Rockets open unofficial second half vs. Blazers

Devin Steffler - Shoot the Breeze Photo

·     Tonight’s Preview: Welcome back to the unofficial second half of the season for the Kelowna Rockets. The team has played 32 games to this point, sporting a record of 18-11-1-2. That is good for second place in the BC Division, 6 points back of first place Kamloops in the BC Division (Rockets have one game in hand) and three points up on third place Victoria (Royals have one game in hand). The Rockets face the Kamloops Blazers tonight in the 6th time this season. The Rockets are just 1-3-1-0 in the five previous games, with three of them decided by a single goal including a 4-3 win back on November 16^th.  The Rockets are in a portion of their schedule playing 6 consecutive home games against teams in the BC Division. After tonight’s game, the team is in Vancouver (Langley) tomorrow night before welcoming Prince George Monday (7 P.M) December 30^th.   

·         Senior Citizens Settle in:  The two newest members of the team made their home debuts before the Christmas break. Matthew Wedman, acquired in a trade with Seattle December 5th, showcased his talents in front of the home town faithful on December 18th. The 20 year-old led the T-Birds in scoring last season with 40+37=77 and played 275 games in a Seattle uniform. Twenty year-old d-man Conner McDonald also made his debut December 18^th with three assists in a 4-3 loss to visiting Vancouver. McDonald was obtained from the Edmonton Oil Kings Saturday night. McDonald scored 19 goals back on the blue-line last season, which was the second highest total only behind Giants rearguard Bowen Byram.   

·         The Price is Right: The Rockets also completed a trade with the Moose Jaw Warriors November 24^th by acquiring 20 year-old Jadon Joseph. Joseph was a member of the Vancouver Giants last season that went all the way to the WHL final. Joseph has 58 games of playoff experience under his belt, the most on the Rockets roster.     

·         Broadcasters Notebook: Nolan Foote is playing for Canada at the World Junior Hockey Championships, becoming the 18^th player in the organization to do so….10 of the Rockets last 11 games have been decided by one goal…The Rockets have played in 18-1 goal games this season, the most in the WHL…. Roman Basran was named the WHL Eli Wilson goaltender of the week in back-to-back weeks ending December 1st…Nolan Foote was named the 25^th captain in franchise history (Tacoma/Kelowna) October 18th…The Rockets have played in a Western Conference high 19 road games.