The Victoria Royals are on the brink of punching their ticket to the second round of the WHL playoffs.
Facing off in game three of their first-round series against the Tri-City Americans on Tuesday night, the Royals skated away with a 3-1 win at the Toyota Center in Kennewick, Washington—giving them a commanding 3-0 series lead.
After a scoreless opening frame, Victoria broke the deadlock midway through the second period. Defenceman Seth Fryer opened the scoring at 9:30, with assists from Wyatt Danyleyko and Escalus Burlock.
Just over two minutes later, Brandon Whynott responded for the Americans to tie the game at one apiece.
The Royals regained the lead early in the third period with a power play goal from Justin Kipkie at 6:11, assisted by Kenta Isogai and Cole Reschny. Forward Brandon Lisowsky added an empty-net goal in the final moments to secure the victory.
Goaltender Johnny Hicks continues to shine in his first WHL playoff run. The 18-year-old has started all three games of the series, stopping 31 of 32 shots on Tuesday night.
Through three playoff games, Hicks holds an impressive .965 save percentage and a 1.00 goals-against average. Remarkably, Tri-City has managed just one even-strength goal across nine periods of hockey, with their only other two goals coming on the power play.
The Royals will look to complete the series sweep tonight (Wednesday, April 2nd) when game four gets underway at the Toyota Center in Kennewick.
Fans can catch the action live at the official Royals watch party hosted at 6 Mile Pub in View Royal, or stream the game on Victory+, available on most mobile devices and smart TVs.
Puck drop for game four is at 7 p.m. PST!
