Coleman Vollrath is the title holder with five challengers lining up to take him on. The title they are trying to take is starting goaltender for the Victoria Royals.
The job is plainly Vollrath’s to lose after recording a downright stingy 2.29 goals-against average, and .928 save percentage, in 34 games last season for the Royals.
With last season’s starter Patrik Polivka (2.56 GAA in 43 games) turning pro this year in his native Czech Republic, there is a spot open in the Victoria net.
But it’s not the starter’s role. The battle is to see who among the other five candidates in camp will back up the 19-year-old Vollrath.
The aspirants are 16-year-old rookies Griffen Outhouse from Williams Lake, Kayden Pickles from Alberta, Cole Weaver from Minnesota, 17-year-old Evan Smith from Colorado and 18-year-old Michael Herringer from Comox.
“I want to see competition,” said Royals head coach Dave Lowry.
“Coleman [Vollrath] had a great year but that was last year. And we clearly need another goalie besides Coleman. It’s in their hands. The guys themselves, through their play, will decide who stays.”
Victoria’s 2014 bantam draft pick Dylan Myskiw of Winnipeg is the seventh goalie in camp, but as a 15-year-old, is limited to five WHL games this season and so doesn’t figure into the goaltender equation.
Of the challengers, Smith is the most intriguing, not the least because he is six-foot-six and an American.
“My size is an advantage — I take up more of the net,” noted the native of Parker, Colorado, who played Midget Triple-A last season for the Pike’s Peak Miners.
“But I’m athletic in style.”
As long as the job gets done, size and style matters little in this business.
“Goaltending is mainly a matter of stopping pucks,” said Smith, driving home the point.
Smith was a blueliner until age 11.
“It just wasn’t clicking for me on defence, so my coach put me in goal. One thing led to another.”
And here he is in Royals camp, eying the incumbent.
And Vollrath isn’t taking anything for granted, despite the goaltending depth chart that has him rated on top.
“I’ve still got a job to do … I’m battling for one of two spots,” said Vollrath.
Yet there is no denying his statistics from last season are impressive.
“The team I had in front of me helped me get those numbers,” said Vollrath, alluding to Victoria’s tight defensive play, which led to franchise records last season in with 48 wins and 100 points.
But this season, Vollrath’s workload is poised to increase dramatically. It’s something to which the Calgary native is looking forward.
“Playing more games helps with your consistency,” said Vollrath.
Along with the seven goaltenders, there are 36 forwards and 18 defencemen in the Royals’ main camp. Cut-down day arrives Thursday, following the annual intra-squad game tonight at 7 p.m. at Save-on-Foods the Memorial Centre. Entrance to the game is by donation to the B.C. Cancer Foundation.
The Royals open the WHL pre-season Friday in Everett, Washington, against the Silvertips.
