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Rockets defeat Royals in OT after tying game in last second

It appeared for most of the night as if the torch had been passed and there would be a new Western Hockey League representative in the Memorial Cup this year.
 

 

It appeared for most of the night as if the torch had been passed and there would be a new Western Hockey League representative in the Memorial Cup this year.

But the defending WHL champion Kelowna Rockets, rallying from a 2-0 goals deficit, pulled out a death-defying 3-2 overtime victory against the Victoria Royals on a goal by Calvin Thurkauf before a disbelieving capacity crowd of 7,006 at Save-on-Foods Memorial Centre.

The Royals, playing the first Game 7 in 10 years of franchise history, lost the deciding game of the Western Conference semifinal series.

In a heart-racing end to the third period, Justin Kirkland of the Rockets tied the game with less than second remaining while the home crowd was on its feet celebrating apparent victory.

That victory eventually came, only for the Rockets.

“That probably tells you it’s not your year,” said Victoria coach Dave Lowry. “Let’s not take anything away from Kelowna. The Rockets played a real hard-fought series. It was only fitting that this series was decided in overtime.

We had our chances. They had their chances to end the series before that, too. Good teams find ways to win hockey games and they found a way to score at the end.”

This may have been Detroit Red Wings prospect Joe Hicketts’ final game in Victoria.

“We worked so hard to be in position to advance to the conference final,” said the Victoria captain.

Which made the Tuesday loss all the more crushing.

“To come within two-tenths of a second of going to third round is gut-wrenching,” said Hicketts.

“But what we learn in a Game 7 overtime is so invaluable. For everyone coming back next year — we have a young team right now —is going to prove to be a good learning experience. As disappointing as it is, when you look back at the season that we had, we have to be proud of what we accomplished [WHL regular-season championship].”

The Rockets advance to meet the large, grinding and well-rested Seattle Thunderbirds in the best-of-seven Western Conference final. Seattle is 21-1 in its past 22 games, including 13 consecutive wins to end the regular season and 4-0 and 4-1 series wins over the Prince George Cougars and Everett Silvertips in the first two rounds of the playoffs.

The Kelowna-Seattle series begins Friday in the Okanagan.

The Royals came out Tuesday with their patented pressure-the-crease game, which resulted in a goal by Tyler Soy off a Jared Dmytriw rebound just one minute and 44 seconds after the opening face-off. The shots were 8-0 before the Rockets even began drying off from the Island tsunami that hit them. With the shots 12-1, Alex Forsberg pounced on the power-play to make it 2-0 at 10:31.

With the shots 21-6 midway through the second period, it sometimes seemed it was valiant Kelowna goaltender Michael Herringer alone against Royals. But veteran Victoria starter Coleman Vollrath also had to be there when needed because some of those fewer Rockets shots were tricky to handle.

The Rockets pulled to within one, adding a well-founded air of trepidation to the rink at 1:13 of the third period, on a soccer-type own goal off Victoria forward Logan Fisher that was credited to Kelowna’s Justin Kirkland.

Herringer, raised in the Comox Valley, was again strong, and likely the difference in the game and series.

The Rockets advanced to their third-consecutive appearance in the conference final.

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The winning goal:

Kelowna Rockets tie game with less than a second left, forcing overtime:

The Kelowna Rockets' first goal in the third period:

Royals' goals in the first period:

Earlier story:

For hockey fans, it’s seventh heaven.

Or so Victoria Royals supporters hope.

The Royals meet the Kelowna Rockets tonight at 7:05 in the deciding game of their best-of-seven WHL Western Conference semifinal series at Save-on-Foods Memorial Centre. The game sold out almost immediately after the Royals edged the Rockets 3-2 Sunday evening in Kelowna to tie the series 3-3. It can be watched on Shaw TV.

A deciding Game 7 is rare enough that it has never before happened in the 10 years of Victoria Royals-Chilliwack Bruins franchise history. It hasn’t happened on Blanshard Street in the 15 years since the Victoria Salsa defeated the Merritt Centennials 5-2 in Game 7 of the 2001 B.C. Hockey League championship series at the old Memorial Arena. The Victoria Salmon Kings, in seven seasons of pro hockey in the ECHL, never played in a Game 7.

The last time a WHL Game 7 occurred here was when an unsung Terry Sydorak dramatically scored in the waning moments to give the Victoria Cougars the league title over the Calgary Wranglers.

“Every hockey player lives to play in a Game 7,” said Royals star defenceman Joe Hicketts.

There is a changing-of-the-guard plot line to tonight’s game. The youthful Royals, the surprise 2015-16 WHL regular-season champions, are viewed as ascendant. The Rockets are the defending WHL playoff champions with 14 returnees from last year’s team, which made it all the way to the Memorial Cup national championship game.

As urgent as tonight is for the Royals and Rockets, it will conclude only the second of a potential five playoff rounds, including the Memorial Cup. The winner of the Victoria-Kelowna series will advance to meet the Seattle Thunderbirds in the best-of-seven Western Conference final.

Victoria is looking for its first appearance in the conference final (which would be followed by the league final). Kelowna is attempting to reach the conference final for the third consecutive year.

cdheensaw@timescolonist.com