Game Day: Rockets ready for second of back to back games against Royals
Rockets @ Royals
Tuesday, February 19th, 2019
Game Time – 7:05 pm
Game Day Preview: The Kelowna Rockets meet the Victoria Royals for the 8th and final time this season. The Rockets are 5-2-0-0, having out-scored their BC Division rivals 29-14. The Rockets beat the Royals last night 5-2, with Kyle Topping, Lassi Thomson and Mark Liwiski each scoring twice and adding an assist in the teams’ 24th win of the season. The 5-2 win comes on the heels of two victories back in October by scores of 5-1 and 8-2. Liam Kindree leads the team in points in the seasonal series with 10 (4+6=10) while Nolan Foote has 6 goals in 7 games. Roman Basran has played in five of the games, posting a 4-0-0-0 record with a goals against average of 0.94. The Rockets travel to Spokane to face the Chiefs on Friday. The teams’ next home game is Saturday against the visiting Kamloops Blazers. Overall, the Rockets are 8-11-2-1 in 22 games since the Christmas break. The Rockets are 20-18-4-1 in 43 games under head coach Adam Foote.
Who’s Hot:.Kyle Topping has 5+12=17 in his last 13 games…Leif Mattson has 1+6=7 in six games….Alex Swetlikoff has 2+5=7 in his last six games….Nolan Foote has 7+4=11 in his last 13 games….Lassi Thomson has 7+3=10 in his last 14 games …The Rockets have points in 14 of their last 21 home games (11-7-3-0).
Broadcasters Notebook: Liam Kindree returns to the line-up tonight after missing 9 games with a broken nose….Five Kelowna Rockets prospects are participating in the Canada Winter Games in Red Deer. February 15th to March 3rd. Among those participating is 15 year-old Trevor Wong, a first round bantam pick in 2018….Defenceman Shael Higson played in his 300th career game Monday in Victoria….The Rockets have 11 games left in the regular season. Of those 11, 7 are against teams in the BC Division…The team will play three games in three nights March 1st, 2nd and 3rd…The team has been out-shot in 14 of the last 21 games…The Rockets are 5-10-1-0 in 16 games against a US Division team this season. Three of the five wins have come against Tri City with a single victory over Everett and Seattle…The team plays 4 more games against US Division rivals with two games against Spokane and Portland.…The Rockets have played 18-one goal games at home this season. Last year they played 15-one goal games at Prospera Place…The team has played in nine-one goal games on the road…The Rockets are 11-13-2-1 against BC Division teams this season…Five members of the Kelowna Rockets have made NHL Central Scouting’s latest rankings. Lassi Thomson is rated 14th, Nolan Foote is ranked 26th and Kaedan Korczak is 31st. Kyle Topping is 195th while Alex Swetlikoff is 217th, Among goalies, Roman Basran is 11th among North American netminders…..Adam Foote was officially named the new head coach of the Kelowna Rockets on October 23, 2018 replacing Jason Smith.,,The Rockets are 9-12-1-0 when playing the second game of back-to-backs….The team acquired 20 year-old Shael Higson from the Brandon Wheat Kings for 20 year-old Braydyn Chizen and a 5th round bantam pick. The team then claimed 20 year-old defenceman Matt Barberis off waivers from the Vancouver Giants. To make room for Barberis, the team released overage forward Lane Zablocki, who is now with the BCHL’s Vernon Vipers.
Season Highs/Lows:
Most goals scored: 8 @ Victoria October 19/18 (8-2 W)
Most goals allowed: 9 vs. Seattle October 10th, 2018 (9-6 L)
Most shots on net: 45 @ Seattle October 6th, 2018 (4-1 L).
Fewest shots on net: 13 @ Edmonton November 17, 2018 (3-1 L)
Most shots allowed: 50 @ Portland November 10, 2018 (3-0 L)
Fewest shots allowed: 16 vs. Victoria December 7, 2018 (2-0 win)
Last time shut out at home: October 3rd, 2018 vs. Vancouver (5-0 L)
Last time shut out on road: February 1, 2019 @ Spokane (4-0 L)
Last shutout at home: December 7, 2018 vs. Victoria (2-0 W – Roman Basran 16 saves)
Last shutout on the road: January 18, 2019 @ Everett (2-0 W – James Porter 40 saves)
Most power play goals allowed: 4 vs. Seattle October 10th, 2018 (9-6 L). T-Birds were 4/5 on power play.
Most power play goals scored: 4 @ Victoria October 19, 2018 (8-2 W)
Overtime Games (7): vs. Kamloops (2-1 W) February 2, 2019, vs. Seattle (3-2 Loss) January 30, 2019, @ Kamloops (3-2 Loss) December 28, 2018, vs. Saskatoon (5-4 Loss) December 1, 2018, @ Tri City Nov 30, 2018 (3-2 win), @ PG (4-3 Loss) November 14, 2018, vs. PG (4-3 win) October 27, 2018.
Game Notes Compiled by Regan Bartel of AM 1150
