Monday night at the Arena for Game #7 and the End Of The Line for the Royals. This game didn't play out exactly as Saturday night had but the similarities (including the final score) were remarkable nonetheless. On this night the visitors from Atlantic Canada scored first and led 2-0 midway through the game. Patrick Bajkov got the Royals on the board but Newfoundland replied in kind, late in the period Brad Morrison brought the Royals back to within 3-2. In the third the club pressed for the equalizer but the Growlers to their credit simply refused to be beaten, with eight minutes left they added a back-breaking insurance goal that sealed a 4-2 victory and their place in the Conference Finals. The series played out much like the regular-season had between these two teams: a competitive series where home-ice advantage meant very little, both teams showed a marked ability to win in the other's building. The end of any season is a sad occasion but let's look at the brighter side: the franchise successfully relaunched from a year of dormancy and on the ice the team posted one of the best records in club history advancing to the second round of playoffs for the first time since 2016. The 2022-23 schedule has already been released, the season begins on October 21 with a weekend in St John's (proof positive that the league has a warped sense of humor). We'll see ten different opponents at home starting with the Indy Fuel on October 29, also on the slate from outside the division are the Atlanta Gladiators, Allen Americans and our old friends from Wheeling. Right now it seems far away but October will be here before you know it. The middle part of the week had little going on, the County Midget League was supposed to start on the 19th but a lot of the teams are still involved in high school postseason. Take care, thanks for reading.
