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Kalder Varga chases gold again

You always hear Canadian hockey players talk about the honour of wearing the maple leaf. And fair enough. It is a big deal. But don't kid yourself. It is just as much of a thrill for an American kid t...

Regan Bartel Aug 08, 2025 Photo credit: Steve Dunsmoor

Guitars, goals and glory!

Being a 17-year-old rookie during a Memorial Cup season on home ice is enough pressure to make anyone tighten up. But for Justin Keller, music was the outlet that helped him breathe. "Mike Card and I ...

Regan Bartel Jul 30, 2025 Keller is pictured with his wife, Rachel, son Kruz, daughter Cove and the Easter Bunny

From wake-up call to Memorial Cup champion

Simon Ferguson got a reality check when he joined the Kelowna Rockets in the winter of 2003. Spoiler alert: it wasn't a gentle one. The 19-year-old forward, recently traded from the Lethbridge Hurrica...

Regan Bartel Jul 25, 2025 Photo credit: Tim Swanky

Luke Schenn's call, Mazden Leslie's answer

Sometimes, all it takes is one phone call. That call came earlier this week, from NHL defenceman and Kelowna Rockets alumnus Luke Schenn to 20-year-old blueliner Mazden Leslie, a player caught between...

Regan Bartel Jul 19, 2025 Luke Schenn shares a chuckle at Prospera Place with alumnus Blake Comeau

Mazden Leslie reconsiders and joins Rockets

Mazden Leslie probably found himself at a bit of a crossroads this offseason. After four years and 280 regular season games with the Vancouver Giants that showed steady growth on the back end, the 20-...

Regan Bartel Jul 15, 2025 Mazden Leslie with the Vancouver Giants. Photo credit: Steve Dunsmoor

Derrick Martin's moment begins

Sometimes, timing is everything. For Derrick Martin, it might just be perfect. Last season, Martin joined the Kelowna Rockets as an assistant, his first crack at coaching in the WHL. The idea was he'd...

Regan Bartel Jun 28, 2025 Photo credit: RocketFAN

Things that make me go hmm...

Take a couple of weeks off, and what happens? While I was eating smoked meat in Montreal and pretending to speak perfect French in Quebec City, the junior hockey world exploded with off-ice drama. Eve...

Regan Bartel Jun 09, 2025 Marc Habscheid with Brent Sutter Photo credit: Red Deer Rebels (Facebook)

Rockets open season vs. Chiefs

Kelowna Rockets press release: The Kelowna Rockets are pleased to announce that the club will open the 2025-26 WHL regular season on home ice against the Spokane Chiefs on Friday, September 19, at 7:0...

Regan Bartel Jun 04, 2025

Bruce Hamilton isn't just hosting - he is hunting

Bruce Hamilton doesn't do fluff. Never has, never will. So when the longtime GM of the Kelowna Rockets stepped up to the mic at the Memorial Cup 2026 headquarters launch party on Manhattan Drive, ther...

Regan Bartel May 23, 2025 Photo credit: RocketFAN

Kelowna snags forward Carson Wetsch

Two seasons ago, the Kelowna Rockets were in the position of giving up talent. Fast forward to today, and they've turned the tables - pulling off a major acquisition before the 2025 WHL Prospects Draf...

Regan Bartel May 08, 2025 Photo credit: Calgary Hitmen