Griffen Outhouse looked in mid-season form. The Victoria Royals netminder stopped 28 of 29 shots he faced on the night, including a chain of athletic saves in the second period that brought the home crowd of 5,867 to their feet. With the score deadlocked at 1-1 after regulation, Outhouse was expectedly tested in the always exciting 3-on-3 overtime. In the following shootout, he stared down all five attempts he faced and back-stopped his team to victory.
“I actually like shootouts, it’s pretty fun. Not much of a fan of 3-on-3 OT…but shootouts are fun.” -Griffen Outhouse postgame
The one time Outhouse was beat on the evening was early in the third period as Prince George opened the scoring at 4:49. Josh Maser made a nice tip on the puck, after working a give-and-go with Vladislav Mikhalchuk.
Cougars standout goalie Taylor Gauthier looked to shut the door on the Royals, making big saves and rising to meet the pressure as the period wore one. Victoria persisted and were finally rewarded when at 18:53 Brandon Cutler pounced on a rebound to slammed home the tying goal, just as they pulled Outhouse for an extra attacker.
.@BrandonCutlerr, scores for the @victoriaroyals late to tie up the game! We've got a tie with 1:07 left! #WHLOpeningWeek pic.twitter.com/R2wgE3ajoK
— The WHL (@TheWHL) September 22, 2018
The shootout winner came in the fifth-round as Dino Kambeitz fired home a shot to finally beat Gauthier and give the Royals the extra point.
. @dino_kambeitz21 with the fifth-round shootout winner for the @victoriaroyals!!! #WHLOpeningWeek pic.twitter.com/DkJwsFVWli
— The WHL (@TheWHL) September 22, 2018
“I was mostly thinking shoot. Everyone else went for a deke, so I was thinking to get the puck off quick, maybe surprise him.” – Kambeitz on shooting to win
The game saw tempers go from a simmer to a boil in the third period as these division rivals quickly reignited some hostility. The result saw some game misconducts and multiple penalties. Tanner Sidaway, sporting a fresh cut to the eyebrow, explained in postgame “We have a family mentality here. When someone starts picking on a teammate, it’s like someone picking on my brother. I’m not having it.”
Victoria and Prince George will be back at it Saturday, as the teams finish opening weekend. Puck Drop at 7:05 at the Save-On-Foods Memorial Arena.
