RECAP: Rockets Down Giants 5-2

Category: ArticleNovember 1, 2025

Langley, B.C. – The Vancouver Giants were defeated 5-2 by the visiting Kelowna Rockets on Saturday night at Langley Events Centre.

The loss drops the Giants’ overall record to 7-8-0-1, while the Rockets improve to 5-5-1-1.

Ethan Mittelsteadt and Aaron Obobaifo scored the Giants goals, both of which came on the power play.

Carson Wetsch had two goals for Kelowna – one of which was into the empty net – while Jacob Henderson, Tomas Poletin and Tij Iginla had the other Rockets’ goals.

The Giants found themselves down 3-1 entering the third period and pushed hard to tie the game, firing 19 shots on goal, but 4-2 was as close as they’d get. Kelowna goaltender Josh Banini finished the night with 31 saves on 33 shots.

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GAME SUMMARY

The Rockets scored the first goal less than three minutes in, when Wetsch beat Pyne on a low shot from the right circle.

Vancouver tied it on a power play a few minutes later off a point shot from Mittelsteadt.

MITTELSTEADT ON THE POWERPLAY😮‍💨😮‍💨😮‍💨😮‍💨

GIANTS TIE IT UP 1-1 IN THE 1ST WEOOOOOO pic.twitter.com/q4VT9Q4YHo

— Vancouver Giants (@WHLGiants) November 2, 2025

Kelowna pushed back and controlled the remainder of the first period, eventually getting rewarded at 13:37 when Henderson’s point shot changed direction on its way through to give Kelowna a 2-1 lead after 20 minutes.

Fifty-six seconds into the middle frame, Poletin extended the visitors’ lead to 3-1 on the power play when his pass from the goal line went off a Giants stick and into their own net.

Six minutes later, Kelowna scored another power play goal, this time when Iginla rushed the net and took a great pass from Poletin before deking and scoring his third of the season to make it 4-1.

Obobaifo gave the Giants some life late in the third period when he snuck one under the arm of Banini from the bumper position during 6-on-4 action.

#8 OBOBAIFO FINDS THE BACK OF THE NET ON THE POWERPLAY WEOOOO😮‍💨🔥 pic.twitter.com/zD9HKHjETd

— Vancouver Giants (@WHLGiants) November 2, 2025

Wetsch added an empty-net goal to make the final score 5-2.

STATISTICS

SOG: VAN —7/7/19 = 33 | KEL – 12/8/13 = 33
PP: VAN—2/6 | KEL — 2/5
Face-Offs: VAN — 23 | KEL — 34

3 STARS

1st: KEL – Josh Banini – 31 Saves on 33 Shots
2nd: VAN – Tobias Tomik – 1A, 1 SOG
3rd: KEL –Tomas Poletin – 1G, 1A, 2 SOG

GOALTENDING BATTLE

Vancouver: LOSS – Kelton Pyne (28 saves / 32 shots)
Kelowna: WIN – Josh Banini (31 saves / 33 shots)

THEY SAID IT

“We found our game in the third period, but I thought kind of a B game in the first and second period and we were a little bit flat. Their goalie played well. We just weren’t able to generate enough. A couple bad bounces on [their] second and third goals. You’ve got to earn your luck. Their goalie made some saves. We had a few go off guys and things like that. I thought d-zone coverage we were good. We didn’t give up a lot. At the end there when it got a little loose and we were trying to create some offence on the power play, we gave up a few breakaways, but the margin for error in this league is so tight so you’ve got to be ready to start. And I thought just not enough urgency right off the bat.”

UPCOMING

The Giants host Prince George tomorrow.

Date	Opponent	Time	Location
Sunday, November 2	Prince George	4:00 PM PDT	Langley Events Centre
Friday, November 7	Tri-City	7:05 PM PDT	Toyota Center
Saturday, November 8	Seattle	6:05 PM PDT	Accesso ShoWare Center

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