Reminiscing with Ryan Cuthbert Photo credit: RocketFAN
Notes, quotes and anecdotes
Things that make me go hmm….
Nov 14, 2025 | 6:00 AM
- The Kelowna Rockets have added nine new faces to their roster, players who did not dress for the team a season ago. The trade winds continue to blow as management shapes the lineup for the 2026 Memorial Cup. Despite all the wheeling and dealing, by our count, the Rockets still hold three first-round picks if they choose to use them. They have Lethbridge’s first in 2026, Spokane’s first in 2027 from the Andrew Cristall deal, and their own in 2029.
- What stands out about the early moves by GM Bruce Hamilton and assistant Curtis Hamilton is the timing. Making these deals now gives the group time to come together. It takes patience and practice for players who have never skated together to build chemistry and cohesion. You also want the newcomers to blend into the culture and contribute to a strong team dynamic. Bringing in new faces at the trade deadline in January can be a risky move. It often disrupts the room instead of strengthening it.
- Newly acquired Shane Smith has already played in 20 games this season. His new teammates have played in five fewer. If he stays healthy and suits up for the Rockets’ final 53 games, Smith will finish with 73 appearances in 2025-26. The last Kelowna player to come close was Nate Corbet, who played 20 games with Medicine Hat before being traded to the Rockets, where he added another 52.
- A nice quote this week from Rockets head coach Derrick Martin on the play of veteran d-man Mazden Leslie. “For Mazden, points-wise he’s off to a slower start this year, but that’s part of the evolution of a player who’s learning he has to be something different than he was to reach his goals, and that’s to earn an NHL contract. He’s stepped into a role where he can still be a leader, but he’s also buying into the play away from the puck. He’s allowed us to coach him in areas that weren’t his forte before, and even if that comes at the cost of some points right now, he’s developing into the kind of player who can have a long career in hockey. We’ve got a power play that we’re not going to rest on until it gets going. When it clicks, Mazden’s going to be a big part of it. Will he get 72 points again this year? I can’t promise that, but I still wouldn’t bet against him.”
- This week, our Instagram inbox lit up with a message from a hockey fan of a U.S.-based team. We won’t say which one, but they told us that RocketFAN has so much good info on the players, through our articles and videos, that they actually know more about the Rockets than their own team. To us, that’s a huge compliment worth sharing. Our goal has always been to cover this team like no one else can — and hearing that from outside the fan base? That’s pretty special.
- The funniest part of a shootout is when the winning team has no idea they have actually won. It happened to the Kelowna Rockets a few weeks back in Victoria when rookie Daniel Pekar scored what turned out to be the deciding goal, but the players stayed glued to the bench, looking around asking, “Wait, was that it?” Only after a brief discussion did they realize they had just won 2-1. It is not just a junior hockey thing either. The same scene played out in the NHL the other night when Columbus beat Seattle. Outside of the announcers calling the game, nobody seemed to know what was going on. The Blue Jackets sat there, calm as can be, until it finally clicked, “Oh, we won.”
- Kelowna Rockets Head Coach Derrick Martin is a fan of the colour purple. To clarify, purple Sharpie markers to be exact. Martin has been using them for years to diagram plays on his whiteboard. He swears by them. The colour pops better than black and erases cleaner too. His wife even stocks him up with a fresh handful every season before training camp begins.
- Someone had to say it. The WHL’s new website is shiny and modern, but let’s just say it takes a few extra clicks to get where you want to go. Want to find a team’s full schedule? You’ll be scrolling month by month like you’re flipping through an old desk calendar. For broadcasters trying to look up when the Rockets last blanked a team, it’s turned into a bit of a scavenger hunt. It’s progress, just with a longer path to get there.
- The Rockets will play their only three-in-three weekend of the season starting tonight, hosting Lethbridge, then Spokane, before traveling to Everett for a four o’clock Sunday start.
- Across the WHL, only 13 goaltenders have a save percentage above .900, and six of them are rookies, including Kelowna’s Harrison Boettiger. Among the veterans, Evan Gardiner of Saskatoon and Raiden Legall of Everett lead the way in both workload and consistency. Prince Albert’s Michal Orsulak owns the league’s best save percentage at .927, but has played in just 10 games. Last season, 17 goalies were above .900.
- I’m all for using video review to get the call right, but what happened Friday in Kelowna’s game against Victoria needs a rethink. A Rockets goal was wiped out after a review found a hand pass earlier in the play. It was the right call, but it took five minutes and 48 seconds to reach it. Players waited. Fans waited. The energy drained out of the building. There has to be a better system, or at least a time limit, to keep the game moving.
- Congratulations to former Kelowna Rockets goaltender and goaltending coach Kim Dillabaugh. Late last month, Dillabaugh was inducted into the Cowichan Valley-Duncan Sports Wall of Fame. The Wall of Fame recognizes individuals and teams that have achieved great success or made significant contributions to athletics locally, provincially, nationally, or even internationally. Dillabaugh is currently the goaltending coach for the Philadelphia Flyers. Now 48, Dilly spent 11 seasons with the Rockets as a goaltending coach before moving on to the NHL with the LA Kings in a similar role.
- Who leads the WHL in points per game? Kelowna Rockets forward Tij Iginla sits atop that category with exactly two points per game. Iginla has nine goals and 12 points after just six games. For comparison, in 2023-24, when he scored 47 times in the season, he had seven goals and three assists in his first six games.
- If you missed our interview with former Kelowna Rockets captain Ryan Cuthbert (featured photo above) over the weekend when the team was in Victoria, here’s a highlight. Cuthbert attended the Duncan Keith NHL Hockey Hall of Fame ceremony on Monday in Toronto. He was invited by Keith along with former teammate Darren Deschamps. Cuthbert roomed with Keith when the then 19-year-old left the NCAA to join the Kelowna Rockets in late December, helping the team capture its first ever WHL championship.
- A new addition has been made to the Kelowna Rockets dressing room. A photo of Max Graham has been added to the captains wall. It sits to the right of the photo of Gabriel Szturc, who captained the team in 2023-24. Graham is playing this season in the East Coast Hockey League with the Wheeling Nailers.
- The Kelowna Rockets have six wins in nine road games this season. In 2024-25, it took the team until its 17th road game to record its sixth win away from Prospera Place.
- Hats off to Brandon McMillan. Not only is he adjusting to being away from the game as a player after retiring this past summer, he is also getting his feet wet as an assistant coach to Derrick Martin and helping organize where the team eats on the road. Typically, assistant coaches follow the template that has been set for years when it comes to meals on the road. While it is easier to stick with the schedule of a predecessor, long-standing relationships with restaurants can get a little long in the tooth, ownerships change, and the food quality is not always what it once was. McMillan has looked outside the box for better alternatives, and the players seem very happy with the proactive approach.
- Waffle Wednesdays are back at Kelowna Rockets practices! How cool is it that the team’s billets serve up a full waffle breakfast once practice wraps up? The coaching staff get in on it too , and even RocketFAN was invited this week. We appreciate the hospitality… though word is, our table manners make a Zamboni look graceful.
- At 1,505 words, it’s time to shut the barn door. A recommendation for you: I watched the John Candy documentary on Prime this week, called I Like Me. The film didn’t shy away from showing the struggles he faced, his insecurities, the pressure he felt, and some personal habits that didn’t help him live a long life. As the title suggests, I wish we could all take a little bit of I Like Me and apply it to ourselves. Too often, we’re far too hard on ourselves – me included.
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