Fans would have to harken back to Steve Passmore of the Cougars to find a comparable era in which Victoria goaltending had had to stand up to such a withering barrage of pucks in the Western Hockey League. The former NHLer set the WHL record for the number of saves in a season on some woeful Cougars teams in the old Memorial Arena before a late-career mercy trade to Kamloops earned him a Memorial Cup.
More than three decades later, it is Tyler Palmer and Campbell Arnold holding down the fort on Blanshard Street. Different building, same situation. Of all the issues the Victoria Royals have had this season, goaltending hasn’t been one of them. Crease play is the main reason the club is even still in the hunt for a WHL playoff berth.
It’s no surprise Palmer has been named WHL goaltender of the week. It’s his second time earning the accolade this season following a week in which he shared the honour with Arnold earlier in the season.
In his last two games, Palmer posted a 2-0 record with a 1.00 goals-against average, .969 save percentage and one shutout in a 35-save, 3-0 shutout road victory over the Vancouver Giants and a 4-2 home win over Vancouver with 28 saves including on a penalty shot. The Giants have to be happy to have seen the last of Palmer this season as the five-foot-11 native of Fernie was 6-0 against them.
But Vancouver hasn’t seen the last of Palmer in his career. He is an 18-year-old and will be commanding the Royals crease for a few more seasons. The goaltending has been so strong that there isn’t a universe in which Palmer and Arnold aren’t in the Victoria nets next season, with Arnold almost assuredly to be given one of the three 20-year-old slots. That’s how integral the pair have been for the Royals (15-31-5) this season.
Coach Dan Price loses nothing in rotating them, assuring he will have a fresh netminder in back-to-back games, which are common for the Royals, such as tonight in Kelowna against the Rockets at Prospera Place and Saturday in Kamloops against the Blazers at the Sandman Centre.
Palmer goes into the weekend with a 3.65 goals-against average and .906 save percentage with two shutouts. While that may not be near the top of the pack statistically in the league, it must be put in the context of it raining pucks on Palmer and Arnold on most nights.
Palmer has been a revelation since signing as a free agent over the summer out of the Alberta Junior Hockey League and making his WHL debut in October with a 40-save performance. It was a harbinger of things to come, including recording the first 50-plus save shutout in the WHL in six years.
Victoria, meanwhile, is 1-5-3 this season against the Rockets (31-14-4) heading into tonight’s match-up in the Okanagan. Kelowna is 18-5-1 at home. The Royals, however, have amassed more than half of their 15 wins on the road at 8-16-3.
Saturday’s opponent, the CHL nationally No.8-ranked Blazers (37-14-2), did the Royals a favour by beating the Spokane Chiefs 7-2 on Wednesday night in Kamloops. The Royals, Chiefs and Tri-City Americans remain tied in eighth place in the last playoff position in the Western Conference. The Americans hold a game in hand on the Royals and Chiefs.
ICE CHIPS: The WHL released a statement on the world situation: “The WHL condemns the Russian invasion of the sovereign nation of Ukraine and wishes for a peaceful and diplomatic resolution soon. The WHL agrees with measures taken by the Canadian Hockey League to cancel the sa国际传媒 Russia Series, and supports sanctions imposed by the International Ice Hockey Federation and Hockey sa国际传媒, suspending Russia and Belarus from international competition and national team events hosted in sa国际传媒. The WHL is in communication with member clubs to provide support to all WHL players and ensure the well-being of WHL players hailing from European nations directly impacted by the war in Ukraine.”
