PREVIEW: Rockets at Broncos 12/14/22
| Kelowna Rockets at Swift Current Broncos |
| Date | Time | Wed., Dec. 14, 2022 | 5:00 pm PT |
| Video Stream | CHL TV |
| Radio | 104.7 The Lizard |
| Live Stats | WHL Box Score |
| Live Updates | @Kelowna_Rockets Twitter |
| Next Game | Fri., Dec. 16 at Lethbridge |
The Kelowna Rockets will kick off their three-game Central Division road trip on Wednesday night against the Swift Current Broncos – puck drop is set for 5:00 pm pacific time.
This will be the only time that the Rockets visit the province of Saskatchewan this season, Swift Current is the only Saskatchewan-based team that plays in the Central Division. All of the Eastern Division teams made the trip to Kelowna this season.
The Rockets last played the Broncos on October 16, 2019, where Kelowna downed them 3-2 in overtime at Prospera Place.
Kelowna will be looking to snap a two-game losing streak. They were last in action on Saturday in Langley, where they fell 3-2 to the Vancouver Giants in overtime. While on the power play in overtime a pair of Rockets collided, two Giants players took the puck up the ice on an odd-man rush with Brenden Pentecost beating Rockets starter Jari Kykkanen. Carson Golder and Max Graham were the goal scorers, while Kykkanen stopped 28 of the 31 shots he faced.
The Broncos have dropped their last four games. They also last played on Saturday, where they fell 4-3 to the Lethbridge Hurricanes in a shootout at home.
Roster Updates
The Rockets will be without captain Colton Dach, forwards Adam Kydd, Gabriel Szturc and defenceman Jackson Romeril this week.
Dach was named to Hockey Canada’s World Junior team on Monday. Szturc has left for Czechia’s World Junior camp.
Kydd remains sidelined with a lower-body injury. Romeril underwent a tonsillectomy last week, he will miss the next two weeks.
Click here to view the Rockets Injury Report.
Players to watch
Kelowna
- Turner McMillen, Nolan Flamand and Caden Price are the only Saskatchewan-born players on the Rockets roster.
- Forward Max Graham has the hot hand at the moment he has three goals in his last three games. The 18-year-old was held to three goals through the first 19 games of the season.
- Defenceman Noah Dorey has two assists in his last two games.
Swift Current
- Defenceman Owen Pickering was selected 21st overall by the Pittsburgh Penguins in the 2022 NHL Draft. He leads all Broncos defencemen in points and sits fourth in team scoring with 16 points (4G, 12A) through 22 games.
- Forward Brady Birnie is ranked as a ‘C’ prospect on the NHL Central Scouting’s preliminary rankings released in October. He has 10 points (4G, 6A) through 27 games.
- Centreman Mathew Ward leads the Broncos in scoring, posting 30 points (13G, 17A) through 27 games.
Division Standings
BC Division standings
as of Tuesday afternoon
| TEAM | GP | W | L | OTL | SOL | PTS | |
| 1 | Kamloops Blazers | 27 | 16 | 6 | 3 | 2 | 37 |
| 2 | Prince George Cougars | 29 | 14 | 14 | 1 | 0 | 29 |
| 3 | Vancouver Giants | 30 | 11 | 14 | 3 | 2 | 27 |
| 4 | Kelowna Rockets | 26 | 10 | 13 | 3 | 0 | 23 |
| 5 | Victoria Royals | 30 | 5 | 22 | 3 | 0 | 13 |
Central Division standings
as of Tuesday afternoon
| TEAM | GP | W | L | OTL | SOL | PTS | |
| 1 | Red Deer Rebels | 30 | 21 | 5 | 1 | 3 | 46 |
| 2 | Lethbridge Hurricanes | 30 | 18 | 11 | 0 | 1 | 37 |
| 3 | Calgary Hitmen | 28 | 15 | 9 | 3 | 1 | 34 |
| 4 | Medicine Hat Tigers | 31 | 11 | 15 | 4 | 1 | 27 |
| 5 | Swift Current Broncos | 27 | 12 | 14 | 0 | 1 | 25 |
| 6 | Edmonton Oil Kings | 30 | 4 | 25 | 1 | 0 | 9 |
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 on CHL TV. WHL Live on CHL TV 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.
