Photo credit: Tim Swanky

By Regan Bartel

The Simon Ferguson story

From wake-up call to Memorial Cup champion

Jul 25, 2025 | 6:00 AM

Simon Ferguson got a reality check when he joined the Kelowna Rockets in the winter of 2003.

Spoiler alert: it wasn’t a gentle one.

The 19-year-old forward, recently traded from the Lethbridge Hurricanes, walked into the gym and was immediately thrown into a different world. One where the standard was higher, the pace relentless, and the tone was set by guys like eventual NHL Hockey Hall of Famer Duncan Keith, who, it turns out, apparently moonlighted as a fitness machine.

“Scott Hoyer (athletic therapist) had us doing the beep test,” Ferguson told RocketFAN. “I was feeling pretty good, hitting level 9/10… then Duncan hits 14. I thought, ‘Alright, I’d better get going here.’ It was a whole different level.”

For anyone who hasn’t suffered through the beep test, it’s a cardio torture device that forces you to run 20-meter shuttles timed by beeps that get faster and faster. It’s a mental and physical grind designed to separate the champs from the chumps.

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Keith didn’t need to talk much. He just kept going, calm and locked in like a robot on skates. His effort wasn’t about showing off. It was the baseline expectation. And for Ferguson, that was a jolt stronger than any double espresso at Starbucks.

He arrived in Kelowna full of confidence, known as a hard-nosed forward with a sharp tongue and a reputation across the WHL as a top agitator. Usually, if there was a mental edge to be had, Ferguson would find it and talk his way into it. But in the Rockets’ gym, there was no trash talk. Just work. And work doesn’t lie.

“It was a complete culture shock, learning how to operate and become a pro,” Ferguson added.

That beep test moment stuck with him. It wasn’t just a fitness drill. It was a turning point. Ferguson quickly realized Kelowna wasn’t just a new team. It was a new standard. A place where expectations were higher, the culture sharper, and accountability constant.

“I had never seen anything like it. The guy [Keith] was relentless. He was on another level.”

Keith, who came from NCAA hockey, trained like every session mattered. With something to prove and no shortcuts allowed, he led by example.

Ferguson had to adjust. The old tricks didn’t cut it anymore. He had to grind, and he did. That wake-up call pushed him to elevate both his game and mentality. He became a key contributor on a Rockets team quickly turning into a WHL powerhouse.

“I knew Duncan when I was younger, and I was a defenseman at that time, and the way he worked… I wish I had done more of what he was doing, to be honest. The way he worked and competed.”

Ferguson wasn’t a slouch when he arrived. He posted 23 points in 30 games, playing on a third line with Ryan Cuthbert and Blake Comeau, who would go on to skate in 909 NHL games.

“That season, and I am not one for stats, but I think with the two teams I had 27 goals that season,” he said with a question mark, though it checks out on the WHL website. “I probably had 10 fights a year playing with some good players. I think if you look at that team in 2003, we had four guys with 30 goals and I was lucky to be part of it.”

That year, Kelowna laid the foundation for a championship. The franchise earned its first WHL title with a six-game series win over Red Deer.

“The guys worked so hard in 2003 and came together because we knew we were hosting the Memorial Cup in 2004. If you look at those two teams, I think 14 players played a game in the NHL. Whereas my time in Lethbridge, maybe two or three did.”

Playing as the host team in 2004 was an honour and a privilege, but Ferguson faced the harsh reality of earning one of three overage spots as a 1983 birthday.

“My thought was, I have to be the best player here,” he said without hesitation. “You know the organization is going to do whatever it takes to build a championship team, and staying on task and getting better toward the end of the year… I felt the pressure. I was worried that they may bring in someone else. I wanted to stay and show I could do it.”

Indeed, he did. Playing in front of a packed house at what was then Skyreach Place, Ferguson and the Rockets went undefeated in the tournament, defeating Gatineau, the QMJHL champions, in the Memorial Cup final.

“We were isolated during the event. We came into the city during games and then left to stay focused. I can remember inside the rink, I thought that roof was going to come off several times. It was mayhem.”

As RocketFAN revisits the story of the 2004 Memorial Cup champion Kelowna Rockets, moments like this, quiet, raw, and personal, reveal exactly how that team was built. Not in the spotlight. In the sweat.

“I watched the [championship] game on YouTube, and the buy-in that that team had on blocking shots, hitting guys, chipping pucks, and making simple plays. Playing to our strengths,” he said in awe now 21 years later.

“Guys sold out every play, everywhere. It was incredible.”