Fans are probably wise to reserve judgment on the Victoria Royals鈥� 4-0 start to the Western Hockey League season because it has been built on two games each against the so-far lowly Kamloops Blazers and Vancouver Giants, who are a combined 1-7.聽
Tonight鈥檚 game in Kelowna against the annual powerhouse Rockets, unbeaten in regulation time at 2-0-1, will be more telling.
鈥淜elowna has set the bar high in our sa国际传媒 Division,鈥� said Victoria general manager Cameron Hope, of the early marquee match-up.
鈥淲e鈥檝e built up a great rivalry against the Rockets over the years and it鈥檚 always exciting to play them.鈥�
Meanwhile, 20-year-old forward Carsen Twarynski has been returned to the Rockets by the Lehigh Valley Phantoms of the American Hockey League and will be in the lineup tonight. In his fourth WHL season, split between the Rockets and Calgary Hitmen, the six-foot-two Twarynski gives Kelowna veteran depth and size up front.
Twarynski鈥檚 return left the Rockets with four 20-year-olds. WHL teams are allowed to play only three 20-year-olds, who are labeled over-agers. That forced Kelowna to trade fourth-year, 20-year-old Czech forward Tomas Soustal to the Edmonton Oil Kings for a fourth-round bantam draft pick.
Victoria鈥檚 over-age situation is less clear. The Anaheim Ducks-drafted forward Tyler Soy and Los聽Angeles Kings-signed defenceman Chaz Reddekopp remain on the AHL farm team rosters of the San Diego Gulls and Ontario Reign, respectively.
That has left the Royals to skate with forward Regan Nagy as their lone 20-year-old player on the roster.
Hope, however, indicated Soy might be close to being returned by the Ducks/Gulls to junior hockey with the Royals.
鈥淲e expect to hear about [Soy] in the next couple of days,鈥� said the Victoria GM.
鈥淲e are keeping our fingers and toes crossed. They keep players up longer who have had good training camps and Tyler has had a good camp. Every extra day he gets to stay up and practise and play with the pros is good for him and his development.鈥�
In the end, that will be good for the Royals, too, because every indication now is Soy will be playing in Victoria this season.
As a signed NHL player with the Kings, Redekopp presents less of a return possibility to Victoria. If the blueliner remains in the AHL with the Reign, then Hope would be forced to trade for a third 20-year-old or leave the spot empty.
Meanwhile, Royals forward Ryan Peckford made Central Scouting鈥檚 preliminary list released Tuesday of players to watch for in the 2018 NHL draft. Peckford, who has five goals and nine points to start the season, was given a 鈥淐鈥� rating as a prospect for the fourth, fifth or sixth rounds. The six-foot native of Stony Plain, Alta., was also projected for the 2017 NHL draft but was passed over after missing much of the latter part of the season to injury. Peckford, whose birthday is in March, will be 19 at the time of the 2018 draft in June at American Airlines Center in Dallas.
Defenceman Ty Smith of the Spokane Chiefs is the lone WHL player given an 鈥淎鈥� rating as a first-round prospect for the 2018 draft. A total of 27 WHL players were given ratings, including five for the second and third rounds and 21 for the fourth-fifth-sixth rounds.
