It's Getting Hot in Here...

• The recent acquisition of Jamie Benn and Brady Leavold has to send a clear message to the Kelowna Rockets forwards. Perform or see limited ice time. Saturday's 5-0 loss to the Vancouver Giants means their is no need to panic, but clearly GM Bruce Hamilton wants to nip things in the bud, before the problem of a lack of pride and work ethic creeps into the Rockets locker room. What I saw Saturday from the veteran forwards was only confirmed by Hamilton in a conversation David and I had Monday at practice. He was as embarrassed as we were over the teams performance. Like I stated in a Saturday night recap of the game, the Vancouver Giants were full marks for the win, but I will not buy into the theory that they are a far superior team than the Rockets. I saw intimidated veterans, unwilling to battle for pucks. Hamilton echoed those sentiments when he told David and I (listen for audio portion at http://www.am1150.ca)/ that Myles MacRae and Justin Bernhardt have to be significantly better. We spoke about that at length on our broadcast Saturday night. Both 19 year-old veterans have a goal between them this season, and MacRae's came into an empty net to seal a two goal win over Everett Friday night. MacRae and Bernhardt are needed offensively when the game is in doubt, not when it's a slam dunk. Thank God the 17 year-olds of Evan Bloodoff, Dylan Hood and Brandon McMillan led the charge on the scoreboard in a 6-4 win over the Tips, or the Rockets could still be winless on the season.
• Jamie Benn brings with him a solid resume, and will play alongside Colin Long and Kyle St Denis. If this line can't produce, something is terribly wrong.
• Benn will wear #14 in Friday's home game with Seattle. That number was most recently worn by Justin Bernhardt and Blake Comeau. Leavold will wear #25.
• The funniest rumor I heard now that the Rockets have 4-20 year-olds on it's roster is rookie goaltender Dylan Tait is heading back to Kelowna. The suggestion that Kristofer Westblom is about to be traded is so wrong. Who was the Rockets best player Saturday night? Who was the Rockets best player against the Giants at home in a 2-1 win?
• I'm interested to see what Brady Leavold brings to the Rockets this weekend. In essence it's almost like a short tryout for the overage forward. If the Rockets don't like what they see before the October 11th overage deadline, Leavold is given his walking papers. Look for a motivated Leavold in three games this weekend, proving he can play at this level while doing everything in his power to remain in K-Town.
• Leavold comes to the Rockets with baggage. Why else have the Broncos attempted to trade him before? But the same can be said for Jesse Schultz, when he was acquired from the Prince Albert Raiders. Schultz was not a fan favorite in Prince Albert, and was often seen moping around the ice and in the Raiders dressing room. Leavold will have to conform with the Rockets way of thinking, or will find himself playing somewhere else. Schultz was given a second chance in Kelowna. Let's just hope Leavold takes advantage of a similar situation Schultz was afforded. The nice thing is Leavold can ultimately determine his own fate.
• Leavold's dad is a scout with the Swift Current Broncos. Brian Leavold, a BC scout, never saw his son Brady drafted by a WHL team.
• The more I see the Rockets defensive core, the more I think the weakness of the team may be at forward. I didn't believe that at the start of the season, but the veterans and rookies have done a nice job back on the blueline. Remember they've been playing some solid hockey despite not having top 4 defenseman Colin Joe in the lineup.
• I have to tip my hat to Swift Current Broncos GM/head coach Dean Chynoweth. In two recent deals, Chynoweth has been up front, not shady with his trading partners. It was interesting to read Jon Keen's conversation with the head coach when Chynoweth pulled off a three team deal to land Keegan Dansereau and Erik Felde. My general impression was Chynoweth also was forthright with Rockets GM Bruce Hamilton on Brady Leavold. I'm not saying Chynoweth 'tell's all' when making a deal, but he's not trying to sneak something by an unsuspecting GM, by selling his produce like it's a Rolls Royce, when in fact it's a Volkswagen bug. I am not sure if GM's in the league follow a similar path, but I'm impressed with the Broncos head skipper. I always held Dean Chynoweth in high esteem, but the way he conducted himself in two recent trades, has him a notch higher on my list.
• If your like me, and you appreciate audio over written text, you can listen to an interview I had with Jamie Benn, and a conversation David and I had with GM Bruce Hamilton. Check out http://www.am1150.ca/ and click the Rockets hockey tab to the right of the page.