When the Royals handed James Patrick the reins 16 months ago, they hoped he could lead a turnaround.
He delivered 香蕉视频直播� and now he香蕉视频直播檚 the Western Hockey League (WHL) Coach of the Year.
Patrick was named the 2025 recipient of the Dunc McCallum Memorial Trophy on Tuesday, capping off a standout season behind the bench in Victoria.
In his first full year with the team, he led the Royals to a 40-17-4-7 record, good for 91 points and a B.C. Division title 香蕉视频直播� their first since 2015-16 and only the second in franchise history.
It香蕉视频直播檚 not Patrick香蕉视频直播檚 first time winning the league香蕉视频直播檚 top coaching honour. He also took home the award in 2021-22 while leading the Winnipeg ICE to a 53-10-5 record and a trip to the WHL Conference Finals.
This season, he brought that same level of consistency and structure to a Royals group that took a big step forward.
Victoria posted the second-best road record in the league at 23-8-2-1 and finished fourth in total goals scored with 272. Their power play was a weapon, converting at a 28.6% clip 香蕉视频直播� second-best in the WHL. And when it came to discipline, the Royals stayed in check, finishing with the third-fewest penalty minutes (668).
The result? A long-overdue playoff win for a franchise that hadn香蕉视频直播檛 seen the second round since 2019. Though the season ended in a six-game series against Spokane, the progress was clear 香蕉视频直播� and league voters took notice.
Patrick becomes just the second coach in Royals history to win the Dunc McCallum Memorial Trophy, joining Dave Lowry, who won it twice during his time in Victoria.
The award is voted on by WHL general managers and members of the media and recognizes the coach who had the biggest impact over the course of the season.
Four other Royals were recognized as WHL year-end award finalists, though none came away with the honour.
General manager Jake Heisinger was in the running for Executive of the Year, Keaton Verhoeff earned a nod for Rookie of the Year, Kenta Isogai was up for Most Sportsmanlike Player, and goaltender Jayden Kraus was a finalist for Humanitarian of the Year.
