Malc
10-02-2011, 01:33 PM
By Doyle Potenteau
On the night they raised another banner to the rafters, the Kelowna Rockets went out and had a banner game.
Rookie Carter Rigby had two goals and an assist for Kelowna, and defenceman Damon Severson had one goal and two assists, as the Rockets doubled up the Vancouver Giants 6-3 in WHL action on Saturday night. Prior to playing Vancouver, the Rockets hoisted their 2010-11 B.C. Division pennant before a standing-room only crowd of 6,257 at Prospera Place.
And what a raising it was — the win, not the pennant, as the Rockets outskilled the Giants for the first 40 minutes, building up a 5-1 lead, before taking the third period off.
“The first two periods, we played well. I thought we did a lot of things well,” Rockets head coach Ryan Huska said after Kelowna’s home opener. “But we absolutely let off the gas in the third period and they came on. It’s a good lesson, really, that no lead is a safe one in junior hockey.”
Cody Chikie, Zach Franko and captain Colton Sissons also scored for the Rockets (2-0-0-0), who led 1-0 and 5-1 at the period breaks. Right-winger Shane McColgan, with three assists, plus defencemen Myles Bell and Kevin Smith, with two helpers each, also jumped on the scoresheet for the winners, who played with extreme confidence.
Jordan Martinook, with a shorthanded goal in the second period, plus Brendan Gallagher and Kiefer McNaughton replied for the Giants (2-3-0-0), who suffered their second road loss in as many nights. On Friday, the Giants took it on the chin in Kamloops, falling 6-2 to the Blazers. After Saturday's contest, Vancouver held a lengthy closed-door session.
Adam Brown made 29 saves for the Rockets, while Brendan Jensen turned aside 25 shots for the Giants, who outshot Kelowna 18-3 in the third. However, by then, the game had already been decided. Vancouver also received a stellar effort from forward Brendan Gallagher, who was in the running for a game star until Kelowna scored its sixth goal.
For the Rockets, the night proved valuable in that: A) they raised a banner; B) they got two points; and C) they learned a lesson at no points cost to a division opponent.
“I liked our first two periods, but there’s a lot of things we have to work on,” Huska said. “The effort was good, but we need to clean things up in our own zone. On the offensive side of the game, I thought we did a lot of good things. We’re skating fairly well, but we have to tidy things up and understand that, really, no lead is safe in this league.”
Rigby, the game’s first star, netted the best goal of the night, a breakaway while fending off one Giants defenceman, then beating a second to the slot before tucking home the puck.
“This was really a game by everyone, and Brown kept us in there,” said Rigby, who also closed out the scoring late in the third by converting a centering pass from McColgan. “We collapsed in the third a bit, but good teams find a way to win.”
SCRATCHES — Vancouver: D Dalton Olsen, D Luke Fenske (hand), RW Matt Bellerive (upper body), D Neil Manning (back), C Greg Lamoureux, LW Connor Redmond (upper body), C Logan Harland and RW Jackson Houck. Kelowna: D Madison Bowey (knee), RW Austin Ferguson, RW Brett Bulmer (Minnesota Wild) and D Tanner Moar.
http://dubnation-news.blogspot.com/2011/10/rockets-double-up-giants_02.html
On the night they raised another banner to the rafters, the Kelowna Rockets went out and had a banner game.
Rookie Carter Rigby had two goals and an assist for Kelowna, and defenceman Damon Severson had one goal and two assists, as the Rockets doubled up the Vancouver Giants 6-3 in WHL action on Saturday night. Prior to playing Vancouver, the Rockets hoisted their 2010-11 B.C. Division pennant before a standing-room only crowd of 6,257 at Prospera Place.
And what a raising it was — the win, not the pennant, as the Rockets outskilled the Giants for the first 40 minutes, building up a 5-1 lead, before taking the third period off.
“The first two periods, we played well. I thought we did a lot of things well,” Rockets head coach Ryan Huska said after Kelowna’s home opener. “But we absolutely let off the gas in the third period and they came on. It’s a good lesson, really, that no lead is a safe one in junior hockey.”
Cody Chikie, Zach Franko and captain Colton Sissons also scored for the Rockets (2-0-0-0), who led 1-0 and 5-1 at the period breaks. Right-winger Shane McColgan, with three assists, plus defencemen Myles Bell and Kevin Smith, with two helpers each, also jumped on the scoresheet for the winners, who played with extreme confidence.
Jordan Martinook, with a shorthanded goal in the second period, plus Brendan Gallagher and Kiefer McNaughton replied for the Giants (2-3-0-0), who suffered their second road loss in as many nights. On Friday, the Giants took it on the chin in Kamloops, falling 6-2 to the Blazers. After Saturday's contest, Vancouver held a lengthy closed-door session.
Adam Brown made 29 saves for the Rockets, while Brendan Jensen turned aside 25 shots for the Giants, who outshot Kelowna 18-3 in the third. However, by then, the game had already been decided. Vancouver also received a stellar effort from forward Brendan Gallagher, who was in the running for a game star until Kelowna scored its sixth goal.
For the Rockets, the night proved valuable in that: A) they raised a banner; B) they got two points; and C) they learned a lesson at no points cost to a division opponent.
“I liked our first two periods, but there’s a lot of things we have to work on,” Huska said. “The effort was good, but we need to clean things up in our own zone. On the offensive side of the game, I thought we did a lot of good things. We’re skating fairly well, but we have to tidy things up and understand that, really, no lead is safe in this league.”
Rigby, the game’s first star, netted the best goal of the night, a breakaway while fending off one Giants defenceman, then beating a second to the slot before tucking home the puck.
“This was really a game by everyone, and Brown kept us in there,” said Rigby, who also closed out the scoring late in the third by converting a centering pass from McColgan. “We collapsed in the third a bit, but good teams find a way to win.”
SCRATCHES — Vancouver: D Dalton Olsen, D Luke Fenske (hand), RW Matt Bellerive (upper body), D Neil Manning (back), C Greg Lamoureux, LW Connor Redmond (upper body), C Logan Harland and RW Jackson Houck. Kelowna: D Madison Bowey (knee), RW Austin Ferguson, RW Brett Bulmer (Minnesota Wild) and D Tanner Moar.
http://dubnation-news.blogspot.com/2011/10/rockets-double-up-giants_02.html