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Victoria Royals forward Tarun Fizer admitted it is bittersweet inheriting the mantle of captain the way he has due to circumstances.

Previous captain Phillip Schultz was eligible to return as an over-age 20-year-old. But Schultz is an import, who twice represented Denmark in the world junior championship, and it was too complex a proposition to try to get him into Canada amid the pandemic.

“It’s upsetting that Phillip is not coming back because he was also my billet brother and we are friends,” Fizer said. “But at least he is playing pro in Europe and that’s exciting for him.”

They may be close, but they are two different personalities.

“[Schultz] was more of a voice in the room and had a style of play that created a lot of energy on the ice,” the softly spoken Fizer said.

“My style is more to lead by example.”

Fizer, the eighth captain in team history since 2011-12, is entering his fourth season with the Royals. His first captain in Victoria was Calgary Flames NHL draft pick Matthew Phillips, now a pro in the AHL with Stockton.

“I learned from Matthew Phillips to just be yourself,” Fizer said. “He didn’t change who he was when he became captain.”

Fizer said a sports team is a whole, not just a collection of individuals, so every player should strive to be a captain in their own way, whether they wear the ‘C’ or not.

“No player should just be looking after himself,” said the native of Chestermere, Alta.

Fizer was named captain of the Royals on Thursday for the bubbled and abbreviated 24-game Western Hockey League B.C. Division season which begins March 26 in the Kelowna and Kamloops hubs with no fans. There will be no playoffs so the title will be decided in European soccer format — the team that tops the standings will be declared ­divisional champion.

“With 24 games, it’s [going to be] the team that comes out hottest,” Fizer said.

“But it’s important not just to watch the standings, but focus on every game as it comes.”

Even an abbreviated 2021 season will at least give the graduating 20-year-old players some semblance of a final season of junior and also showcase the 18-year-olds for the 2021 NHL draft and 19-year-olds looking for pro contracts.

Fizer had 19 goals and 53 points in 57 games in 2019-20 before everything came to an abrupt halt in the WHL exactly one year ago Thursday. He plays a prototype pro style. But he is undrafted, so salvaging this ­season, even in its truncated form, is important.

“Consistency over the 24 games is going to be the key to get those pro [scouting] looks,” Fizer said.

Fizer will likely reprise the captain’s role for what is looking to be a more normal 2021-22 season post-vaccine. Although he turned 20 this month, Fizer is eligible to return to Blanshard Street next season as one of three allowable Royals over-agers and will be one of those rare players to not only play five seasons in the WHL, but, rarer still, with the same team.

The Royals, and rest of the B.C. Division players, are self-isolating this week before meeting up with their teams on Saturday in Kelowna or Kamloops. Each player will arrive from his home community and be tested. The Royals will be based in Kelowna.

cdheensaw@timescolonist.com