Adversity Before Game 7

• Nothing has come easy for the Kelowna Rockets in their opening round playoff series with the Seattle Thunderbirds. Poor officiating, less than stellar goaltending, and now a bus mishap has gotten in the Rockets way. Yet the adversity hasn't sent the Rockets reeling, it's made them stronger and more determined. The Rockets bus suffered an oil pressure problem yesterday just 10 minutes after crossing the U.S border. The team bus was out of commission, so a second bus was found to pick up the team and it's gear from the side of the road. Two hours later the Rockets arrived in Seattle for a good night's sleep before game seven.
• The Rockets have a quiet confidence about them heading into game seven tonight. After playing great in game six, in a game that should have never have gone into overtime, the Rockets will need to throw out their best against a Seattle team that believes they have yet to play at their peak. Game seven tonight should be nothing short of outstanding, with a nail biter for the full 60 minutes. I anticipate a low scoring game. If it's low scoring, I like the Rockets chances. If it's high scoring, the T-Birds look to benefit.
• You would think several members of the Tri City American brass will be in attendance at the KeyArena tonight to watch these two teams battle it out. Americans GM Bob Tory took in game three in Kelowna, and will likely take in tonight's game as his team plays the winner of this series. If Tory has his way, tonight's game will go into quadruple overtime. The Americans have to be as pleased as punch to see these two teams killing each other in the only series in the first round going the distance.
• The worst mistake the Rockets can make is play overly cautious against the T-Birds. Respect their speed no question, but dictating the play is pivotal in winning this one game showdown.
• It was just another day at the U.S Border crossing for the Daily Courier's Doyle Potenteau and yours truly. For the second time in this series we were asked to get out of our vehicle and answer a series of questions inside the border crossing compound. The key concern is not our criminal records - that's a joke - but the fact we are working in the U.S. Explaining to these power hungry border patrol officers what we are doing and how we are not stealing a job away from a poor American is their greatest concern.  After spending 45 minutes answering a series of questions including how much Canadian currency I had in my wallet, we were allowed to cross. My general feeling is we need a working visa. Funny thing is if the Rockets advance to the next round and we use a different border crossing to get to Kennewick, this so called work visa won't even be required.