Cardinal Sport Preview: Rockets to open second round in Prince George this weekend
Kelowna Rockets at Prince George Cougars – Game One
Date | Time | Friday, Apr. 12, 2024 | 7:00 pm |
Video Stream | CHL TV |
Radio | 104.7 The Lizard + Rocket Fan App |
Live Stats | WHL Box Score |
Live Updates | @Kelowna_Rockets on X (formally Twitter) |
Kelowna Rockets at Prince George Cougars – Game Two
Date | Time | Saturday, Apr. 13, 2024 | 6:00 pm |
Video Stream | CHL TV |
Radio | 104.7 The Lizard + Rocket Fan App |
Live Stats | WHL Box Score |
Live Updates | @Kelowna_Rockets on X (formally Twitter) |
The Kelowna Rockets and Prince George Cougars will meet in the playoffs for the first time since 2011 when they open their round two matchup on Friday at the CN Centre in Prince George on Friday.
The Rockets swept the Cougars in the 2011 playoffs. Prince George defeated Kelowna 4-1 in their only other playoff meeting in 2000.
The Western Conference-leading Cougars have been off since April 3, when they completed a sweep of the Spokane Chiefs, while it took Kelowna six games to down the higher-seeded Wenatchee Wild.
“It was an exciting first round, we faced some adversity which I think was good for our group,” said Rockets goaltender Jari Kykkanen in an interview post practice with kelownarockets.com earlier this week. “Especially going in against Prince Geroge, we needed to learn how to battle back and be in those kind of situations where we’e down but not out.”
The Rockets will be without Luke Schelter for the first two games of the series as he sits out the remainder of his three game suspension.
The Cougars and Rockets were the two top-scoring B.C. Division teams in the 2023-24 regular season with dynamic talents like recent Washington Capitals signing Zac Funk and Minnesota Wild prospect Riley Heidt taking on another Caps prospect in Andrew Cristall and Tampa Bay Lightning prospect Gabriel Szturc.
“We know the Cougars, we’ve played them a lot this year,” said Michael Cicek in an interview post practice with kelownarockets.com earlier this week. “I think to be successful, we really have to dial in our systems and shut them down through the neutral zone. We’ve got to minimize our turn overs, that’s big because they’re a huge transition team. If we capitalize on our chances and do everything to minimize their chances, I think we’re going to have success.”
It’s also a tilt between two of the top draft-eligible players expected to be selected by NHL teams this June, with Tij Iginla ranked 11th among North American skaters by NHL Central Scouting and Terik Parascak slotted in at 14th.
Prince George owned a 6-1-0-1 record against Kelowna in the regular season, though six of the games were decided by a single goal and three required overtime or a shootout.
“To be successful, we need to stay disciplined,” said Dylan Wightman in an interview post practice with kelownarockets.com earlier this week. “They’ve got one of the best power plays in the league and I think it just comes down to use playing our team game. If we play the way that we can play
WATCH KYKKANEN INTERVIEW | WATCH CICEK INTERVIEW | WATCH WIGHTMAN INTERVIEW | WATCH IGINLA INTERVIEW
2023-24 REGULAR SEASON SERIES
October 3, 2023– Kelowna 2, Prince George 3
October 4, 2023– Kelowna 1, Prince George 8
October 13, 2023– Prince George 4, Kelowna 5
November 18, 2023– Prince George 5– Kelowna 4
January 12, 2024– Kelowna 2, Prince George 5
January 13, 2024– Kelowna 3– Prince George 2 (SO)
February 24, 2024– Prince George 6– Kelowna5 (SO)
March 13, 2024– Prince George 6, Kelowna 5 (OT)
GAMES THREE AND FOUR NEXT WEEK IN KELOWNA
The Rockets will return home next week to host the Cougars on Tuesday, April 16 and Wednesday, April 17 at 7:05 pm at Prospera Place. Single game tickets for both games are now on sale at Select Your Tickets.
Tickets can be purchased:
- Online at selectyourtickets.com
- By calling Select Your Tickets at 250-762-5050
- Or by visiting the Select Your Tickets box office at the Prospera Place box office. The box office is open 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Monday through Friday and opens at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday home game days.
ROCKETS ROSTER UPDATES
Injury updates are not provided in the playoffs
SERIES SCHEDULE
Game | Date | Visitor | Home | Time |
1 | Friday, April 12 | Kelowna | Prince George | 7:00 p.m. PST |
2 | Saturday, April 13 | Kelowna | Prince George | 6:00 p.m. PST |
3 | Tuesday, April 16 | Prince George | Kelowna | 7:05 p.m. PST |
4 | Wednesday, April 17 | Prince George | Kelowna | 7:05 p.m. PST |
5* | Friday, April 19 | Kelowna | Prince George | 7:00 p.m. PST |
6* | Sunday, April 21 | Prince George | Kelowna | 2:05 p.m. PST |
7* | Tuesday, April 23 | Kelowna | Prince George | 7:00 p.m. PST |
*-If necessary
GAME BREAKERS
GOALTENDING
X-FACTOR
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.
Fans can watch the Rockets next at Prospera Place on April 16 and 17 when Kelowna hosts the Cougars for games three and four of their best of seven series.
Tickets can be purchased online at selectyourtickets.com, by calling Select Your Tickets at 250-762-5050 or by visiting the Select Your Tickets box office at the Prospera Place box office. The box office is open 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Monday through Friday and opens at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday home game days.