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Tonight’s Preview: The Kelowna Rockets
take a three game road winning streak into tonight’s game with the Vancouver
Giants. The Rockets have previously won road games over Seattle and Portland
(twice). The Rockets last road loss was a 5-0 setback in Red Deer back on
October 8th. This is the
first of eight meetings between these two teams this season. The Giants return
the favour November 18th. In the last five seasons, the Rockets are
21-3-0-0 against the G-Men including 9-3-0-0 in their last 12 visits to the
Lower Mainland. The Rockets are coming off a 5-1 home ice loss to the Kamloops
Blazers Tuesday night. Nick Merkley scored the lone goal in the team’s first
loss in seven games. Following this game, the team is at home tomorrow night to
the visiting Medicine Hat Tigers to open a four game home stand.
Octoberfest: After starting the
month of October with a 3-0 shutout loss in Prince George (October 1st)
the team was able to win 8 of their next 11 to close out the month of October.
In November, the Rockets play 10 games with six of them on home ice. Six of
those 10 will be played against BC Division based teams including a visit to
Victoria on November 20th and 22nd. The Rockets also
enjoy a visit from Prince Albert on November 12th and Regina on
November 26th, where they face Eastern Division teams they have failed to beat
so far this season after losses to visiting Swift Current and Saskatoon.
Broadcasters Bits: Rookie forward Leif
Mattson is serving game one of a four game suspension for a checking from
behind penalty Tuesday against Kamloops…Four
of the Rockets next five games are on home ice. The only road game over that
stretch is tonight in Vancouver/Langley….Devante Stephens and Jake Kryski each
played in their 150th career games Sunday in Portland….The Rockets
are 5-0-0-0 against U.S Division teams this season...Devante Stephens three
goals Saturday in Portland were the first by a Rockets d-man since Riley Stadel
scored three goals vs. Lethbridge in 2013..Nick Merkley has been named an
associate captain for Team WHL, which will face the Russian Selects in the CHL
Canada Russia Series….The Rockets have opened the scoring in three of the last
six games….The Rockets have carried the lead into the third period in five of
the last seven games….Sixteen year-old Nolan Foote won’t play in tonight’s
game. Foote is one of 66 players participating in the 2016 Under-17 Hockey
Challenge in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario October 27th to November 5th.
Assistant Travis Crickard is a video coach for Team Canada at the event …Veteran
20 year-old Michael Herringer was named the WHL Goaltender of the Week from
October 17th to October 23rd. Herringer went 3-0-0-0,
posting a goals against average of 1.99….Three members of the Kelowna Rockets
will represent the WHL and Hockey Canada, at the CHL Canada-Russia series. Team
WHL, who’s roster consists of Nick Merkley, Dillon Dube and Cal Foote, will
compete against the Russian Selects in games Monday November in Prince George
and Tuesday in Edmonton.
Who’s Hot?: Tomas Soustal has
goals in three of his last four games and has 4+2=6 over that period…Calvin
Thurkauf has a four game point streak (2+4=6)…Kole Lind has points in six of
his last seven games (2+8=10)…Nick Merkley has goals in three straight games…16
year-old Nolan Foote has points in three straight games (2+1=3)..The team has
scored shorthanded goals in two of its last three games……Merkley has points in
6 of his last 7 games (3+4=7).
Roster
Stats:
Player
total:
24
Year by
Year Breakdown:
20’s – 3 Stadel, Herringer, Southam
19’s – 6 Johansen, Merkley, Soustal, Stephens, Ballhorn
18’s – 7
Dube, Kryski, Lind, Borstmayer, Chizen, Salmond, Thurkauf
17’s - 6 C. Foote,
Topping, Bruggen-Cate, Cowell, Smart, Mattson
16’s – 2
N. Foote, Belcourt
Game Notes Compiled by Regan Bartel of AM 1150
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