Preview: Seattle At Kelowna – OurSports Central
October 6, 2022 – Western Hockey League (WHL) – Kelowna Rockets News Release
Kelowna Rockets defenseman Jackson DeSouza vs. the Seattle Thunderbirds
(Kelowna Rockets, Credit: Steve Dunsmoor)
The Kelowna Rockets will be looking to build on their two-game win streak when they host the Seattle Thunderbirds on Friday night at Prospera Place – puck drop is set for 7:05 pm.
It’s the first meeting for the two since the 2022 WHL Playoffs, where the T-Birds eliminated the Rockets in the first round. Seattle advanced all the way to the championship, where they fell to the Edmonton Oil Kings.
“Not much has changed over there from last year for them,” said Rockets head coach Kris Mallette in his post-game interview on Wednesday.
“We know they’re a team that is very skilled, very hard to play against. Players obviously with our returning roster are well aware of what Seattle brings. We’re going to have to bring our A-game, there’s no secret there .”
The Rockets are coming off a 3-0 win over the Victoria Royals on Wednesday night on home ice. Marcus Pacheco and Caden Price scored in the first, and Adam Kydd added another in the third for insurance. Jari Kykkanen made twenty saves to pick up his second career shutout.
Seattle has had a light schedule to open the season playing just two games so far. They opened the season in Vancouver with a 4-3 in a shootout win on September 23rd and again downed the Giants 6-2 in their home opener on October 1st.
tickets
Single game tickets for Wednesday’s game and all other Rockets games are available at Select Your Tickets. Tickets can be purchased online through www.selectyourtickets.com, at the Prospera Place box office, or by phone at 250-762-5050.
Roster updates
Both Colton Dach and Talyn Boyko are still away at training camps.
Players to watch
Kelowna
Both Andrew Cristall and Gabriel Szturc are riding four-game point streaks with an identical stat line of three goals and five assists.
Adam Kydd leap-frogged his way into first for team scoring with a two-point performance on Wednesday. The coverage forward now has four goals and five assists through four games, he also leads the Rockets in shots on goal with seventeen.
Seventeen-year-old forward Marcus Pacheco is starting to heat up, registering a point in each of his last three games (2G, 1A)
Seattle
Defenseman Kevin Korchinski is expected to make his 2022-23 debut after being returned to Seattle by the Chicago Blackhawks. The 2022 US Division rookie of the year was selected seventh overall by Chicago this past June.
Forward Reid Schaefer was selected by the Edmonton Oilers in the first round (no. 32) in the 2022 NHL Draft. He’s appeared in one game for Seattle this season, posting a goal and two penalty minutes.
Lake Country product Tij Iginla was selected ninth overall by the Thunderbirds in the 2021 WHL Prospects Draft, he spent last season with RINK Kelowna. He’s the son of former NHLer Jarome and brother of Canadian Under-18 gold medal winner Jade.
Series at a glance
2021-22 Season Series vs SEA (1-2-0-1)
Dec 7 @ Seattle 2-1 SOL
Dec 11 vs Seattle 5-4 L
Feb 27 @ Seattle 4-3 W
Mar 1 @ Seattle 4-3 L
2022-23 Season Series vs SEA
october 7 vs Seattle 7:05pm
Nov 23 @ Seattle 7:05 pm
Dec 30 vs Seattle 7:05pm
Dec 31 @ Seattle 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.
Stream online video
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.
Online 50/50
The Kelowna Rockets online 50/50 is back for the 2022-23 season!
The online 50/50 will give fans in Rockets fans located in British Columbia and those who are attending the game the chance to win during every Rockets home game this season. The 50/50 will also raise important dollars for the Kelowna Minor Hockey Association.
Tickets will be available for purchase on all game days starting at 9 am PT and ending at the start of the third period on the same day.
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