Rockets’ final defense corps is not set yet

[Malc]

By Warren Henderson

With a paltry six goals allowed in the last five games, the Kelowna Rockets defensive game would appear to be in reasonably competent hands.

Still, don’t expect Sunday’s trade of Riley McIntosh to the Tri-City Americans to necessarily be the last bit of tweaking to the club’s blue line corps.

“We’re likely going to add an experienced, older guy to help us out back there,” said Rockets president and general manager Bruce Hamilton.

“Defense is an important position for us as far as competing with the top teams in the league the rest of the way.”

Hamilton and the Rockets will have about five weeks to find their man with the WHL trade deadline set to arrive on Jan. 10.

The Rockets defensive unit is anchored by Tyler Myers, 19, over-ager Tysen Dowzak, and a pair of 17-year-olds in Tyson Barrie and Collin Bowman.

Kyle Verdino and Aaron Borejko are No. 5 and 6 on the depth chart, while Curt Gogol splits his time between defense and forward.

“With Verdino and Borejko, we want to see what they can do and find out if they’re ready to take on a little bit more,” said Hamilton.

As for shipping the 6-foot-5 McIntosh, 18, to the Americans for a fifth round bantam draft pick, Hamilton said it was the best scenario for both the team and the player.

“Riley was here for three years and never really got himself into a position where he was a regular player for us,” said Hamilton.

“Riley needed a change of scenery and maybe this will get him going. He’s a good kid, a real good person,” Hamilton said.

http://www.bclocalnews.com/okanagan_similkameen/kelownacapitalnews/sports/35456739.html

[CrazyGeorge]

Jesse Dudas would sound like a good fit for you guys...I'm thinking a multiplayer deal could occur if a deal will happen. Not sure who we would acquire from you guys besides draft pics. You also need a tender right? Yonkman could work but that's two twenty year olds. We'll see. Just a thought.

[sbtatter]

Where do you guys see yourself stacking up against Tri, Spokane and Vancouver nearly halfway through the season?

[Squig]

I think we have the players on the front end to compete with anyone. Our back end is very young and still makes alot of rookie mistakes. I'm not convinced the goaltending is good enuf to go all the way either.

An experience older dman will help solidify things - You can see an improvement on the shots allowed already this year. The d is getting better but needs some help to push us into the top group.

I think by the end of the year we will be playing very good hockey but probably need to make a move or two.

Calgary and Van look virtually unbeatable right now - if they can keep it up they will probably be the two teams in the final.

[sbtatter]

Calgary and Van look virtually unbeatable right now - if they can keep it up they will probably be the two teams in the final.
All we can hope at the moment is that cal and van have peaked too early, and the rest of us will catch up!

[Malc]

By Doyle Potenteau

Beat the weak, lose to the strong. If there's been any consistency to the Kelowna Rockets this season, it's been inconsistent results for a team that's supposedly amongst the WHL's elite. On Friday, the Rockets were full value in a 3-2 victory over the Regina Pats, a score which didn't truly tell how well Kelowna played in a game of equally matched teams. Yet, just two nights earlier, the Rockets were steamrolled after putting in a halfhearted effort in a 4-2 loss to the Saskatoon Blades.

That Wednesday score, like Friday's game, didn't tell the true story since the end result flattered Kelowna. So, then, what to do about a team that should be better than its 18-11 record?

"It's believing in our game play," said winger Lucas Bloodoff, 19. "We just have to go out there, shift after shift, game after game, and do our best. We have to prove to ourselves that we can beat every team out there, and we're just as good, if not better, than anybody.

"We have to string wins together and start beating some of the better teams on top. We've been able to beat some of the teams below us, but it's the teams that are ahead of us that we want to start beating. Once we start doing that, and realizing we can do that, we're going to start seeing some success."

Off the ice, it appears the only option the team has is to wait until the Christmas break, then judge before the Jan. 19 trade deadline if the roster has the necessary confidence to make a long playoff run.

Left alone until March, the Rockets will probably advance to the post-season, most likely earning the fourth playoff seed and a first-round matchup against either Everett or Kamloops. Looking ahead to the second round, the Rockets would play either Tri-City or Vancouver, and, well, the odds aren't so good. Kelowna is 0-3 against Vancouver this season, and 1-2 against Tri-City. Of the Rockets' 11 losses, eight have been against quality teams.

"We know what we have to do," added rookie winger Mitch Callahan. "So we're trying to focus on that and also what not to do. Our confidence, it's somewhat alright, but we have the character in the locker-room to bounce back and do well."

Defenceman Tyson Barrie concurred with this two teammates.

"We have to know what's on the line every night," said Barrie. "We come out sometimes against the better teams flat and we wait to see what they're going to do. That's something that has to change if we're going to start stringing wins together... We'll run into four teams we can beat, then we'll get a team that's proven itself, and then we wait to see what they're going to do.
"That has to change, and if it does, we'll be a team to reckon with."

http://www.kelownadailycourier.ca/stories_local_sports.php?id=151710