RG Properties, during the ECHL era, ran across some innovative promotional games when its Victoria Salmon Kings were on the road as U.S. minor-pro sports marketing collided with hockey. The best were the Las Vegas Wranglers’ Midnight Game and X-Rated Game, but those wouldn’t exactly fly in tamer Victoria. Another one that stood out, and is being adapted today by RG for its WHL Victoria Royals, was the Bakersfield Condors’ 9:30 a.m. morning game that filled Rabobank Arena with 9,000 screaming school kids.
The Royals — 2-1 on a three-game weekend road trip capped by a 6-3 victory over the Seattle Thunderbirds on Sunday in which Jack Walker recorded his first career WHL hat-trick — take on the Moose Jaw Warriors today at Save-on-Foods Memorial Centre in the first weekday matinée nooner in club history.
Royals officials say they don’t expect an immediate splash and that it takes years to build these traditions. It’s going to be a slow build, admit RG officials.
“It took six years to build up in Edmonton and now it’s going great,” noted Darren Parker, senior vice-president of sales and marketing for the Royals.
A crowd of 10,396, about 7,000 of which were school kids, turned out at Rexall Place for the Oil Kings’ sixth annual CN Hockey Hooky WHL game against the Kootenay Ice on a work-day Thursday last month.
The Royals have tied today’s outing to science, math and social studies lesson plans that were sent to schools and expect about 800 school kids to turn up.
“We know it’s going to take awhile for school boards and principals to understand what we are doing,” said Parker.
“But we’re going to give it a good shot and see how it turns out.”
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The Royals’ adult fan base will get to indulge in something that is a staple of baseball.
“It’s huge in baseball, with promotions like Nooners at the Nat [work-day Vancouver Canadians minor-pro baseball games at Nat Bailey Stadium]. We hope people who are working today can come out during their lunch hour, even if it’s for a couple of periods,” said Parker.
If they do, they will see one of the hottest teams in not only the WHL, but the entire Canadian Hockey League. The Royals (32-21-4) and tied for third in the WHL’s Western Conference) go into today’s contest 15-3-1 over the last 19 games. Moose Jaw is 22-30-4 and 10 points adrift of the eighth and last playoff berth in the WHL’s Eastern Conference.
There are plenty of interconnections between the Royals and Warriors because of this season’s trade that sent NHL Winnipeg Jets-signed Swedish forward Axel Blomqvist from Victoria to Moose Jaw in exchange for goaltender Justin Paulic and Russian defenceman Alexey Sleptsov.
“It’s going to be different [facing his old teammates if he starts], but it’s also just another regular hockey game you treat it like nothing out of the ordinary,” said Paulic, 6-2 for Victoria since the trade with a 2.29 goals-against average.
“You just have to go out and compete like it’s any other game.”
Sleptsov has two assists in the three games he has played for the Royals since joining the roster after an injury. He had 18 assists in 34 games this season in Moose Jaw.
“I am so excited about this game and to be playing against my old friends,” said the Russian U-18 team blue-liner.
The six-foot-six Blomqvist took his long reach from the Island to the prairies and has increased his scoring pace with seven goals and 13 points in 14 games for Moose Jaw after recording 14 goals and 29 points in 34 games earlier this season for Victoria.
Royals 20-year-old defenceman Travis Brown is another player with connections to Moose Jaw, coming to Victoria from the Warriors in a trade last season for now 16-year-old prospect Noah Gregor.
Meanwhile, some players say today’s early start time won’t alter their pre-game routines. The pre-game meal will be taken at breakfast but Sleptsov said he will still have chicken and pasta.
ICE CHIPS: It wasn’t just Walker’s hat-trick. The big three were sniping Sunday in Seattle. Austin Carroll, with his Royals-leading 33rd, Tyler Soy with his team second-leading 24th and Alex Forsberg with his team third-best 23rd scored the other Victoria goals in the victory over the Thunderbirds. Coleman Vollrath got the win in net with 28 saves.
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