Cardinal Sport Preview: Rockets in Seattle to take on Thunderbirds
Coming off a busy week which saw the Kelowna Rockets play four games in five days, the team will now set their sights on a Tuesday night matchup with the Seattle Thunderbirds in the fourth and final meeting of the season.
Kelowna comes into Tuesday’s game having lost two tight games on home ice, falling 3-2 to Prince George on Friday and 4-2 to the Tri-City Americans on Saturday. Seattle is one of three teams Kelowna is fighting with for the eighth and final playoff spot as the Thunderbirds currently hold the final spot and are four points up on the Rockets.
THUNDERBIRDS
Seattle comes into the game having split this past weekend, suffering a 9-1 loss on home ice to Spokane before rallying for a 4-3 victory on Saturday in Portland. Radim Mrtka had a goal and two assists in the victory.
ROCKETS ROSTER AND INJURY UPDATE
The Rockets were dealt a blow when it was announced that captain Max Graham would be out indefinitely due to undergoing successful knee surgery. The Rockets have already been out without star forward Tij Iginla who underwent successful hip surgery earlier in the season.
Gabriel Guilbault and Kanjyu Gojsic who were both out recently will lower body injuries have both returned to the lineup.
ROCKETS TO WATCH
- Jackson Gillespie scored twice in his last game to Seattle, his first of two, two-goal performances on the season.
- Hayden Paupanekis registered a goal, an assist and went +3 in Kelowna victory on January 18th over the T-Birds.
THUNDERBIRDS TO WATCH
- Brayden Schuurman scored the game winning goal in Seattle’s 4-3 overtime victory in Kelowna on January 17th and has seven points in nine games since being acquired.
- Coster Dunn currently sits third on the Thunderbirds in points with 39 in 50 games, including 18 goals.
THE LAST TIME THESE TWO MET
The Rockets raced out to a 3-0 lead on January 18 and were able to hold on for a 5-2 win. Jackson Gillespie scored twice in the contest while the Rockets also got goals from Levi Benson, Jakub Stancl and Hayden Paupanekis.
SEASON RECORD
- Nov. 13 vs SEA • 5-3 W
- Jan. 17 vs SEA • 4-3 L OT
- Jan. 18 @ SEA • 5-2 W
- Feb. 11 @ SEA • @ 7:05 pm
WATCH AND LISTEN
Radio broadcast
Rockets games will be broadcast on 104.7 FM the Lizard this season with Regan Bartel calling all of the action.
Don’t forget to download the RocketFAN app and visit rocketfan.ca for more exclusive Rockets content from Pattison. Fans can stream the radio broadcast of all Rockets games on the app.
Click here to download RocketFAN on Google Play
Click here to download RocketFAN on the App Store
Online video stream
All Rockets games will be available on WHL Live. WHL Live on is available to fans anywhere in the world, providing high-quality streaming of WHL games on Apple TV, Roku, and Amazon Fire TV platforms, via mobile with iOS and Android, and on web using Safari or Google Chrome web browsers. Visit watch.chl.ca for complete details and subscription options.
Six and twelve game Mini Packs for the Kelowna Rockets season are now on sale through Select Your Tickets. To learn how to save on walk-up tickets and use the flexibility of a Mini Pack click here.
