Hawks win series

By Marlon Martens

The visiting Victoria Royals season came to a close last night in a 5-1 loss against the Portland Winterhawks, falling 4 games to 1.

“It hurts to lose, as a coach you’re extremely disappointed to see these guys and the pain the feel and the disappointment they incur, but that’s part of the process.” Said Head Coach Dave Lowry,

“To win you have to go throught this, we’ll be a better team moving forward, our young guys and the guys that will return will remember this and know that it’s hard to win.”

Victoria did not go down with out a fight, amassing 86 minutes in a fiesty, scrap filled affair.

Portland’s Oliver Bjorkstrand had a 4 point night with a goal and three assists, while Chase Deleo scored a pair. Steven Hodges had the lone goal for Victoria.

Patrik Polivka made 35 saves, while his counterpart Brendan Burke stopped 31.

The ‘Hawks lead 2-0 after 20 on goals by Taylor Leir on the power play and Adam DeChamplain banking one in off Polivka from behind the goal with just :34 seconds left in the frame.

Bjorkstrand pounced on a loose puck in the second period to go up 3-0 before Hodges struck on the power play. Two fights broke out at the end of the middle frame resulting in ejections to Hodges and Joe Hicketts, while Derrick Pouliot was tossed for the ‘Hawks.

In the third Chase Deleo added a pair, including one on the power play to put the game away. Ryan Gagnon and Nic Petan squared off as tempers flared.

Victoria wrapped up a franchise best season, including a 100 point campaign, and reaching the 2nd round for the first time.

“It’s really satisfying, really gratifying to see the results, to be a part of a group that gets 100 points in a season, that says a lot about your group of kids, and to get into the second round and lose to one of the best teams in the country, there’s no shame – but there’s huge disappointment.” Said Lowry

The Royals graduate their three 20 year olds, Jordan Fransoo, Logan Nelson and Ben Walker who played together on a line with his younger brother Jack for the last time.

http://voicevicroyals.blogspot.ca/20...eries-4-1.html

2nd Period Penalties-Hicketts Vic (cross checking), 7:26; Hicketts Vic (roughing), 14:14; Leipsic Por (roughing), 14:14; Pouliot Por (slashing), 15:03; Magee Vic (roughing), 19:56; Leipsic Por (roughing, roughing), 19:56; Carroll Vic (10-minute misconduct), 20:00; Hicketts Vic (major-fighting, game misconduct), 20:00; Hodges Vic (instigator, major-fighting, game misconduct, 10-minute misconduct), 20:00; Pouliot Por (major-fighting, game misconduct), 20:00; Turgeon Por (major-fighting), 20:00.

3rd Period Penalties-Petan Por (tripping), 12:46; Brown Vic (holding), 14:33; Kanzig Vic (10-minute misconduct), 14:58; Gagnon Vic (major-fighting), 15:10; Magee Vic (high sticking, match-attempt/injure), 15:10; Leipsic Por (roughing, 10-minute misconduct), 15:10; Petan Por (instigator, major-fighting, game misconduct), 15:10; Carroll Vic (slashing), 18:09.

By Cleve Dheensaw

In the fullness of time, the Victoria Royals will come to appreciate their accomplishments from the 2013-14 Western Hockey League season.

But perspective is always hard to find on an elimination night when the immediacy of defeat is still raw.

The Royals’ breakout season — which included most victories (48) and most points (100) in franchise history and a first-ever foray past the first round of the playoffs — came crashing to a sometimes tawdry end Thursday before 8,083 fans at the Moda Center in Portland.

The Winterhawks defeated the Royals 5-1 in Game 5 to win the Western Conference best-of-seven semifinal series 4-1 and advance to the conference final, with the aim of becoming only the fourth team to go to four consecutive Ed Chynoweth Cup WHL finals. Portland will play Kelowna in the conference final.

“We’re an extremely disappointed group, but we lost to a very good team,” said Royals head coach Dave Lowry.

“The only way to get experience is to live it. We’ll be better for this. We will use this as a learning experience. We had a really good year and grew as a team. To eventually win, there’s lots of pain that goes with it first.”

Thursday’s game was punctuated by a line brawl to end the second period as the ill will that had built up between the Royals and Winterhawks boiled over. Victoria forward Steven Hodges threw a punch that caught Portland’s Derrick Pouliot, first round draft pick of the Pittsburgh Penguins, on the back of the head. Pouliot, who was engaged in a tussle with Victoria’s Joe Hicketts at the time, then landed a knockout blow to Hicketts’ head that staggered the rearguard and left him woozy. Hodges, Hicketts and Pouliot were tossed out of the game.

Brandon Magee high-sticked second-round Winnipeg Jets draft pick Nic Petan of Portland in the third period. That led to more scuffling, after which Petan left the ice in some duress following a losing fight against Victoria’s Ryan Gagnon.

“We did lose our composure,” said Lowry. “It’s part of the emotion unraveling. It was reactionary.”

In the end, there was too much sheer talent on the defending WHL champion Winterhawks, who have now won 36 of their last 38 games with a roster that includes several future NHLers.

Limiting mental lapses was always going to be important for the underdog Royals. Victoria could have ill-afforded team-MVP Magee’s after-the-whistle cross-checking penalty in the first period that allowed Taylor Leier’s power-play goal on a Brendan Leipsic rebound at 13:46. It was part of a familiar pattern as Portland’s series victory was built on its uncanny quick sticks on rebound goals before the Victoria defence could react to clear. But the real back-breaker was Adam De Champlain’s 2-0 goal in the final minute of the opening period that was banked in off the back of Victoria goaltender Patrik Polivka.

Polivka then seemed distracted with clearing an errant glove that had fallen in his crease, while Columbus Blue Jackets-signed Oliver Bjorkstrand snapped home the 3-0 goal in the second period. Hodges, a third-round pick of the Panthers, made it 3-1 to give Victoria a glimmer of hope at 15:11 of the middle period before getting the boot from the game. But a Keegan Kanzig own goal in the third period, awarded to Chase De Leo, and yet another goal by De Leo put the outcome beyond doubt.

http://www.timescolonist.com/sports/...eason-1.951148