Iginla, Lavoie meet as Rockets, Saguenéens look for first win

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But one player naturally pulls the focus more than most, Kelowna Rockets forward Tij Iginla.

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Already drafted by the Utah Mammoth in the first round, Iginla is not being measured as a future projection anymore. He is being measured in the present.

“It’s so cool,” Pederson said. “I remember we had this [Memorial Cup in Kelowna] earmarked during COVID, and then we missed it, so I’m just so happy for the city to have this tournament back and happy for Tij. Happy for all the players.”

There is a different kind of attention that comes with it now. Not where a player might go, but how he responds to where he already is.

“Obviously, it’s a grind of a regular season and playoffs,” Pederson said. “You come here to a beautiful city. The hockey is going to be amazing, but for us with Tij, we’re just here to support. He’s chasing his dreams of becoming an NHL player, and he’s got a job to do for the city and for his current team.”

At home, that balance shifts. Everything gets sharper. Every shift carries a little more weight.

And for scouts, that is where the real value sits.

The Rockets have already provided plenty of material. A playoff run defined by tight games, momentum swings, and late-game pressure has shown how this group responds when the ice shrinks, and the stakes rise.

One moment still stands out, a comeback win capped by an overtime goal from Iginla himself.

For Peterson, those moments matter just as much as the highlight skill.

“I think he’ll be the first to admit it’s huge,” he said. “It’s just resume building. I look back at when we had Dylan Guenther and he was in Seattle and scoring big goals in their playoff run. I remember Dylan in the World Juniors scored a gold medal winning goal. I think all that stuff adds up.”

At this stage, scouting is less about possibility and more about proof.

Can a player still make his game work when everything tightens, when the reads get faster and the crowd gets heavier?

“That’s what it prepares you for,” Pederson said. “Being under pressure, being in the spotlight, all eyes on you. It is what you can deliver under the biggest moments.”

And often, it does not show up in highlight plays. It shows up in decisions.

Do you force it, or do you trust it?

“You might see some nerves early,” Pederson said. “You might see some players trying to impress. But there are so many drafted guys here already; there is enough experience. The message from all the staff would just be play the same way you have been playing all year, play the same way you have been playing in the playoffs, and let it take care of itself.”

For Utah, Iginla is no longer a question mark. He is part of a longer development track. The focus now is consistency, habits, and how his game translates when the intensity rises to another level.

The Mammoth also have another prospect in the mix, Chicoutimi defenceman Thomas Lavoie, whose skating and puck-moving game have already drawn internal attention.

But Pederson keeps the evaluation grounded.

“It does not matter if it is Tij or Thomas or whoever it is,” he said. “It is more about identifying qualities in young men and qualities in hockey players.”

Lavoie, a third-round pick who has signed with Utah, brings a clear identity.

“He’s a mobile, good hockey sense, good first pass,” Pederson said. “He can connect plays, he brings offence from the back end. He is a very smart player, very cerebral.”

And tonight, those two paths intersect.

Kelowna and Chicoutimi meet with the same goal: to respond after opening losses at the Memorial Cup.

One win changes the mood quickly. Another loss makes the climb steeper.