Rockets prepare for Memorial Cup their own way

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“It’s been different for sure,” goaltender Josh Banini admitted to RocketFAN. “I’ve never been in a situation like this where you’re not playing games, but you know that there are games ahead… it’s a different kind of mindset for sure.”

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Most teams build toward the Memorial Cup through the WHL playoffs, playing games, building momentum, and learning from wins and losses. The Rockets don’t have that. They were knocked out in the second round and now have to prepare without games.

“Yeah, for sure,” Banini said when asked if it feels like training camp all over again. “It’s been hard here… there’s no easy days here.”

That’s the reality now. Practice isn’t just practice; it’s everything.

Head coach Derrick Martin knows how tricky this is.

“The advantage that the teams that are coming in here have is having been playing games and winning,” Martin said. “The advantage that we have is that rest can be a weapon.”

But too much rest can work against you.

So the Rockets are trying to find the right balance, pushing hard enough to stay sharp, but being smart enough to stay healthy.

“We’ve got to make sure that we’re well conditioned,” Martin added. “We’ve got to make sure that we take advantage of the rest, but at the same time we’ve got to really find the competitiveness internally… doing it against each other on a repeated basis.”

That’s what this stretch has become: competing against each other every day.

Forward Shane Smith says it has to be that way.

“Everybody that will be playing in the Memorial Cup is still out there playing games,” he said. “So we have to try to mimic that competition here every day in practice and in the gym.”

It’s controlled, but it still has to feel real.

“There’s definitely a line,” Smith said. “But we want what’s best for everybody… pushing each other in drills and battle drills… it’s only going to make each other better.”

For goaltender Harrison Boettiger, the challenge isn’t just physical – it’s mental too.

“They’ve definitely been really hard on us,” he said about the coaches putting the players through the paces. “Putting us through a lot of stuff mentally and physically… it’s been hard, a lot of ice, a lot of workouts, but it’s been good.”

Still, this is new.

“Definitely not,” Boettiger said when asked if he’s ever gone this long without games. “It’s like… a month. So it’s a lot of time off… it’s going to be interesting to see how it goes.”

The Rockets open the Memorial Cup against the OHL champions, then turn around two days later to face the QMJHL representative.

And for a team that hasn’t played a meaningful game in weeks, preparation becomes everything.

There’s no perfect blueprint for this.

But there are examples.

One of the most recent came in 2022, when the Saint John Sea Dogs were knocked out early in the playoffs, sat idle for more than a month… and still found a way to win the Memorial Cup on home ice.

Forty days without games. Then a championship.

It shows there’s a path, even if it’s not a clear one.

“I’m not really counting the days,” Banini said. “I’m just trying to get ready for when that day comes… just take it step by step.”

The players know what’s happening in the WHL playoffs, but they’re not locked into it.

“I’m aware of who’s alive,” Banini said. “But I’m not really focused on those teams right now… whoever our opponent’s going to be… we’ll be ready for them.”

The bigger challenge might be staying sharp mentally. Playoffs bring urgency. Without them, the Rockets have to create their own.

Martin believes that comes from within.

“We’ve talked all year… about preparing for an opponent you may never face,” he said.

There are lighter moments, too. Boettiger had one of the better playoff beards on the team, but not anymore.

“It was kind of itchy… kind of annoying me,” he said. “So I had to get rid of it and go back to looking 10 years younger.”

The Rockets won’t arrive at the Memorial Cup the same way other teams do.

But they might have something else – rest, focus, and time to sharpen their game.

Waiting. Working. Preparing.