Dressing up - no where to go: Here we are. November. Darker. Colder. Halloween is in the rear view mirror and my Christmas lights are already up. Isn't there hockey to be played? I even tried on some of my dress clothes the other night that I typically wear up in the broadcaster booth. The good news? I haven't gained COVID-19 weight as my size 32 waist remains and my collared shirts can be buttoned to the very top. My turkey neck hasn't yet emerged. First sign of turkey neck? When you have to lift your head higher in photos in an effort to disguise the triple chin you are sporting.
Friendly Fire: Arch rivals on the ice and roommates off it. Kelowna Rockets forward Mark Liwiski spent the majority of the summer right here in Kelowna rooming with former Prince George Cougars forward Josh Maser. Maser is 21. Liwiski is 19. Does that translate into a messy apartment? "One week I will do the dishwasher and clean and then the next week he will do the dishwasher and garbage. It also helps that my girlfriend stops by and she likes to clean up, so it's good". 'Louie', a nickname given to him by his teammates, realizes that his window of playing pro is closing and it's time to make hay on his hockey career. "My next two years, obviously, I am going to want to put up quite a big leap in numbers, so for sure my leadership will bounce off that". With 8 fighting majors last season, the 19 year-old wanted to make an impact with a long playoff run and success at the 2020 Memorial Cup. "It was pretty disappointing, but you can't hang your head. I just have to brush it off and remember what it felt like and take it into next year." Liwiski spent the summer working at Quail Ridge, which is home to the Quail and Bear golf courses. While doing lawn maintenance, he was able to get in a more than a few rounds this summer. As a side note, older brother Andrew is playing college hockey in Wisconsin this winter.
Welcome to the jungle! No, that's not it. Welcome to the bubble Kaedan Korczak. The 19 year-old has a real good chance of representing his country at the upcoming World Junior Hockey Championships. Korczak is one of 46 players invited to Hockey Canada's month long evaluation camp in Red Deer - November 16th to December 13th. It shouldn't come as no surprise. Korczak has represented Canada several times, including winning gold at the 2018 Hlicka Cup. If he can crack the final roster, he will be the first Rockets player since Nolan Foote, who won gold at last year's tournament.
Shouldering the load: At last count, defenceman Sean Comrie had all 10 fingers intact as he spent the summer with a handsaw building decks back in Edmonton. You can't blame the 20 year-old for being safety conscious after separating his shoulder last December in Regina. "I was in on a two-on-one and I shot the puck and the d-man slid and I tripped over him and went full speed into the boards - sideways. When I got up, I knew something was wrong and I had a feeling it was separated." The road to recovery was a long one for Comrie, who separated it again - in practice. "It was difficult coming back and trying to play and not be afraid of contact. It is always in the back of your mind that if you take a weird hit, something will go wrong again." Having undergone surgery after playing in just 35 games as a rookie, Comrie wants to stay healthy this season. "Being an older player, I want to be a leader on the team and play my game and make an impact. I think if I do that, hopefully I will stick with the team." Comrie will start the season in the AJHL. He has been loaned to the Spruce Grove Saints.
Wet behind ears: The future is bright for 15 year-old Andrew Cristall. The pride of Burnaby was the Rockets 1st round pick, 8th overall, in the most recent WHL bantam draft. "I was so excited. It is such a great organization. I am stoked to be a part of it". How did draft day unfold back on April 22nd? "We woke up pretty early. We put the draft on our TV in the living room. We got to the 8th pick and it was Kelowna and I was hoping I was going to get picked. When it happened we were jumping up and down and starting hugging each other. It was a pretty exciting moment. It was pretty cool." Cristall is a special player in his own right, but his selection takes on added significance. He was long time director of player personnel Lorne Frey's final first round pick in the scouts illustrious career. "I have a really high hockey IQ. I think my hands and vision are pretty good as well. I am a really competitive player and I like to win, so I am going to do whatever it takes." The hope is Cristall will develop into the team's leading scorer in his 18 or 19 year-old seasons. One can only hope he can be half the player of 'Burnaby Joe' - NHL hockey hall of famer Joe Sakic.
Loaded with alumni: Up until last season, the Kelowna Rockets never had three former players behind the bench - as coaches - at the exact same time. Kris Mallette is the head coach. Vernon Fiddler is his assistant and Adam Brown is the goaltending coach. Brown played 4 seasons after the Rockets plucked him off waivers from the Kitchener Rangers. "I didn't know where Kelowna was. I got my flight. I came up here. Once I saw the city and saw the team and the way it was run, I said there is no way I am going anywhere else." Brown is the son of Vancouver Canucks assistant coach Newell Brown. "Through the course of my career, he made a point of not getting in the way. Not getting in the way, but stepping in and giving me that extra advantage. He wanted me to make my own path." Brown was also a member of the 2009 WHL championship team. "There was one practice where Jamie Benn, Ian Duval and I think Colin Long was on that line and it wasn't even fair. It was a 3 on 2 drill, a 2 on 1 drill and I think they scored almost ever time at both ends." Brown still holds two Rockets records - games played in a career by a goaltender and saves made.
Huge shoes to fill: When Lorne Frey stepped down as the teams director of player personnel, who was going to assume the role? Long time scout Terry McFaul took over from one of the best. "He (Frey) is more right than he has been wrong. He never gives up on anybody". McFaul too has a long history with the organization, so taking over seemed like a no-brainer. "Being with the Rockets and the Hamilton family, they are second to none. You get treated so well. There is not a bad thing you can say about them." So what type of player catches the eye of McFaul? "If you are a good skater with good vision and good skills. You can teach people to play but you can't teach them to have good skill. You can't teach them to be outstanding skaters. You also want them to be good people". Lorne Frey doesn't totally ride off into the sunset. He assumes the role of senior adviser, a position that will allow him to spend more time with family back in Saskatchewan.
