Photo; Steve Dunsmoor

By Regan Bartel

Rockets Captain is WHLPOW

Gabriel Szturc joining strong list of Kelowna Rocket European greats

Mar 13, 2023 | 3:06 PM

WHL Press Release:

The Western Hockey League announced that Kelowna Rockets captain Gabriel Szturc has been named WHL Player of the Week for the week ending March 12, 2023.

Szturc finished the week with eight points (three goals and five assists), recording a shootout winner and overtime game-winning goal to help the Rockets earn a playoff spot and six points in three games over the weekend.

With 73 points this season, that is one better than countrymen Pavel Novak, who notched 72 points in the 2021-2022 season.

Rockets face road test in games 3 and 4

Goaltending, discipline and depth driving 2-0 series lead over Blazers

Mar 30, 2026

Rockets DOA. Dominate. Overcome. Achieve

Things that make me go hmm....

Feb 02, 2026

Too good to ignore, too hated to care

Kelowna Rockets: The team the Internet loves to hate

Jan 13, 2026

The 19-year-old also surpassed Calvin Thurkauf’s (Switzerland born) 70 points season in 2016-2017.

The last European born player to wear Kelowna Rockets colours to record over 75 points in one season was Jan Fadrny (79 points), in the 2000-2001 season.

Fadrny, a 20-year-old that season, scored 33 goals.

The team record for points in one season by a European player, while the team has been based in Kelowna, is Vaclav Varada (39+46=85).

Varada, from the Czech Republic, hit that point total in the 1995-96 season, the first year the team played in the Okanagan after re-locating from Tacoma, Washington.

Szturc is also the third highest scoring European born player in the WHL this season, behind Regina Pats forward Alexander Suzdalev (78 points) and Igor Sidorov of the Saskatoon Blades (76 points).

This season, Szturc has set new career bests in many offensive categories including goals (21), assists (52), points (73) and power-play markers (12).

His 57.1 winning percentage in the face-off circle this season also ranks eighth among WHL skaters with 600 or more face-off attempts.