Victoria Royals new goaltender makes a statement with 3-0 shutout in his debut game

Talk about making a statement. 

In his debut with the Victoria Royals, goaltender Braden Holt made his presence known after saving all 35 shots on the net, shutting out the Vancouver Giants 3-0 on Wednesday, December 28th. 

Before donning the blue and black, Holt joined the Royals a day before the big game. 

“They played super hard for me, and I just couldn’t be happier,” Braden Holt told Marlon Martens after the win.

Holt’s performance earned him the first star of the game.

Holt’s trade to the new team marked the parting of Tyler Palmer whose departure has since been marked as ‘personal leave.’

Related: Victoria Royals trade Tyler Palmer to Everett Silvertips in goaltender swap

Wednesday’s win marks the first shutout victory the Royals have made since their 3-0 victory against the Prince George Cougars on March 19th, 2022. 

Holt’s success didn’t come without the support of his team.

Last night the Royal’s offence came to play with a first period goal from forward Jake Poole, moving his current record to 33 (18 goals,15 assists) on the season.

Poole’s early success would be followed by forward Brayden Schuurman (7), bringing the score to 2-0 at the 7:38 mark of the third.

Schuurman (8) would then cap off the night by adding an unassisted empty net goal at 19:33 of the third period,  securing the 3-0 victory for the Royals.

The Royals and Giants will face off for the third and final time this week on Friday, December 30th in Victoria. The puck-drop is set for 7:05 p.m. at the Save-On-Foods Memorial Centre.

Vancouver Giants vs Victoria Royals 

• Where: Save-on-Foods Memorial Centre, 1925 Blanshard Street
• When: Friday, December 30th, 2022, 7:05 p.m.