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| James Hilsendager - Shoot the Breeze Photo |
Game Night Preview: The Kelowna Rockets open
an Eastern Division road trip Friday with a stop in Regina against the Pats.
It is the first time these two teams have met since a three player trade
between the two teams November 30/2016 when the Rockets sent 17
year-old Jonathan Smart to the ‘Queen City’ for 17 year-old forward Erik
Gardiner and 19 year-old James Hilsendager. Smart has since been traded to
Kootenay while Hilsendager is one of three 20 year-old’s on the Rockets roster.
Gardiner remains sidelined with an upper body injury. Hilsendager has been the
biggest surprise in the trade with 11 goals and 23 assists=34 points in 73
career games in Kelowna. With the Pats, Hilsendager had 1+17=18 in 135 regular
season games
Eastern Conference Roady: The team begins an Eastern Division road trip tonight in Regina, It continues December 9th in Brandon, December 12th in Moose Jaw, December 13th in Swift Current, December 15th in Prince Albert and concludes December 16th in Saskatoon. The Rockets were 3-3-0-0 in the 6 games in 2015-2016 with wins in Regina, Swift Current and Moose Jaw. Team is playing 6 games in 9 nights.
Sasky Boyz: The Kelowna Rockets
feature four players and two staff that have ties to Saskatchewan. Kaedan Korczak
is from Yorkton. James Hilsendager is from Lloydminster, Saskatchewan while
Erik Gardiner is from Humboldt. Kole Lind is from Shaunavon. Athletic Therapist
Scott Hoyer is from Regina while broadcaster Regan Bartel is from Swift
Current.
Broadcasters Notebook:
Head
Coach Jason Smith played 128 regular season games for the Pats from 1991-1993. Smith
was the team captain in 1992-93 scoring 14 goals and collecting 66 points and was
named the WHL defenceman of the year, was named a CHL 1st team
all-star and won a gold medal for Canada at the World Junior’s …The Rockets have shorthanded goals in four
of their last five games…Forward Erik Gardiner has missed 14 straight games
with injury. Gardiner last played October 28th against the Prince
George Cougars….Leading scorer Kole Lind had missed 7 straight games with mono but returned Saturday
with a goal and an assist in a win over Kootenay…Kyle Topping and Libor
Zabrasky are both rated as ‘C’ prospects for June’s NHL draft by NHL Central
Scouting. Topping was not on the ‘Players to Watch’ list in October before
appearing in November’s rankings…The Rockets have won 10 straight games on home
ice with wins over Portland, Tri City, Prince George (twice), Vancouver, Red
Deer, Edmonton, Lethbridge and Kootenay….The Rockets played their 16 hundredth regular
season game in franchise history November 3rd in Victoria in a 4-2
win…Carsen Twarynski has 15 goals in his last 16 games….James Porter has started
in 18 of the last 22 games…The Rockets are 4 and 2 in overtime with game
winners coming from Kole Lind, Dillon Dube Carsen Twarynski (twice). The only
loss in OT came against the Tri City Americans and Portland Winterhawks…The
Rockets are 7-3-1-0 in the second of back-to-back games….The Rockets are
9-3-0-0 against BC Division teams this season….The Rockets are 12-0-0-1 when
leading after 2 periods…The Rockets are 14-1-1-1 when scoring the first goal of
the game…Dillon Dube has goals in four of his last five games.
Hockey Hotbed: The Kelowna Rockets
are in their 27th year of existence since coming into the Western
Hockey League as an expansion franchise in 1991. After four seasons in Tacoma,
the team relocated to Kelowna in 1995-96, where the team has spent the last 22
years in the Okanagan. The team has four WHL championships (2003, 2005, 2009,
2015) and have missed the playoffs only once in their existence. The hockey
club has made four straight appearances in the Western Conference final and has
registered 40 or more wins in five consecutive seasons.
Milestones: Head Coach Jason
Smith coached his 100th career regular season game against the
Kootenay Ice on December 2nd…Carsen Twarynski played in his 200th
career game October 28th against the Prince George Cougars…James
Hilsendager plays in his 200th career game November 14th vs.
Oil Kings.
Roster
Stats:
Player
total:
26
Year by
Year Breakdown:
20’s (1997) – 3 Ballhorn, Twarynski, Hilsendager
19’s (1998) - 5 Salmond, Lind, Dube, Cal Foote,
Chizen
18’s (1999) - 6 Topping, Mattson, Gardiner, Bruggen-Cate, Cowell, Skvrne
17’s (2000) - 10
Porter, Foote, Belcourt, Zabransky,
Kindree, Brennan, McGauley, Kushniryk, Pow, Hair
16’s (2001) - 2 Korczak, Basran
NHL
Drafted Players: Cal
Foote (Tampa Bay 2017), Kole Lind (Vancouver 2017), Dillon Dube (Calgary 2016),
Carsen Twarynski (Philadelphia 2016), Brayden Chizen (Minnesota 2016).
Game Notes Compiled by Regan Bartel of AM 1150
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