Hockey-starved fans from around Greater Victoria will once again have a chance to descend upon Save-On-Foods Memorial Centre for the 2018 Victoria Royals training camp.
The Royals’ announced the opening of their draft camp on Tuesday, August 21st for players selected in the 2018 WHL Bantam Draft.
Rookie camp then runs from Thursday, August 23rd to Sunday, August 26th. The rosters for that camp will consist of players born in 2002 and 2003, skaters who have been drafted or listed by the Royals, and free agent invitees.
Main camp will be comprised of returning players from the club’s 2017-18 roster, free agent invitees born from 1998-2001 and selected players from this year’s draft and rookie camps. The players will be divided into three teams for on-ice sessions that begin on Monday, August 27th and run through Tuesday, August 28th.
Teams Named After Influential Individuals
During training camp, the Royals will honour three former Victoria hockey franchises as the city boasts a long and storied history in the sport.
- The Cougars are named after the Victoria Cougars, who were originally a minor pro team that played in the Pacific Coast Hockey Association from 1922 to 1926. In 1925 the Cougars won the Stanley Cup by defeating the Montreal Canadiens of the NHL. From 1949 to 1961 the Cougars played in the minor pro-Pacific Coast Hockey League (1949-52) and Western Hockey League (1952-61). In 1971 the Cougars joined the ranks of major junior hockey as a member of the Western Hockey League and won the league championship in 1981, before they relocated to Prince George in 1994.
- The Aristocrats pays homage to the Victoria Aristocrats who played in the professional Pacific Coast Hockey Association from 1913 to 1922. The Aristocrats were the first Victoria hockey team to play for the Stanley Cup where the lost to the Toronto Blueshirts in 1914.
- The Salmon Kings are named after the professional team who played in the ECHL from 2004 to 2011, where they captured the West Division during the 2007-08 campaign. The Salmon Kings served as the Vancouver Canucks ECHL affiliate for five seasons (2006-11).
All on-ice sessions are open to the public!
ROYALS’ 2018 TRAINING CAMP SCHEDULE
ROOKIE CAMP
Friday, August 24th
8:45-9:45 a.m. – Goalie Session
10:00-1:30 p.m. – Team Practices
2:15-3:45 p.m. – Aristocrats vs. Salmon Kings
4:00-5:30 p.m. – Aristocrats vs.Cougars
5:45-7:15 p.m. – Cougars vs. Salmon Kings
Saturday, August 25th
8:45-9:45 a.m. – Goalie Session
10:00-11:30 a.m. – Cougars vs. Aristocrats
12:15-1:45 p.m. – Aristocrats vs. Salmon Kings
2:00-3:30 p.m. – Cougars vs. Salmon Kings
Sunday, August 26th
9:00-10:30 a.m. – Semi-Final – #2 seed vs. #3 seed
11:00-12:30 p.m. – Winner of the Semi-Final game vs. #1 seed
MAIN CAMP
Monday, August 27th
9:00-11:45 a.m. – Team Practices
12:30-1:30 p.m. – Goaltender Session
2:00-3:30 p.m. – Aristocrats vs. Salmon Kings
3:45-5:15 p.m. – Salmon Kings vs. Cougars
5:30-7:00 p.m. – Cougars vs. Aristocrats
Tuesday, August 28th
9:30-11:00 a.m. – Practice
12:30-1:30 p.m. – Goaltender Session
2:00-3:30 p.m. – Salmon Kings vs. Aristocrats
3:45-5:15 p.m. – Aristocrats vs. Cougars
5:30-7:00 p.m. –Cougars vs. Salmon Kings
