Photo credit: Steve Dunsmoor

By Regan Bartel

Hard, fast, physical

Home ice focus: Rockets face crucial run before road

Nov 18, 2025 | 6:00 AM

The Kelowna Rockets are coming off a strong weekend, earning four out of six points, including a 7-1 win over the Spokane Chiefs and a near-upset of the Everett Silvertips on Sunday, falling only in overtime. That kind of performance gives the team confidence, but a much bigger test awaits.

Three of the WHL’s high-powered teams, Edmonton, Everett, and Portland, roll into Prospera Place in consecutive games this week. Combined, those teams have a record of 46-16-3-2 and are 29-9-0-0 on the road, making this arguably the toughest home stretch of the young season. After this three-game homestand, Kelowna plays 10 of its final 11 games before Christmas on the road, so getting it right at home is key.

Rockets head coach Derrick Martin knows exactly what he wants his group to be on home ice. Harder. Faster. More connected. A team that is a real handful to play against. But wanting it and actually getting there from puck drop has not always lined up this season.

Martin has made it clear that their starts at home simply need to be better. The team has had nights where they look sharp and engaged and others where they ease into the game and end up chasing early.

“We talk all the time about our starts and being ready to start on time at home,” Martin said. “It’s got to be fixed, and we are going to work as a staff to help our guys get ready and make sure that we are not repeating the cycle, that we disrupt it and find a new us.”

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For Martin, getting out of the gate the right way is everything. If you are playing from behind, you are not playing to your strengths. The Rockets want to hit the ice skating downhill and make teams uncomfortable from the first shift on.

The identity he is pushing for is not just about scoring goals. It is about hard finishes, hard gaps, and hard shifts. When everyone buys in, that kind of hockey spreads through a lineup.

“It’s some of our young guys,” Martin said. “Owen Folstrom plays a really physical brand of hockey. We brought Carson Wetsch in to be a little bit of that for us and for our group. But you see some of our more skilled guys, Kalder Varga, starting to finish more checks and being harder to play against.”

When the Rockets reach the point where everyone is playing physical, not just the expected names, that is when the team starts to feel like a wave coming at you.

“It’s an identity that we want,” Martin said. “It ties into what we believe we are as a hockey team. And we think when we get this thing going the right way, it is going to be an unenjoyable experience for teams to play against us.”

The staff also pays close attention to battle win percentage. How many pucks do you go into a corner for and actually come out with. It is simple, but it says a lot about a team’s competitiveness.

“One of the big ones for me is their battle win percentage,” Martin said. “Good teams have a lot of guys over 50 percent. The benchmark for us is 55 percent. It is difficult to be 50 percent all across the board, but it is what we strive toward and what we work on in practice a ton. Our guys embrace that.”

Rookie defenseman Owen Hayden has been one of the early bright spots. He missed months with an offseason injury, but you would not know it now.

“It’s been unbelievably impressive what he has been able to do in a small sample size,” Martin said. “He does not look like a player who was on the shelf for three months. He is a hard worker. He asks a lot of questions. He is as growth-minded as a hockey player can be. There are going to be nights when Owen struggles, and you expect that from every sixteen and seventeen year old in this league. It will be our job to protect him. At the same time, I think there are going to be nights when people are impressed with how much ice he grabs.”

Martin sees plenty of upside in his other young players too.

“I believe Owen Folstrom can score 20 goals. He had a good summer, he never quits, he does not put limitations on himself, and he does all the heavy lifting. He is still chasing consistency, but when you project him into his 18 and 19 year old years, he could be a scary player in this league.”

There are no soft landings this week. Edmonton, Everett, and Portland will test Kelowna in consecutive games, and if the Rockets do not bring their best, it can turn into a long night quickly.

“The great thing about hockey is you get another opportunity,” Martin said. “You can change your fortunes pretty quickly.”