“I thought our preparation tonight was outstanding…I really liked our first period." said Royals Head Coach Dave Lowry,
"That power play goal got us going and got us settled in and allowed us to play with a lead.”
Victoria wraps up their 6 game in 9 night Central Division road trip on a two game win streak, and a 4 and 2 record taking 8 of a possible 12 points.
“When we left and we didn’t know when we were going to win one, I’m going to take the 8 points and be real happy going home .500.” said Lowry,
It was the Royals first win in Cranbrook in their 3rd try as the club improves to .500 on the season (6-6-1-0).
“It was important for us to win against Portland at home (before they left for the road trip) we were able to get on the road and win a couple games we probably didn’t deserve to, and tonight we finished it off with a game that was probably our best game from start to finish.”
Magee returned to the line up after serving a 12 game suspension, and assisted on a pair of goals :16 seconds apart by Brandon Fushimi and Axel Blomqvist, late in the middle frame to give the Royals a 3-0 lead.
“It was awesome to put those threads back over my shoulders, and put the uniform on…” said Magee who looked like he hadn’t missed a beat, “…in the second period I felt more comfortable and made a couple plays with Fushimi and Blomqvist and we were able to capitalize on them.”
The two quick, late goals changed the face of the game according to Lowry,
“The turning point in the game was the one shift where we scored two goals. You bring a player of Magee’s magnitude back in the line up it’s going to give your club a lift – and tonight it was great for us.” According to Lowry
Travis Brown scored on the power play in the first in a period where Victoria outshot Kootenay 13-6. Logan Fisher added a single in the third on Austin Carroll’s second assist on the night, putting the game out of reach.
Coleman Vollrath stood tall in his second career shut out, his first came against the same Ice last season in a 3-0 win on the Island. Vollrath came through with 12 second period saves when Kootenay turned up the heat, preserving the 1-0 lead. Wyatt Hofflin took the loss allowing 4 goals on 29 shots.
The Royals finished strong despite playing a stretch of 4 games in 5 nights.
“It’s amazing when you get your head into the game, and when you decide to play a certain way and play a certain way and stay within the parameters of our team game, it gives you an opportunity to win.” Said Lowry
Victoria was 1 for 4 on the power play, while blanking the opposition on two man advantages.
The Royals return home to open a 5 game home stand which begins with a pair of games against the rival Giants Friday and Saturday.
-Marlon Martens
Victoria Royals 4 at Kootenay Ice 0 - Status: Final
Saturday, October 18, 2014 - Western Financial Place - Cranbrook, BC
Victoria 1 2 1 - 4
Kootenay 0 0 0 - 0
1st Period-
1, Victoria, Brown 3 (Hicketts, Carroll), 14:03 (PP).
Penalties-Kanzig Vic (boarding), 9:18; Martin Ktn (hooking), 13:48; Legien Ktn (tripping), 16:45.
2nd Period-
2, Victoria, Fushimi 3 (Magee), 18:56.
3, Victoria, Blomqvist 4 (Magee, Kanzig), 19:11.
Penalties-Kanzig Vic (roughing), 14:45.
3rd Period-
4, Victoria, Fisher 2 (Carroll, Jarratt), 6:06.
Penalties-Descheneau Ktn (hooking), 0:37; Philp Ktn (high sticking), 9:30.
Shots on Goal-
Victoria 13-6-10-29.
Kootenay 6-12-9-27.
Power Play Opportunities-
Victoria 1 / 4;
Kootenay 0 / 2.
Goalies-
Victoria, Vollrath 5-5-1-0 (27 shots-27 saves).
Kootenay, Hoflin 3-5-0-0 (29 shots-25 saves).
A-2,042
Referees-Steve Papp (17).
Linesmen-Sean Donnelly (109), Michael Roberts (87).
