 26^th against the Kamloops Blazers. Puck drop at the Royals’ home opener is scheduled for 7:05 p.m. at Save-On-Foods Memorial Centre.

The Royals’ longest homestand will come after the Christmas break when the club hosts seven consecutive games between Saturday, December 27^th and Saturday, January 10^th. During that span, the team will host the Prince George Cougars, Spokane Chiefs and Medicine Hat Tigers.

Victoria will embark on their longest road trip of the year early in the season when they swing through the Central Division for six October games in nine days. Starting on Friday, October 10^th against the Calgary Hitmen, the Royals will also visit the Medicine Hat Tigers, Red Deer Rebels, Edmonton Oil Kings and Lethbridge Hurricanes before wrapping up the trip on Saturday, October 18^th versus the Kootenay Ice.

2014-15 Schedule Facts:

By Team:

Brandon: 1 home + 0 road = 1 game

Calgary: 0 home + 2 road = 2 games

Edmonton: 1 home + 2 road = 3 games

Everett: 2 home + 2 road = 4 games

Kamloops: 4 home + 4 road = 8 games

Kelowna: 4 home + 4 road = 8 games

Kootenay: 0 home + 1 road = 1 game

Lethbridge: 0 home + 1 road = 1 game

Medicine Hat: 1 home + 1 road = 2 games

Moose Jaw: 1 home + 0 road = 1 game

Portland: 2 home + 2 road = 4 games

Prince Albert: 1 home + 0 road = 1 game

Prince George: 4 home + 4 road = 8 games

Regina: 1 home + 0 road = 1 game

Red Deer: 1 home + 2 road = 3 games

Saskatoon: 1 home + 0 road = 1 game

Seattle: 2 home + 2 road = 4 games

Spokane: 2 home + 2 road = 4 games

Swift Current: 1 home + 0 road = 1 game

Tri-City: 2 home + 2 road = 4 games

Vancouver: 5 home + 5 road = 10 games

By Division:

B.C. Division: 17 home + 17 road = 34 games

U.S. Division: 10 home + 10 road = 20 games

Central Division: 3 home + 9 road = 12 games

East Division: 6 home + 0 road = 6 games

By Month:

September: 2 home + 3 road = 5 games

October: 5 home + 6 road = 11 games

November: 6 home +8 road = 14 games

December: 6 home + 3 road= 9 games

January: 7 home + 6 road = 13 games

February: 5 home + 5 road = 10 games

March: 5 home + 5 home = 10 games

By Day:

Sunday: 3 home + 3 road = 6 games

Monday: 3 home + 0 road = 3 games

Tuesday: 6 home + 3 road = 9 games

Wednesday: 2 home + 7 road = 9 games

Thursday: 0 home + 0 road = 0 games

Friday: 10 home + 11 road = 21 games

Saturday: 12 home + 12 road = 24 games

Season ticket packages for the 2014-15 season are on sale now! Call 250-220-7889, visit www.selectyourtickets.com, or head down to the Victoria Royals ticketing office at Save-On-Foods Memorial Centre for more information.

Soy & Reddekopp Invited to U18 Selection Camp

ROYALS’ DUO EARN INVITES TO TEAM CANADA’S U18 SUMMER SELECTION CAMP

Victoria’s Tyler Soy and Chaz Reddekopp to attend national team selection camp in Calgary.

For Immediate Release

Wednesday, June 25, 2014

Victoria, BC – The Victoria Royals are proud to announce that rookie forward Tyler Soy and rookie defenceman Chaz Reddekopp have been named to Hockey Canada’s National Men’s Summer Under-18 Team selection camp in advance of the 2014 Ivan Hlinka Memorial Cup.

The selection camp will see 44 players born in 1997 from across Canada compete for a spot on Team Canada, coached by Derek Laxdal, and will take place from August 2-5 at the Markin MacPhail Centre in Calgary, AB. 

If selected to the 22-man roster, Soy and Reddekopp will travel with Team Canada to the Ivan Hlinka Memorial Cup scheduled for August 11-16 in Breclav, Czech Republic and Piestany, Slovakia.

Soy, a 5-11 center, recently completed his rookie season with the Royals in which he posted 30 points (15g-15a) over 65 games played. Named the club’s 2013-14 Rookie of the Year, Soy also notched two goals and one assist in nine games during the 2014 WHL Playoffs. The Cloverdale, BC native was selected by the Royals with the eighth overall pick of the 2012 WHL Bantam Draft.

Also coming off his rookie season with Victoria, Reddekopp notched nine points (1g-8a) over 40 games played to go along with 33 penalty minutes and a plus-10 rating last year. The 6-3, 215 lb product of West Kelowna, BC was chosen by the Royals in the first round of the 2012 WHL Bantam Draft with the 13^th overall pick.

Both Soy and Reddekopp have been involved with Hockey Canada’s Program of Excellence before. The pair helped Team Pacific to a silver medal at last year’s World Under-17 Hockey Challenge in Sydney, Nova Scotia. Soy finished the tournament with five points (2g-3a) in six games played while Reddekopp added a pair of assists in Team Pacific’s semi-final victory.

Season ticket packages for the 2014-15 season are on sale now! Call 250-220-7889, visit www.selectyourtickets.com, or head down to the Victoria Royals ticketing office at Save-On-Foods Memorial Centre for more information.

Pre-Season Schedule Announced

ROYALS ANNOUNCE 2014 PRE-SEASON SCHEDULE

Victoria to play 7 exhibition games including home date on Sept. 11^th.

For Immediate Release

Tuesday, June 24, 2014

Victoria, BC – The Victoria Royals today announced their pre-season schedule in preparation for the 2014-15 Western Hockey League regular season.

The Royals will play a total of seven pre-season games against teams from both the U.S. and B.C. Divisions. Victoria will make their second consecutive trip to Everett for the Silvertips’ annual Pre-Season Classic at Comcast Arena. The trip will see the Royals play three games, with their first coming on Friday, August 29^th against Everett at 7:00 p.m. Victoria will then play the Seattle Thunderbirds on Saturday, August 30^th at 3:00 p.m. before concluding the tournament on Sunday, August 31^st against the Tri-City Americans at 11:30 a.m.

The Royals will then travel to Vancouver the following weekend for two games at the UBC Tournament hosted by the Vancouver Giants. Victoria will square off with the Kamloops Blazers on Saturday, September 6^th at 3:00 p.m. and the Kelowna Rockets on Sunday, September 8^th at 1:00 p.m. Both games will take place at UBC’s Thunderbird Arena.

The Royals lone home contest of the pre-season is set for Thursday, September 11^th when they host the Vancouver Giants. Puck drop is set for 5:05 p.m. at Save-On-Foods Memorial Centre.

Victoria will wrap-up their pre-season with a trip to Kelowna on Saturday, September 13^th to play the Rockets. Game time is scheduled for 7:05 p.m.

2014 VICTORIA ROYALS PRE-SEASON SCHEDULE:

Friday, August 29, 2014

Victoria @ Everett

Comcast Arena - Everett, WA

7:00 p.m.

Saturday, August 30, 2014

Victoria @ Seattle

Comcast Arena - Everett, WA

3:00 p.m.

Sunday, August 31, 2014

Victoria @ Tri-City

Comcast Arena - Everett, WA

11:30 a.m.

Saturday, September 6, 2014

Victoria @ Kamloops

UBC Thunderbird Arena - Vancouver, BC

3:00 p.m.

Sunday, September 7, 2014

Victoria @ Kelowna
UBC Thunderbird Arena - Vancouver, BC

1:00 p.m.

Thursday, September 11, 2014

Vancouver @ Victoria

Save-On-Foods Memorial Centre - Victoria, BC

5:05 p.m.

Saturday, September 13, 2014

Victoria @ Kelowna

Prospera Place - Kelowna, BC

7:05 p.m.

Season ticket packages for the 2014-15 season are on sale now! Call 250-220-7889, visit www.selectyourtickets.com, or head down to the Victoria Royals ticketing office at Save-On-Foods Memorial Centre for more information.

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Lowry Named WJ Ast Coach

Hear from Dave Lowry:
 https://soundcloud.com/voice_vicroyals

ROYALS’ DAVE LOWRY NAMED ASSISTANT COACH OF TEAM CANADA’S WORLD JUNIOR TEAM

Head Coach Dave Lowry named assistant coach for 2015 Canadian World Junior Team.

For Immediate Release

Thursday, June 12, 2014

Victoria, BC – The Victoria Royals are proud to announce that Head Coach Dave Lowry has been named an assistant coach for Team Canada at the 2015 IIHF World Junior Hockey Championship taking place December 26^th, 2014 - January 5^th, 2015 in Montreal, QC and Toronto, ON.

Lowry recently completed his second season with the Royals and was named the 2013-14 WHL Coach of the Year after leading Victoria to a franchise-record 48-20-1-3 regular season. Last year, Lowry guided the Royals to numerous franchise records including wins (48), points (100), fewest goals allowed (181) and road wins (26). Lowry helped Victoria finish the 2013-14 WHL Regular Season as the 10^th ranked club in the BMO CHL Top 10 Rankings while also guiding the franchise to its first playoff series victory.

“It’s an honour to be named to the coaching staff,” Head Coach Dave Lowry said. “It’s a great opportunity to represent the WHL, Hockey Canada and the Victoria Royals for our country.”

Since joining the Royals, Lowry has posted an 82-50-3-7 regular season record as the Royals’ bench boss. Before his time on Vancouver Island, the Sudbury, ON native spent three seasons as an assistant coach of the NHL’s Calgary Flames and was also the head coach of the WHL’s Calgary Hitmen during the 2008-09 season when the Hitmen posted 59-9-3-1 record en route to an Eastern Conference title. Prior to his coaching career, Lowry spent 19 seasons as a player in the NHL.

Lowry will join Head Coach Benoit Groulx (Gatineau, QMJHL) and Assistant Coach Scott Walker (Guelph, OHL) on the bench for Team Canada.

The IIHF World Junior Championship showcases the top Under-20 hockey players in the world. This year’s tournament will be co-hosted by Montreal, QC and Toronto, ON. Team Canada will play their first pre-competition game in Toronto on December 19^th, 2014 before kicking off the round robin on December 26^th, 2014 against Slovakia in Montreal.

Season ticket packages for the 2014-15 season are on sale now! Call 250-220-7889, visit www.selectyourtickets.com, or head down to the Victoria Royals ticketing office at Save-On-Foods Memorial Centre for more information.

NEW PLAYOFF FORMAT APPROVED FOR WHL

Vancouver, BC - A new playoff format for the Western Hockey League topped the list of items at this year’s WHL Annual General Meeting, which concluded today in Vancouver. 

The new playoff format, which is identical to the new playoff format introduced by the NHL this past season,  was approved by the Board of Governors and will be in place for the next three seasons starting with the 2014-15 season.

“We believe the new format is a hybrid of the WHL’s previous Conference and Divisional formats,” said WHL Commissioner Ron Robison. “This will allow us to feature our regional rivalries in the playoffs and offer the most fair and competitive path to the WHL Championship.”

The new format will see the top three teams in each Division make up the first 12 teams in the playoffs. The remaining four spots will be filled by the next two highest-placed teams in each Conference, based on their regular-season record and regardless of Division. It is possible for one Division in each Conference to send five teams to the postseason while the other Division sends just three.

In the First Round, the Division winner with the best record in each Conference will be matched against the wild-card team with the lesser record; the wild card team with the better record will play the other Division winner.

The teams finishing second and third in each Division will meet in the First Round within the bracket headed by their respective division winners. First-round winners within each bracket play one another in the Second Round to determine the four participants in the Conference Finals.

Home-ice advantage through the first two rounds goes to the team that placed higher in the regular-season standings. In the Conference Finals and WHL Championship Series, home-ice advantage goes to the team that had the better regular-season record - regardless of the teams' final standing in their respective Divisions. 

In addition, any ties in the final regular season standings will be determined as per WHL Regulations, and if an East Division Club is involved in the WHL Championship Series, the Series will utilize a 2 - 3 - 2 format.

Other matters adopted by the WHL Board of Governors in preparation for the 2014-15 season included the following:

WHL Milestone Awards – the WHL will officially recognize special achievements by the following participants: coaches, players, goaltenders, athletic therapists / trainers and on-ice officials during their careers in the WHL.

WHL Chairman of the Board/ Executive Committee Appointments - Bruce Hamilton has been re-elected as WHL Chairman of the Board for another two year term. No other Chairman of the Board in WHL history has served more years at the helm than Hamilton, who is now entering his seventh term (1998-2004 and 2008-present). Patrick LaForge of the Edmonton Oil Kings (Central Division) and Russ Farwell of the Seattle Thunderbirds (U.S. Division) have also been re-elected to the WHL's Executive Committee for two year terms. Ron Toigo of Vancouver Giants (BC Division) and Gord Broda (East Division) will continue to serve as the other members of the WHL Executive Committee.  

 The WHL has also announced that the 2014-15 Pre-Season schedule will be released on Tuesday, June 24, 2014, with the 2014-15 Regular Season schedule to follow on Wednesday, June 25, 2014.

Ralph Jarratt Invited to U-17 Camp

ROYALS’ PROSPECT 

RALPH JARRATT 

NAMED TO 

UNDER-17 DEVELOPMENT CAMP

Victoria defence prospect Ralph Jarratt invited to Hockey Canada’s Under-17 Summer Development Camp.

Wednesday, June 11, 2014

Victoria, BC – The Victoria Royals are pleased to announce that defenceman Ralph Jarratt has been invited to attend Hockey Canada’s Under-17 Summer Development Camp, July 29th - August 4th in Calgary, AB.

Jarratt, a product of Fort St. John, BC, played the 2013-14 hockey season with the Pursuit of Excellence Under-18 Prep team. The 6-2, 180 lb defender appeared in 43 games and collected 17 points (6g-11a) along with 86 minutes in penalties.

Players selected to Hockey Canada’s Under-17 program will compete at the upcoming World Under-17 Hockey Challenge, October 31st – November 8th at a location yet to be determined.

Jarratt skated for Team BC at the 2013 Under-16 Western Canada Challenge Cup where he suited up in four games and collected one assist en route to a silver medal. Jarratt was selected in the second round, 37th overall, of the 2013 WHL Bantam Draft and has been signed to a Standard Player’s Agreement by the Royals.

Season ticket packages for the 2014-15 season are on sale now! Call 250-220-7889, visit www.selectyourtickets.com, or head down to the Victoria Royals ticketing office at Save-On-Foods Memorial Centre for more information

Hodges Signs with Florida

The NHL Florida Panthers have agreed to an entry-level contract with Royals centerman Steven Hodges.

“It’s almost surreal, a little overwhelming, kind of feels like draft day all over again.” said Hodges as I spoke with him by phone from Tsawwassen.

“I’m beyond excited and so is my family…”

The now 20 year old Hodges was drafted by Florida in the third round (84th overall) in the 2012 NHL Draft.

“It’s a big weight off my shoulders, just couldn't be happier to be signed with an organization like Florida.  They’ve always been first class with me and talked to me the whole way through this since I’ve been drafted…just very happy that we reached terms that we’re both happy with.”

Hodges played in 52 regular season games this past season, collecting 47 points (21-26-47) and a +20 rating. He had 10 points (4-6-10) in nine playoff games, tied for the team lead.

“It was a very big learning experience for me and that’s another reason why I was able to find a contract with (Florida).  They all want winners, and although we didn’t win that second round series (against Portland) we sure put up a pretty good fight.”

The Yellowknife, NWT native has recorded 157 points (75-82-157) in 247 games with Chilliwack (2009-2011) and Victoria (2011-2014).

Hodges is entering his overage season with Victoria, and intends on returning for Royals training camp before heading to Florida in attempts to make the NHL Panthers or AHL affiliate San Antonio.

“I’m still one of (Victoria’s) players, and I get to try out for their team and do my best to make them.”

-Marlon Martens
[OFFICIAL MEDIA RELEASE BELOW]

According to @MacBethReport F Brandon Magee has signed a tryout contract with Kometa Brno (Czech Republic, Extraliga). Last season, Magee led the Royals in scoring with 67 points, including 25 goals, in 65 games.

The deadline for NHL teams to sign players selected in the 2012 draft was June 1st.  It appears Royals defenseman Travis Brown (5th rd Chicago Blackhawks) and forward Logan Nelson (5th rd Buffalo) went unsigned.

Brown will go back into the draft, while Nelson, who’s completed his 20 year old season becomes an unrestricted free agent.

ROYALS’ HODGES SIGNS WITH FLORIDA PANTHERS

Victoria forward inks three-year entry level NHL contract.

For Immediate Release

Monday, June 2, 2014

Victoria, BC – The Victoria Royals would like to congratulate forward Steven Hodges who has agreed to a three-year entry level contract with the National Hockey League’s (NHL) Florida Panthers.

Hodges was selected by Florida with the club’s third round, 84^th overall, pick in the 2012 NHL Draft. Last season, Hodges picked up 47 points (21g-26a) in 25 regular season games for the Royals before going on to lead the team with 10 points (4g-6a) in the post-season.

“It’s a huge honour to sign with such a great organization,” Hodges said. “Florida has been first class since the day I was drafted and I’m excited to have an opportunity to take the next step in my career with the Panthers.”

The Yellowknife, NWT product has spent his entire WHL career with the franchise. Spanning four seasons, Hodges ranks as the seventh-leading scorer in franchise history with 157 points (75g-82) in 247 games.

The 6-0, 187 lb centre was selected ninth overall in the 2009 WHL Bantam Draft and is the all-time leader in franchise playoff production with 20 points (6g-14a) in 22 games. Hodges also holds the distinction of scoring the first goal in Victoria Royals team history on September 23^rd, 2011.

Season ticket packages for the 2014-15 season are on sale now! Call 250-220-7889, visit www.selectyourtickets.com, or head down to the Victoria Royals ticketing office at Save-On-Foods Memorial Centre for more information.