The Victoria Royals are hoping this won鈥檛 be a Black Friday for them when they meet the Portland Winter Hawks in America鈥檚 biggest day for shopping.
Perhaps fittingly, considering the occasion, the Royals did some shopping of their own, and came up with a big forward to take across the border with them.
It seems the Royals experiment of going fast and small has its limits. At some point, size does matter in hockey.
So enter Spencer Gerth, the six-foot-three, 200-pound winger acquired by Victoria from the Everett Silvertips for a conditional eighth-round bantam draft pick, who makes his Royals debut today in Portland.
Gerth is not going to dazzle anybody with his scoring numbers. The 18-year-old from Langley had only one assist in 57 regular-season and playoff games last season for the Silvertips, but has upped that to two goals in 14 games this season. It鈥檚 more his physicality the Royals need up front to complement a quick but undersized forward corps.
Royals assistant captain Carter Folk plays that role admirably for Victoria but needs help in that regard so as not wear down as the season progresses. Gerth is happy to help out.
鈥淚鈥檓 excited to be playing for the Royals. Every time Everett played the Royals, we knew speed and tempo was what Victoria was all about,鈥� said Gerth.
鈥淰ictoria is a skill team and I can create room for those skill guys. I think of myself as a hard-nosed, gritty player who finishes his checks and sticks up for his teammates.鈥�
It鈥檚 the bargain purchase Royals head coach Dave Lowry was looking for on Black Friday, and beyond.
鈥淸Gerth] can play a heavier game . . . and the games get heavier later in the season,鈥� said Lowry.
The Royals face a rebounding Winterhawks team today, in which Portland has tagged the Daylight Classic with a rare 3 p.m. start time.
The Winterhawks, who feature veteran six-foot-five defenceman Brendan De Jong from Victoria, recently endured a nine-game losing streak but are remarkably still in the mix at 11-12-1 because of a 3-0-1 bounce back over the last four games.
The Royals are 14-9-2 and came off a franchise-record eight-game homestand at 6-2.
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