Rockets game notes vs. Seattle tomorrow

Tonight’s Preview: The Rockets open the month of December playing three of their next four games on home ice. Tonight the Rockets host the Seattle Thunderbirds in the first of four meetings this season. Following tonight’s game the two teams hook up again January 7^th and January 21^st in Seattle (Kent), before closing out the seasonal series at Prospera Place March 16^th. These two teams met four times last season with the Rockets going 3-1-0-0. The Rockets outscored the T-Birds 12-6. Overall the Rockets enter tonight’s game having won four straight with wins over Prince George (twice) and single wins over Regina and Spokane. The Rockets enter tonight’s game with ten wins in their last eleven games (10-1-0-0). Following tonight’s game the Rockets are back on the ice Friday in Chilliwack before hosting Saskatoon on Saturday night. Overall, the Rockets have won a season high 5 straight games at home.

Rockets recent game: The Rockets used an overtime goal from Geordie Wudrick on the power play in a 3-2 win in Spokane Saturday night. Wudrick and Zach Franko also scored in regulation time as the Rockets built up a 2-0 lead after 40 minutes before the Chiefs battled back to tie the game at two with back-to-back third period goals. Adam Brown earned the win in goal, making 21 saves. The Rockets were 2 for 4 on the power play.

Who’s Hot: Shane McColgan has 3+10=13 in his last eleven games. Mitchell Callahan has seven goals in his last eleven games. Brett Bulmer has (4+5=9) in his last ten games. Tyson Barrie has thirteen points in his last eight games. Barrie has 2+11=13 over that period. Wudrick has 5 goals in his last two games.

Who’s Not: Zach Franko snapped a nine game goal scoring drought Saturday night. Spencer Main has one goal in his last 15 games.

A November to remember: The Rockets were 10-1-0-0 in eleven games during the month of November. Last season the Rockets won just five games during the month. The Rockets earned 20 points last month after recording just eight in October. Tyson Barrie had 19 points in November (3+16=19). Mitchell Callahan had 17 points (7+10=17), while Shane McColgan had 13 points (3+10=13). Geordie Wudrick led the Rockets with 11 goals during November.

This and That: Tyson Barrie has been named to the 39 man training camp roster for the Canadian World Junior team. Barrie is attempting to become the 11^th player in Rockets history to represent the Rockets at the WJHC… The Rockets received great goaltending from Adam Brown in November. Brown was 9-1-0-0 with a goals against average of 1.96 and a save percentage of .934….In the eleven games in the month of November, the Rockets scored four or more goals in seven of those games….European’s Gal Koren and Andreas Stene will be playing for their countries at the World Junior Hockey Championships at Christmas….Two members of the Rockets will participate in the Under 17 Hockey Challenge next month in Manitoba. Rookies Damon Severson and Colton Heffley have been named to Team West….The Rockets made a trade with the Prince Albert Raiders last month. The Rockets sent 18 year-old defenceman Antoine Corbin to the Raiders for a 3^rd round bantam pick. Corbin was a 5^th round pick of the Rockets in the 2007 WHL Bantam Draft…The Rockets have opened up the scoring in their last seven home games…The Rockets have failed to score a power play goal in just seven of their first 25 games this season….The Rockets have scored 80 goals after twenty-five games this season. Last season after twenty-five games the club had 84 goals….The Rockets have allowed 78 goals against this season. Last season after twenty-five games the team had allowed 81 goals against….Last season the Rockets were 10-14-1-0 after twenty-five games….The Rockets have been involved in eleven-one goal games this season. The Rockets are 8-3-0-0 in those eleven-one goal games…Adam Brown has started fourteen of the last 15 games…The Rockets were involved in 11 shootout games last season. The Rockets were 7 and 4 in those games…The Rockets have failed to open the scoring in seventeen of their first twenty-five games this season….The Rockets franchise is playing its 1394^th regular season game tonight. The team has 711 regular season wins….Rockets 17 year-old forward Shane McColgan is rated as the 15^th best prospect in the WHL for the upcoming NHL draft. Central Scouting released its first of three rankings earlier this week…The Rockets have been held to two or fewer goals in ten of their 25 games this season. ...Tyson Barrie is now the Kelowna Rockets franchise leader for points by a defenceman. Barrie has 191 career points. Barrie passes Burt Henderson (1993-1996 - 186 pts )… The Rockets have nine games left before the Christmas break. Of those nine, six are on the road…Shane McColgan has been held off the score sheet just six times this season. ..The Rockets have been out-shot in eight of their last eleven games.

Rockets' well represented on Team Canada

The Rockets have been well represented over the years on the Canadian World Junior team. Ten players, four coaches and two training staff have been a part of Canada's entry over the years. Here is the breakdown for you:

2011: Ryan Huska - assistant coach
2010: Brandon McMillan
2009: Tyler Myers and Jamie Benn
2008: Luke Schenn - athletic therapist Jeff Thorburn
2007: None
2006: Blake Comeau
2005: Shea Weber
2004: Josh Gorges - Jeff Truitt video coach
2003: Marc Habscheid head coach - Athletic therapist Scott Hoyer
2002: Chuck Kobasew - Habscheid was an assistant
2001: None
2000: None
1999: None
1998: Brett McLean
1997: None
1996: Robb Gordon and Marcel Comeau. Comeau was Team Canada's head coach.

Tyson Time!

Tyson Barrie has been named to the training camp roster for the Canadian World Junior Team.
Barrie has 4+18=22 points in 18 games this season and most recently became the Kelowna Rockets all-time leader in points by a defenceman.
Barrie, the Rockets captain, has 192 career points.
Barrie is attempting to follow in the footsteps of former Rockets like Brandon McMillan, Jamie Benn, Tyler Myers, Luke Schenn, Blake Comeau, Shea Weber, Josh Gorges and Chuck Kobasew to wear Canadian colours.
Jared Cowen of Spokane, Ryan Murray of Everett, Brayden McNabb of the Kootenay Ice and Mark Pysyk of Edmonton make up the other WHL d-men attending the camp.
Kelowna resident Curtis Hamilton (Saskatoon Blades) has also been invited to the camp.
Team Canada's training camp will be help December 12th to 15th in Toronto.

November by the Numbers

• The Rockets were 10-1-0-0 during the month. That's 20 out of a possible 22 points earned. It's also a far cry from the eight points the Rockets accumulated in October. Had the Rockets not had the mammoth month, how far out of striking distance would they be from the other 9 teams in the Western Conference?
• The Rockets allowed 22 goals against during the month. That's an average of just 2 goals against per game.
• Adam Brown was the story. The 19 year-old goaltender was 9-1-0-0 with a goals against average of 1.96 and a save percentage of .934.
• The Rockets scored 46 goals in November, or 4.18 goals per game.
• Tyson Barrie was the top performer in November with 19 points (3+16=19). Mitchell Callahan was a close second with 17 points (7+10=17).
• Geordie Wudrick scored the most goals with 11 during the month. Wudrick had 11+1=12 in eleven games.
  

10 and 1 is a whole lot of fun

• Too bad it’s over. It was such a fun month. The Kelowna Rockets ended the November portion of their schedule the way they started it, with a win. Geordie Wudrick scored in overtime lifting the Rockets’ to a 3-2 victory in Spokane Saturday night. The win was the teams 14^th of the season and tenth in 11 games during the month. The Rockets collected 20 points in November with the only blemish being a 4-0 loss to the Kamloops Blazers.

• The 20 points the Rockets collected during the month is impressive and is only bettered by the 23 points the Rockets accumulated in November 2003. That season the Rockets were 11-3-0-0 with one tie in 15 games.

• Wudrick’s goal came courtesy of a power play after Corbin Baldwin received a delay of game penalty after shooting the puck over the glass with 49 seconds left in regulation time. While the Rockets failed to score late in the period, the short break between the 3^rd period and overtime gave the Rockets a chance to regroup and execute the game winning goal.

• The Rockets built up a 2-0 lead after one period and saw it evaporate as the Chiefs rallied back with two-third period goals. It looked like missed chances would come back to haunt them on this night after Andreas Stene and Mitchell Callahan missed glorious chances to put the Rockets up 4-0 after 40 minutes.

• Stene’s chance in the second period saw the puck jump on his stick just outside the crease. Stene had nothing but net with only the leg of Chiefs goaltender Mac Engel in the way. Stene takes what appears to be a casual looking shot, which gingerly hits Engel’s pad and allows the Spokane goaltender to cover the puck up for a face-off.

• Chiefs head coach Don Nachbaur can’t be all that sour with his teams play. After playing almost a three hour game the night before in Kamloops and then battling back from a 2-0 third period deficit, I’d take the point and walk away from the arena somewhat pleased. The schedule maker didn’t do the Chiefs a favour this weekend.

• Wudrick now has nine goals in his last eight games. He scores in bunches doesn’t he.

• Zach Franko opened the scoring with his 5^th goal of the season. It was his first goal in ten games. Franko’s good fortune ends when he gets hit in the ear with a puck while sitting on the bench. The 17 year-old was nursing the bruise following the game.

• Mitchell Chapman elects to get into a fight with Chiefs forward Darren Kramer. Kramer, who had 311 penalty minutes last season in the AJHL, is the aggressor but Chapman shows he's a willing combatant.

Rockets game notes vs. Chiefs

Tonight’s Preview: The Rockets close out the month of November with a road game in Spokane tonight. The Rockets are coming into the game having won back-to-back road games last weekend in Prince George. This is the first of four meetings between the Rockets and Chiefs. These two teams meet again January 1^st in Kelowna before a return date in Spokane January 22nd. The two teams close out the seasonal series February 18^th at Prospera Place. Last season the Rockets were 1-3-0-0, going 1-1-0-0 on home ice and 0-2-0-0 at Spokane Arena. The Rockets enter tonight’s game with nine wins in their last ten games (9-1-0-0). Following tonight’s game the Rockets are back on the ice Wednesday, at home, against the Seattle Thunderbirds.

Rockets recent game: The Rockets received three goals from Geordie Wudrick in a 6-1 home ice win Wednesday over the Regina Pats. Mitchell Callahan, Andreas Stene and Damon Severson added singles. It was the Rockets 5^th straight home ice win. Adam Brown was solid in goal and was named the games second star. The Rockets were 2 for 6 on the power play while firing 38 shots on goal.

Who’s Hot: Shane McColgan has 3+8=11 in his last ten games…Mitchell Callahan has seven goals in his last ten games. Brett Bulmer has (4+5=9) in his last nine games. Tyson Barrie has eleven points in his last seven games. Barrie has 2+9=11 over that period.

Who’s Not: Zach Franko has one goal in his last 17 games. Spencer Main has one goal in his last 14 games.

A November to remember: The Rockets are 9-1-0-0 in ten games during the month of November. Last season the Rockets won just five games during the month. In 2004-05 the team had 8 wins and four draws in 13 games for a total of 20 points. The Rockets can earn their 20^th point of the month tonight with a win against the Chiefs.

This and That: The Rockets have received great goaltending from Adam Brown this month. Brown is 8-1-0-0 with a goals against average of 1.96 and a save percentage of .936….In the ten games in the month of November, the Rockets have scored four or more goals in seven of those games….European’s Gal Koren and Andreas Stene will be playing for their countries at the World Junior Hockey Championships at Christmas….Two members of the Rockets will participate in the Under 17 Hockey Challenge next month in Manitoba. Rookies Damon Severson and Colton Heffley have been named to Team West….The Rockets made a trade with the Prince Albert Raiders this month. The Rockets sent 18 year-old defenceman Antoine Corbin to the Raiders for a 3^rd round bantam pick. Corbin was a 5^th round pick of the Rockets in the 2007 WHL Bantam Draft…The Rockets are 17 for 72 on the power play in their last ten games (23.6%). The Rockets have opened up the scoring in their last seven home games…The Rockets have failed to score a power play goal in just seven of their first 24 games this season….The Rockets have scored 77 goals after twenty-four games this season. Last season after twenty-four games the club had 82 goals….The Rockets have allowed 76 goals against this season. Last season after twenty-four games the team had allowed 78 goals against….Last season the Rockets were 10-13-1-0 after twenty-four games….The Rockets have been involved in ten-one goal games this season. The Rockets are 7-3-0-0 in those ten-one goal games…Adam Brown has started thirteen of the last 14 games…The Rockets were involved in 11 shootout games last season. The Rockets were 7 and 4 in those games…The Rockets have failed to open the scoring in sixteen of their first twenty-four games this season….The Rockets franchise is playing its 1393^rd regular season game tonight. The team has 710 regular season wins….Rockets 17 year-old forward Shane McColgan is rated as the 15^th best prospect in the WHL for the upcoming NHL draft. Central Scouting released its first of three rankings earlier this week…The Rockets have been held to two or fewer goals in ten of their 24 games this season. ..Tyson Barrie is now the Kelowna Rockets franchise leader for points by a defenceman. Barrie has 189 career points. Barrie passes Burt Henderson (1993-1996 - 186 pts )… The Rockets have 10 games left before the Christmas break. Of those 10, eight are on the road…Shane McColgan has been held off the score sheet just six times this season. ..The Rockets have been out-shot in eight of their last ten games.

Do the stache's stay or do they go?

• Do the Rockets players get their razors out at the end of the month and clean off that hard to grow hair above their upper lip? Why do I ask? It appears those mustaches have some magic with nine wins in ten games during the month. Rockets' general manager Bruce Hamilton has never been a fan of the mid-season facial hair on his players, but has relaxed his stance with several of them growing a 'stach' as part of Movember. With the month of November over for the Rockets' following Saturday's game in Spokane, it will be interesting to see if the players keep them with the blessing of the boss.

• Not all of the players are sporting mustaches, and if they are, it appears the older players are having the most success. Geordie Wudrick and Kevin Smith are giving it their best shot. It's not known if 'Just for Men' or any other colouring aid is being used. All I know is the players are having a lot of fun with it.

• It was a full bus as the Rockets' headed towards Spokane in preparation for tomorrow night's game. Colton Sissons, who has been sidelined with a concussion, made the trip meaning he could be in the lineup against the Chiefs tomorrow night.

• The Rockets failed to win a game in Spokane last season. In just two stops there, the Rockets' were 0-2-0-0. I anticipate the reaction of the Rockets' rookies being similar to other years when they take their first look at the ice surface at the Spokane Arena when the team arrives to unload their gear. "Wow" is the usual reaction.

• Who steps up on defence when Tyson Barrie leaves for the Canadian World Junior Team main camp? You can't replace a player like Barrie, but who steps up to fill the hole, which will look like a crater with his departure? When Barrie is on the ice the Rockets struggles to get the puck out of their own zone on most nights looks non existent. But will it look similar when he takes part in Team Canada's main camp in Toronto next month?

• Only Bruce Hamilton can answer this, but when does he decide to just run out the season with the players he currently has or make a push for one or two players at the trade deadline that may give his team a better shot in the second half? That's why these games in December are so important. If the Rockets are still in the mix, which they are right now in late November, do you strengthen the defensive core and added another veteran presence to get you beyond a second round exit. Or do you put your hands up in the air and essentially concede the season to the Portland Winterhawks, who are clearly the class of the conference? You know the Hawks will only add to the pieces they have in place so they can beat the top gun out east, which right now appears to be the Saskatoon Blades.

• Gord McGarva and I have been invited to speak at the Morningside Rotary Club breakfast Thursday morning at the Kelowna Yacht Club. We appreciate the invite and hope to provide some insight and early morning chuckles on the job of covering the Kelowna Rockets hockey club.

Brown and the temperature headed in same direction

• Adam Brown's goals against average and the mercury in the Okanagan are headed in the same direction. It's going down...down....down. But while the temperatures plummet, Brown is red hot. The 19 year-old saw his average in the month of November drop to 1.96 thanks to a 32 save performance in the Kelowna Rockets 6-1 win over the Regina Pats Wednesday night. Brown is now 8 and 1 in November and is a sure bet to be considered for the CHL Goaltender of the Month. Named the games second star, Brown again made several timely saves in the teams 13th win of the season.
• Geordie Wudrick scored three times in the win and now has two-three goal games in his last seven and nine goals over that period. Wudrick would open the scoring late in the first period and would close the scoring with his hat trick goal with .7 seconds left on the clock. Wudrick appears to be prospering with line-mate Evan Bloodoff. Wudrick started the season with one goal in his first 13 games.
• It was Wudrick's third career hat trick.
• Don't let the score fool you. This was a 3-1 game with 52 seconds remaining in the third period. Mitchell Callahan, into an empty net, Andreas Stene and Wudrick score three goals in the final 52 seconds to make it a 6-1 final.
  
• While three goals in 52 seconds sounds impressive, the WHL record is 12 seconds set by the Kelowna Rockets in February of 1996 when Jason Deleurme, Brett McLean and Tyler Prosofsky scored three goals in that span. The Rockets beat Prince George 11-2.
• The Pats top line which featured Jordan Weal and Carter Ashton were the most dangerous, but Ashton took two bad penalties that resulted in power play goals. Ashton, a first round pick of the Tampa Bay Lightning, was a team worst -3.
• I felt bad for Pats goaltender Damien Ketlo. At the end of the night it will look like he struggled, but that clearly was not the case. Ketlo made some nice saves and essentially allowed his team to be in a two goal game late in the contest. Goaltending was not the problem on this night in my opinion. A lack of support from his teammates and missed chances in the offensive zone were the Pats downfall.
• Mitchell Callahan had a goal and an assist giving him 101 points on his WHL career. Callahan earned his 100th point on Damon Severson's second period power play goal.
  
• Andreas Stene has goals in back-to-back games. Before the game it was announced that Stene and teammate Gal Koren will play for their respective countries at the upcoming World Junior Hockey Championship.
• I had a chance to meet Pats assistant coach Shaun Sutter before the game. He had nothing but kind words to say about this blog. I saw Pats president Brent Parker before the game in the media room, but didn't have a chance to say hello.
• When you do research before the game you often find out something you never knew. As an example, did you know that Kyle St. Denis was taken ahead of Jordan Eberle in the WHL Bantam Draft? The Pats took St. Denis in the 5th round and Eberle in the 7th.
  
• Don't forget tonight (November 25th) Rockets' players will be at the Keg to raise funds for the Spirit Foundation. The players will be serving tables in the bar and dining room between 6 and 8 pm will all tips being donated to the Keg Spirit Foundation. The Foundation has raised about 5 million dollars nationally over the last couple of years for a number of children's and mentorship type charities like Kelowna's Big Brothers and Big Sisters.
  

Lucky win #13

Rockets 6 Regina 1.
Geordie Wudrick with three. More later.

Game notes vs. Pats

Tonight’s Preview: It’s a rare home game as the Kelowna Rockets host the Regina Pats in the one and only meeting this season. These two teams met once last season. It was December 9/09 in a Rockets 9-5 win in Regina. The two teams combined for 88 shots on goal. Shane McColgan had 3+2=5 while Geordie Wudrick had 2+2=4. The Pats are making their first visit to Kelowna since December 5/08 in a 3-2 Rockets win. Jordon Eberle had two goals for the Pats in a losing cause while Brandon McMillan scored the game winning goal. The Rockets enter tonight’s game with eight wins in their last nine games (8-1-0-0). Following tonight’s game the Rockets are back on the road with a stop in Spokane on Saturday night.

Rockets recent game: The Rockets received a goal from Evan Bloodoff in overtime lifting the Rockets to a 2-1 win over the Prince George Cougars Saturday night. Andreas Stene also scored in the Rockets 12^th win of the season. Adam Brown was again tremendous in goal, making several sensational saves in the one goal victory. The Rockets were out-shot 39-28 and were 0 for 3 on the power play. The Rockets killed off four Cougar power plays.

Who’s Hot: Shane McColgan has 3+7=10 in his last nine games…Mitchell Callahan has six goals in his last nine games. Brett Bulmer has (4+4=8) in his last eight games. Kevin Smith has 1+4=5 in his last eight games. Tyson Barrie has nine points in his last six games. Barrie has 2+7=9 over that period.

Who’s Not: Evan Bloodoff snapped a 17 game goal scoring drought Saturday in a 2-1 overtime victory in Prince George. Zach Franko has one goal in his last 16 games. Spencer Main has one goal in his last 13 games.

A November to remember: The Rockets are 8-1-0-0 in nine games during the month of November. Last season the Rockets won just five games during the month. In 2004-05 the team had 8 wins and four ties in 13 games for a total of 20 points.

This and That: The Rockets have received great goaltending from Adam Brown this month. Brown is 7-1-0-0 with a goals against average of 2.08 and a save percentage of .932….Two members of the Rockets will participate in the Under 17 Hockey Challenge next month in Manitoba. Rookies Damon Severson and Colton Heffley have been named to Team West….The Rockets made a trade with the Prince Albert Raiders last week. The Rockets sent 18 year-old defenceman Antoine Corbin to the Raiders for a 3^rd round bantam pick. Corbin was a 5^th round pick of the Rockets in the 2007 WHL Bantam Draft…The Rockets are 15 for 46 on the power play in their last nine games (32.6%). The Rockets have opened up the scoring in their last six home games…The Rockets have failed to score a power play goal in just seven of their first 23 games this season….The Rockets have scored 71 goals after twenty-three games this season. Last season after twenty-three games the club had 80 goals….The Rockets have allowed 75 goals against this season. Last season after twenty-three games the team had allowed 74 goals against….Last season the Rockets were 10-12-1-0 after twenty-three games….The Rockets have been involved in ten-one goal games this season. The Rockets are 7-3-0-0 in those ten-one goal games…Adam Brown has started twelve of the last 13 games…The Rockets were involved in 11 shootout games last season. The Rockets were 7 and 4 in those games…The Rockets have failed to open the scoring in fifteen of their first twenty-three games this season….The Rockets franchise is playing its 1392^nd regular season game tonight. The team has 709 regular season wins….Rockets 17 year-old forward Shane McColgan is rated as the 15^th best prospect in the WHL for the upcoming NHL draft. Central Scouting released its first of three rankings earlier this week…The Rockets have been held to two or fewer goals in ten of their 23 games this season. ..Tyson Barrie is now the Kelowna Rockets franchise leader for points by a defenceman. Barrie has 188 career points after two assists Saturday in Prince George. Barrie surpasses Burt Henderson (1993-1996 (186 pts )… The Rockets have 11 games left before the Christmas break. Of those 11, eight are on the road…Shane McColgan has been held off the score sheet just six times this season. ..The Rockets have been out-shot in seven of their last nine games.