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The Victoria Royals鈥� injury situation will be one of the talking points heading into the first-round WHL Western Conference playoff series against the Everett Silvertips.
The return timeline seems fortunate for the underdog Royals, who are the conference eighth seed up against the conference champion and top-seed Silvertips.
Victoria forwards Ryan Peckford and Regan Nagy were going full-speed in practice Tuesday, while defenceman Ralph Jarratt was in a no-hit jersey, but was also going full-speed.
鈥淚 feel good,鈥� said Peckford, who missed 18 games to close the regular season.
The timing was unfortunate for Peckford, who was experiencing a breakout season, and rose from being unranked to the 87th-rated North American skater for the 2017 NHL draft.
鈥淚t鈥檚 in the back of my mind that I have to impress some people [scouts] . . . but it鈥檚 about the team first,鈥� Peckford said.
In no small part to injuries, Victoria dropped dramatically to the eighth seed, after being the top seed in the league and conference last year.
鈥淭here are no excuses. We need to jell together to be right back to what it was like before,鈥� Peckford said.
Nagy鈥檚 versatility was acutely missed as the Royals were swept over the weekend when fate had Victoria closing out the regular season with two games against the Silvertips.
鈥淚鈥檓 feeling good now. It was super hard sitting out the weekend,鈥� Nagy said.
鈥淚 feel I can play any [forward] position and that is going to be a huge factor in a series like this. Everett is a tough, structured team to play and we have to play fast and pressure their defence and work the puck down in their zone and throw the body.
鈥淏eing disciplined is the key because their power play can sting you.鈥�
It was not all encouraging, however, for the Royals on the injury front. Defenceman Chaz Reddekopp was on the ice Tuesday, but the Los Angeles Kings draft pick did not participate in drills and it was clearly evident he will not play in the series openers Friday and Saturday in Everett. That remains a notable absence on the Royals鈥� back line.
Meanwhile, it is rare when a sniper and leading scorer is also a team鈥檚 most diligent player. But that鈥檚 what Matthew Phillips pulled off this season and it was recognized when the 50-goal scorer was named not only the Royals鈥� co-MVP, with goaltender Griffen Outhouse, but also the team鈥檚 hardest-working player.
鈥淢y parents instilled in me a work ethic,鈥� Phillips said. 鈥淭he hardest-working player award means the most to me [over even the team MVP and leading-scorer awards]. It鈥檚 nice to be recognized for that.鈥�
In other Royals team awards, Reddekopp was named best defenceman, Kaid Oliver top rookie, Scott Walford most dedicated player, Ryan Gagnon the unsung hero, Mitchell Prowse top scholastic player, Phillips most popular in fan balloting, while Jared Dmytriw received the community service award.
