Tri-City Americans edge Rockets 5-4 at Prospera Place
Isaac Johnson scored two third period goals including the game-winner with less than five minutes to play, propelling the Tri City Americans to a hard fought 5-4 win over the Kelowna Rockets at Prospera Place.
The teams combined for five goals in the final frame and the Rockets held a 4-3 lead at one point until the Americans took over in the attacking zone for much of the final ten minutes.
“We ended up spending time in our defensive zone and then they built some momentum,” said head coach Jason Smith. “By winning some faceoffs and capitalizing on their opportunity five-on-five where we broke down in coverage, they took the period over and we were on our heels.”
Tri City took a 2-0 lead to the dressing room after 20 minutes on goals by Nolan Yaremko and Riley Sawchuk. Kelowna responded with a pair of power play tallies by Nolan Foote (4) and Kaedan Korczak (1) to knot the affair after 40 minutes.
At 1:39 of the third period, Jack Cowell emerged from a scoring funk with an unassisted marker to give Kelowna a 3-2 lead. The 19-year-old collected a loose puck at the blueline, made a couple of defenders miss, then ripped a shot past Talyn Boyko in the Americans cage for his first of the campaign.
Johnson scored at 6:11 to make it 3-3, before rookie Dallon Wilton strong-armed the puck past Boyko at 9:58 to put the Rockets ahead. For Wilton, it was his second career goal, the first coming the previous night in Kelowna’s 3-2 win at Kennewick, Washington over Tri City.
The Americans responded with a flurry, applying pressure in the attacking zone until Sawchuk and Johnson scored 27 seconds apart to seal the victory.
With the loss, the Rockets fell to 2-9 this season, and have not won at home in six starts.
The assembled masses at Prospera Place have been treated to years of high-energy, entertaining, winning hockey. Indeed, on many a night over the years, the Rockets provided great theatre. And, while the
current group is beginning to perform with urgency, the play in its defensive zone may at times be offensive to some.
“We never regained it by simplifying it and talking and just kind of were spinning our wheels trying to get the puck out of our zone,” Smith said when queried about the Americans late third period barrage.
On a brighter note, forward Kyle Topping continues to battle with some efficiency on the forecheck and in the faceoff circle. Now in his third full season, Topping chipped in with two assists on the night, running his totals to three goals and 12 assists in 11 games to share the team lead in scoring with Leif Mattson (8-7; 15).
“We were really good at times, especially in the second, but I wish we had a better start,” Topping said. “And, we just gotta figure out how to play with the lead and close out games. They were pushing back. A lot of defensive zone time for us. We weren’t able to close it out.”
For Topping, who won 17 of 28 faceoffs on the night, matchups with the Americans have been special during his three seasons in the Western Hockey League. His older brother Jordan played 265 games over four seasons for Tri City, including last year as a 20-year-old.
“Yeh, it was different,” Topping said of the two weekend games against the Americans. “Especially going down there, we usually get to see each other. But, that’s hockey, he’s moving on and making a pro career.”
The Rockets are idle until the weekend. The team leaves on Thursday for Victoria where it will play a doubleheader against the Royals, before a Sunday afternoon contest in Langley against the Vancouver Giants.
ICE CHIPS…Roman Basran made 33 saves in the Rockets net while the 15-yearold Boyko made 24 saves in his WHL debut…Kelowna went 2-for-5 on the power play. Tri City was 2-for-8…Kelowna ranks 21st in the WHL on the penalty kill, allowing opponents 18 goals in 54 opportunities. The Rockets have seven power play goals this season, four in its last three games … Three stars were Johnson, Topping and Yaremko…Rockets scratches were C Ted Brennan, D Kyle Pow, LW Wil Kushniryk and RW Lane Zablocki. Czech import defenceman Libor Zabransky also sat out after appearing in 86 straight games since joining the Rockets last season…Newly acquired D Dalton Gally, 20, and RW Michael Farren, 18, made their home ice debuts for the Rockets…Next home game is Tuesday, Oct. 23 against the Swift Current Broncos.