Knowing he was on track to make the Victoria Royals main camp this year, homegrown talent Nolan Bentham wasn’t going 100 per cent in the Rookie Camp.
It was a veteran move for a 16-year-old rookie in the Western Hockey League this year.
Bentham’s progress through the Royals’ rookie camp, and main camp, is the subject of a short documentary available to view in this story online.
The 6-3, 185-pound defender was the first round pick in the 2018 WHL Bantam Draft, selected 13th overall, and will make his regular season debut at Friday’s season home opener, and again Saturday, 7 p.m., at Save-On-Foods Memorial Centre.
READ MORE: See the Royals training camp in photos
“I [knew] I have to bring my intensity up for main camp,” Bentham said in the documentary.
And he did. As projected, Bentham made his way onto the main squad and played in the Royals’ first game of the regular season. A 6-0 loss to host Everett Silvertips on Saturday.
The defenceman is one to watch as he is a highly touted prospect from Victoria. He spent last season with the Yale Hockey Academy Midget Prep Team of the Canadian Sport School Hockey League where he played 36 games and collected 18 points (7 goals, 11 assists).
He’s also on Hockey Canada’s radar, as he played in the 2019 Canada Winter Games with Team BC and attended Hockey Canada’s Under-17 Development Camp that happened July 19 to 26 in Calgary. If selected, he would join Hockey Canada a the World Under-17 Hockey Challenge, Nov. 2 to 9 in Medicine Hat and Swift Current.
To purchase single game tickets, ticket packages, or season tickets for all 34 Royals home games (plus access to the Royals’ Never Wasted Ticket exchange policy), call 250-220-7889 or email to tickets@victoriaroyals.com.
ICE CHIPS:
Friday’s and Saturday’s Chuck-A-Puck winners can win a pair of custom converse shoes courtesy of Baggins Shoes, and a series of other prizes.
The Cougars feature players returning from NHL training camps, Cole Moberg (Chicago Blackhawks), Taylor Gauthier (Boston Bruins), Josh Maser (New York Rangers).
READ ALSO: Royals face tough loss in road opener to Silvertips
