Cardinal Sport Preview: Rockets return to action with trip to Spokane against the Chiefs
The Kelowna Rockets are returning to action for the first time in ten days as they travel to Spokane to take on the Chiefs in a quick one game road trip.
The Rockets are coming off a dominant performance on home ice when they defeated the Moose Jaw Warriors 6-0 at Prospera Place on October 25th. Tij Iginla recorded his second hat trick of the season, giving him nine goals in nine games while Andrew Cristall had another strong performance as he finished with four points. Cristall has now put up 16 points in six games since arriving back in Kelowna, giving him a league best 2.67 points per game.
Jake Pilon also had a strong outing, as he made 17 saves for his first career Western Hockey League shutout. The 18-year-old goaltender has gone 4-0-0-1 in five starts with a 2.56 goals-against-average and a .918 save percentage.
CHIEFS
Spokane comes into the game having played a pair of games over the weekend against Portland and Tri-City, splitting the weekend with a 4-2 win over Portland and 4-3 loss to Tri-City. After hosting the Rockets, the Chiefs will then play Kamloops on November 8 before making their first trip to Kelowna the following night.
ROCKETS TO WATCH
- Stay at home defenceman Jackson Gillespie has found an offensive touch to his game as the 2025 NHL Draft eligible has chipped in with a goal and four assists in nine games. In 44 games last season with Kelowna, Gillespie had one goal and seven points, a total he is set to smash.
- Connor Pankratz registered his first point of the season in his first game back from injury when he assisted on Brett Calhoon’s third period marker. Pankratz is still looking for his first WHL goal but has been solid playing in Kelowna’s
CHIEFS TO WATCH
- 2022 first-round pick Chase Harrington is averaging a point-per-game this season thus far with the Chiefs, putting up four goals and 11 points. He currently sits third in team scoring behind Shea Van Olm and Berkly Catton.
- Sam Oremba made his Chiefs debut last weekend after being acquired in a trade with the Regina Pats. The 19-year-old forward has six points in 12 games so far this season after posting 22 goals and 46 points in 66 games last year with the Pats.
THE LAST TIME THESE TWO MET
The Rockets and Chiefs met in early October, with Spokane taking a 5-3 victory. The Chiefs got two goals from both Shea Van Olm and Mathis Preston. Kelowna got all three of its goals from Jakub Stancl who scored at even strength, on the power play as well as shorthanded.
SEASON RECORD
- Oct. 4 @ SPO • 5-3 L
- Nov. 5 @ SPO • 7:05 pm
- Nov. 9 vs SPO • 6:05 pm
- Jan. 15 vs SPO • 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
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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.
