Harrison Boettiger - Photo credit: Steve Dunsmoor

By Regan Bartel

Steady net, strong team

Boettiger and Banini: The Rockets’ goaltending game-changers

Nov 25, 2025 | 6:00 AM

For years, Kelowna’s goaltending has been a bit of a rollercoaster. This season, that’s finally changed. Harrison Boettiger has been outstanding, earning WHL Goalie of the Week honours with two wins last week, a 1.53 goals-against average, and a .955 save percentage. Josh Banini has also been steady, giving Kelowna a duo in net they can trust night after night.

Head coach Derrick Martin says having both goalies performing at a high level has lifted the entire team.

“Typically, when you talk goaltending, you talk about the perils of your two goalies, and they’re just not maybe coming through for you. Both have. They’ve come up with some incredible saves to hold us in games, and when you have that and know they’re going to show up every single night, it gives you confidence when you line up across the ice from your opponent that you’re going to have a chance.”

That confidence has been visible in the way the Rockets play in front of their net.

“There’s been some games that they’ve had to be really good for us. There’s been some games where I thought our guys were really good in front of them, but every single night they’ve done their job for us,” Martin said. “I always made the joke, you see a good goaltender, you’ve got a good team, and we’ve got two of them this year. It’s been a real pleasure to have through 21 games of the regular season.”

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Kelowna’s numbers back up the improvement. Through 21 games, the Rockets are allowing 3.43 goals per game, nine fewer than this time last season. By comparison, Prince Albert leads the league at 2.48 goals against per game, followed by Everett at 2.65. Last season, the Rockets earned two shutouts in their first 21 games, which is great, but outside of those whitewashed games, they allowed a lot of goals—a reminder of how much more consistent they’ve become this year.

Boettiger and Banini bring very different strengths to the ice, and that balance has been key. Martin says Banini adds personality and swagger, while Boettiger is calm and collected.

“Banini is a little more… he’s got a little more personality to him. He’s got a little more swagger in the net. He’s a little more emotional. ‘Botts’ is a pretty even-keeled guy, calm, relaxed. Nothing seems to ever faze him or bother him. No high is too high, no low is too low. He just does a good job of emotional regulation. They’re different, but both provide confidence to our group.”

Both goalies are being managed carefully to stay fresh.

“I think they’re both just good, to be honest with you. We’ve really met with management and made the decision to ride this out until we feel like we don’t have to ride it out anymore. Other people are probably scratching their heads going, ‘When are you going to pick one guy or the other?’ But I don’t feel any rush to do that. If we forecast six months from now and we’re in the Memorial Cup, I think both guys would play games in it. It gives us a distinct advantage that we’re lucky to have.”

The Rockets’ improvement in net has allowed the skaters to play with confidence.

“I just think that we have a confidence that we don’t really have to look back and know who’s in net to dictate how we’re playing. We know we’re going to be given a chance on that side of things, so we got to make sure we take care of the puck and do what we can in front of them,” Martin said.

Boettiger and Banini aren’t just stopping pucks, they’re lifting the whole team.

Kelowna’s goaltending has transformed from a question mark to a strength.