Rockets riding regular season roller coaster

When the Kelowna Rockets take to the ice in the New Year, there is no telling what the roster will look like.

Frankly, since opening night back in September, filling out the lineup sheet each night has pretty much been a juggling act for the coaching staff.

The 2020 Memorial Cup hosts are 35 games into the 68-game Western Hockey League regular season schedule. At 19-13-1-2, good for 41 points and second place in the B.C. Division, it’s a wonder the organization is threatening the 20-win mark at this point.

Adam Foote

“I can’t wait,” said head coach Adam Foote when asked about the day he can ice a complete lineup. “I cannot wait until we’re healthy.”

It would seem consistency has been difficult to achieve, at least when examining the Rockets’ ledger of wins and losses. Through its first 15 games, Kelowna managed to win consecutive games only twice. Then, after losing four in a row, the Rockets won eight of their next nine. Since then, Kelowna has dropped five of its last seven starts.

When queried about the team’s consistency, or lack of the same, Foote had an interesting spin on things.

“Look at our record just before Christmas, what we did,” Foote said of the winning efforts. “That 12-day road trip, that’s not a bad trip where we’re playing on fumes. And we won on that road trip. We were missing four of our top six players.

“Then, when we have (Matthew) Wedman come in and (Conner) McDonald comes out and (Jadon) Joseph comes in, there’s structure, but they don’t know our systems, everything from the power play to our neutral zone play.”

Every team deals with its share of bumps and bruises, key injuries throughout the season. When an organization endures a parade to sick bay, the response on each occasion includes the standard cliche about opportunities for someone else to step up.

In fairness, the “step-up” rhetoric has to be a “go-to” response when any organization encounters absences from the lineup.

However, the reality is that no team can replace productive veteran leaders and star players with a steady stream of productive veteran leaders and star players. The demand outweighs the supply and inserting younger players out of necessity often results in a diminishing return.

“I’m interested to see in four weeks where we’re at,” Foote said. “I mean, if you look at what’s happened to us, we can’t find any luck with the injury bug for sure.

“But what it does is it really lets us know what we have. Our younger guys develop faster and are put in heavier situations, maybe before their time.”

The Docket

It was a foregone conclusion that acquisitions would be part of the program this season with the 2020 Memorial Cup on the horizon. But key absences have rocked the lineup all season long, making continuity tremendously elusive.

Kyle Topping

Oct. 30: Forward Kyle Topping suffered a severely broken ankle in Victoria against the Royals.

The Rockets’ leading scorer a year ago has missed the last 21 games and is listed as out of the lineup for somewhere between the next four to ten weeks. Should Topping be able to return, the Rockets will have an important decision to make regarding their group of overage players.

Pavel Novak

Nov. 11: A poor decision by explosive rookie import forward Pavel Novak in a Nov. 11 game in Kamloops against the Blazers resulted in an eight-game suspension for a checking from behind penalty.

He rejoined the team on its East Division road trip, then traveled home to the Czech Republic and back to Kelowna during the break in the WHL schedule. Word is the 17-year-old is summarily exhausted. Through 27 games, Novak has scored 13 goals and added 13 assists.

Jadon Joseph

Nov. 24: Forward Jadon Joseph was acquired from the Moose Jaw Warriors in exchange for three roster players: forwards Kyle Crosbie, overage forward Kobe Mohr and goaltender James Porter.

The 20-year-old brings valuable playoff experience to the mix, having been to a pair of Eastern Conference finals with the Lethbridge Hurricanes and the WHL Championship final series last season with the Vancouver Giants.

Liam Kindree

Nov. 26: Forward Liam Kindree, 19, skated gingerly off the ice during the game in Kelowna against the Edmonton Oil Kings.

He suffered a shoulder injury and proceeded to miss eight games. Since his return to the lineup, Kindree has begun to score, notching the game winner in overtime against the Prince George Cougars on Monday evening.

Kindree won a BCMMHL scoring title before joining the Rockets. Kelowna needs him to become a prolific scorer in the WHL.

Matthew Wedman

Dec. 5: Kelowna acquired overage forward Matthew Wedman from the Seattle Thunderbirds and he has been an impact player.

However, behind the scenes, reports suggest Wedman barely spent any time in Kelowna during the three-week period following the deal. He joined the Rockets on their East Division road trip, then devoted time to gathering his belongings from Seattle before some down time at home during the Christmas break.

The deal for Wedman precipitated another move, as Kelowna sent long-time veteran forward Leif Mattson, 20, to the Spokane Chiefs.

Nolan Foote

Dec. 8: Following the Rockets’ 4-3 shootout victory in Saskatoon over the Blades, team captain Nolan Foote left for the Team Canada selection camp for the IIHF World Junior Championship in the Czech Republic.

Foote, a veteran of over 200 WHL Games through four seasons, continues to lead the Rockets in scoring with 15 goals and 18 assists in 25 games.

He will not return to the lineup until mid-January.

Sean Comrie

Dec. 13: A thin blue line brigade got even thinner when defenceman Sean Comrie, 19, who has appeared in 30 games this season, fell heavily into the boards and suffered a serious upper body injury in Regina against the Pats.

Comrie, who spent some time in training camp with the Philadelphia Flyers prior to the WHL campaign, has missed the last five games and is listed on the WHL weekly report as out indefinitely.

Conner McDonald

Dec. 15: The Rockets acquired 20-year-old defenceman Conner McDonald from the Edmonton Oil Kings.

A gifted offensive rearguard, McDonald should be a good addition. However, he did not play a WHL game between Nov. 1 and Dec. 17. While he produced three points in his debut at Kelowna on Dec. 18 in a 4-3 loss to the Vancouver Giants, it will take him time to acclimate and return to game shape.

As a result, overage defenceman Carson Sass, a popular figure in the Rockets dressing room, was placed on waivers. He has been picked up by the Moose Jaw Warriors.

Dillon Hamaliuk

Dec. 27: Forward Dillon Hamaliuk returned to the lineup following a bout of mononucleosis. He has appeared in 28 of 35 games this season.

Curiously, the 19-year-old forward was largely unproductive through October and most of November, which has now been linked in part to the illness. He missed seven games in December, including the Rockets’ entire road trip through the East Division. He returned to the lineup after the Christmas break, but he will be closely monitored in the coming weeks.

Moving forward

Despite the adventures, there is a calmness in Foote’s voice as he reflects on the past couple of months. In fact, there is a glimmer of excitement, of anticipation.

“The excitement in my voice is about the culture change,” Foote said. “We’re relentless. That road trip, we fought for each other when we didn’t have a full lineup. It was a nasty trip.

“You know, everyone’s got to do it. Those teams come here and we go there. It’s not like we’re doing something no one else is doing. But what we’re doing is, from the weather conditions to the injuries, to Novak being gone then we get him back. Then Nolan goes to the world junior. Topping is out. We’re on the road and it’s just wild.

“Then, how fast Wedman was accepted. And Joseph loves the locker room. So, what I’m excited about is our culture. We’re playing hard, trying to do the structure and the guys are awesome. I mean, I can’t be upset with them.

“That’s why I’m excited to go back and get, you know, 10 practices in a row with our team. It’s gonna be fun to see what we can pull off. So that’s why it’s exciting to hope we get, like, two weeks together, to practice and be healthy.

“It’s gonna be interesting. But the beauty of it is our dressing room’s healthy. Our culture’s good.”

Kaedan Korczak

Defenceman Kaedan Korczak along with forwards Alex Swetlikoff and Mark Liwiski are the only players to have suited up in each of the Rockets’ 35 games.

Defenceman Devin Steffler, who appeared in his 100th WHL game last week, has been playing on a painful ankle sprain.

Young blueliners Noah Dorey and Elias Carmichael, both 16, are being leaned upon to play more minutes.

Switching Gears

Aside from the challenges as head coach, Foote has plenty of reason to be optimistic when he turns his thoughts to the performance and development of his youngest son.

Nolan, now 19 and a four-year WHL veteran, is having a pronounced impact for Team Canada at the WJC with three goals and an assist through four round-robin games.

Two years ago in Buffalo, New York, the entire family enjoyed the WJC as defenceman Cal Foote was part of the gold-medal winning Canadian team. But this time around, Adam remains in Kelowna while his wife Jennifer made the trip overseas.

“We were in Buffalo then,” Foote said. “My wife is over there now with her mother and some friends. I think she’s having a great time right now with a group of Canadians, seeing the different culture. She says the rink is really vibrant.”

The WJC has become an annual pressure-cooker for Hockey Canada, the hierarchy, the players and the families. Expectations are extremely high, and the performance of the players is squarely under the microscope leading up to and including the tournament.

For Cal and Nolan Foote, there was actually an opportunity to participate in the tournament as members of the Hockey USA program. Both players were born in Colorado and grew up playing minor hockey there, in part while Adam toiled with the Colorado Avalanche of the National Hockey League.

“They both had a choice,” Adam said, when asked about competing for a position with Team USA or Team Canada. “Cal went to a camp in the USA and he didn’t play very well. He was miserable. And he broke his arm there.

“And when they asked Nolan, he said ‘no.’ The USA guys were a little bit surprised. They told the boys that Team Canada is pretty deep and they may not make the team.

“My wife is Canadian. She was a figure skater at the Canada Winter Games when she was 16. I’m Canadian. So, they both had it in their blood competing for Canada.

“We left it up to the kids. They chose to come back (to Canada).”

Roman Basran

Rockets Fuel…The Victoria Royals (Friday) and Vancouver Giants (Saturday) visit Prospera Place in Kelowna this weekend…The Royals and Giants face off in a New Year’s Day matinee in Langley. A win by Victoria would move the Royals into second place in the B.C. Division, a point ahead of the Rockets. The Kamloops Blazers lead the division by six points…Goaltender Roman Basran has been busy, appearing in 28 games, compiling a 15-8-1 record, 2.58 goals-against average and a .912 save percentage.

Lassi Thomson

What are Lassi Thomson’s plans after the 2020 WJC?…Korczak, who signed an entry level contract with the Vegas Golden Knights on Dec. 22, has scored six goals and 23 assists to lead Rockets defenceman in scoring…Novak’s 13 goals in 27 games is tops in the WHL among rookies, tied with fellow Czech import Michal Teply (29 games) of the Winnipeg ICE and Bear Hughes (33 games) of the Spokane Chiefs…Kelowna will play 19 of its remaining 33 games at home…Of those 33 contests, 17 are against B.C. Division rivals…Through 15 home  games, Kelowna has drawn an average of 5,167 fans. Last season, the Rockets drew an average of 4,835 fans per night.