The Kelowna Rockets (7–6–1–1) return to Prospera Place for a weekend double-header before heading south of the border for a Sunday matchup in Everett.
The Rockets host the Lethbridge Hurricanes (6–14–0–1) tonight, followed by the Spokane Chiefs (9–9–0–0) on Saturday.
Puck drop is set for 7:05 pm on Friday and 6:05 pm on Saturday. The weekend concludes Sunday afternoon when Kelowna visits the Everett Silvertips (15–2–2–0) at Angel of the Winds Arena.
Fans can catch both home games live for free on Victory+ or by listening live on 104.7 The Lizard, with tickets available at selectyourtickets.com.
Photo Credit: Submitted
The Rockets are coming off a somewhat successful Island trip, splitting their weekend series against the Victoria Royals, capped by a 6–3 victory on Saturday.
Kelowna now has points in four of their last five games and continues to find offensive momentum led by Tij Iginla (9G, 3A), Carson Wetsch (4G, 11A), and Tomas Poletin (9G, 5A).
Friday’s matchup will feature two notable debuts for the Rockets: Pittsburgh Penguins draft pick Peyton Kettles, acquired earlier this month from the Swift Current Broncos, and Shane Smith, who will face his former team, the Lethbridge Hurricanes, in his first home game since joining Kelowna.
Lethbridge enters the weekend sitting dead last at 11th in the Eastern Conference and is led offensively by Luke Cozens (13G, 16A) and Logan Wormald (11G, 15A), who have both been the primary scorers for the Hurricanes. The Hurricanes have struggled to keep pucks out of their net this season, allowing 97 goals through 21 games.
Kelowna will look to take advantage of a Hurricanes penalty kill that sits at 69.9%, while continuing to build chemistry among their newly formed forward lines.
The Rockets will wrap up their homestand with a key Western Conference test against the Spokane Chiefs, who defeated Kelowna 8–2 in the season opener. Spokane has gone 9–9–0–0 since, led by Mathis Preston (7G, 8A) and Chase Harrington (7G, 6A).
Kelowna will look for revenge after an 8-2 loss on opening night back in September. They will have to take advantage of a Spokane power play, which is at a league-low 8.22%
The Rockets travel to Everett to close out the weekend against one of the WHL’s hottest teams. The Silvertips (15–2–2–0) sit atop the Western Conference standings, powered by Matias Vanhanen (5G, 25A) and Julius Miettinen (12G, 16A).
Everett has lost all four of their games at home this season, which gives hope to a Rockets team coming off a three-in-three. The Rockets will look to slow the league’s most potent offense and build off their recent road success, having gone 6–3–0–0 away from home.
Inside the numbers
Rockets Record: 7–6–1–1
Goals For/Against: 49 GF / 53 GA
Power Play: 11/68 (16.2%)
Penalty Kill: 13/62 (79.0%)
Injury report
- Will Sharpe (UBI) – Day-to-Day
- Gabriel Guilbault (UBI) – Day-to-Day
Upcoming WHL milestones
- Mazden Leslie – 1 point shy of 200 career WHL points
- Mazden Leslie – 6 games away from 300 career WHL games
- Carson Wetsch – 7 games away from 200 career WHL games
- Hiroki Gojsic – 5 points shy of 100 career WHL points
Upcoming schedule
After these weekend matchups, the Rockets head back home to take on the Edmonton Oil Kings for a mid-weekday game on November 19th at 7:05 pm. Tickets are available at selectyourtickets.com!
