Things That Make Me Go Hmm...

• I find it strange that Rockets forward Ryley Grantham has not been involved in one shoving match in the first two games of this series. 'Granny' is most affective when he is sticking his nose in other people's business. What surprises me more is the 21 year-old hasn't even taken a minor penalty in the first two games. I don't want him to take a bad penalty, but I want him to be a pain in the arse to play against.
• He was pass happy during the regular season, but Ian Duval is getting the message that shooting the puck is a good option. Duval has goals in four straight games and has 8 goals in this years playoffs. Jamie Benn has 8 playoff goals! You can't criticize Duval for his contribution in this years post season. He's been a special player playing with Mikael Backlund.
• Thirteen goals have been scored in this series, with 8 of those coming even strength. Five goals have been scored on the power play, three by the Giants and two by the Rockets.
• I find it interesting that of the 13 goals scored in the first two games, 11 have been scored in the final two periods. Only one goal has been scored in the opening 20 minutes with another goal coming in overtime in game two.
• The Giants last win in Kelowna came January 21st in a 6-4 victory. Mikael Backlund scored his first WHL goal in that game.
• How have the Rockets done in game three situations? The Rockets won game three in Kamloops in overtime by a 4-3 score in the opening round and managed to earn a 7-2 win over Tri City in game three in round two. The last time the Rockets lost game three of a playoff series was last season when they fell 3-2 in overtime to Seattle in an opening round series.
• Can you name the number of Kelowna Rockets alumni participating in the Stanley Cup playoffs? Six former players are battling for Lord Stanley's Cup. Travis Moen (San Jose), Troy Bodie (Anahiem), Alex Edler (Vancouver), Josh Gorges (Montreal), Duncan Keith (Chicago) and Chuck Kobasew (Boston) are all involved in the second season.
• The Vancouver Giants introduced waving towels in game one of the Western Conference final, something the Kelowna Rockets are also handing out in game three tonight. The waving towels looked impressive when the crowd was prompted by a message that flashed on the Pacific Coliseum score clock. It should provide for an awesome sight in game three when all 6 thousand get into the act at Prospera Place.
• Is it a sign of a slow economy? It has to be. The Kelowna Rockets send out a press release yesterday saying 600 tickets have been released to the general public for game three tonight. In the past this would have been unheard of, as a Rockets ticket was the hottest ticket in town. It's still a hot ticket, yet from my vantage point, people are a little tighter with their wallet.
• Injuries at this time of the year are common place and are kept behind closed doors. The same holds true for broadcasters. I will admit I too am suffering from an injury in this playoff series. I will only say that it is an upper body injury. I've been trying hide it in the first two games of this series, but something tells me Giants play-by-play man Dave Sheldon is catching on. I've been secretly taking cough syrup when he isn't looking and I thought he caught me taking a throat lozenge before game two, but I quickly told him I was simply putting a Timbit in my mouth. I even think he bought the theory that I am suffering from an allergic reaction to the insulation up in the Pacific Coliseum rafters. Stay tuned!
• Two words. Steve Ewen. The Vancouver Province beat writer occasionally trips over this blog. I appreciate his visit.