Kelowna Rockets fall 3-2 to Kamloops in 1st game back from holiday break

The Western Hockey League resumed play on Wednesday night after its annual holiday break.

And in Kamloops, the Kelowna Rockets’ return to action wasn’t a joyous one, with the team falling 3-2 to the struggling Blazers.

Andrew Thomson, Jordan Keller and Dylan Sydor scored for Kamloops (9-20-3-2), which led 1-0 after the first period and 3-0 early in the second.

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Hiroki Gojsic and Gabriel Szturc replied for Kelowna (15-16-2-0), which will host Kamloops on Friday night.

Jari Kykkanen turned aside 28 of 31 shots for the Rockets, who last played on Dec. 16, a 5-4 overtime road win against the league-leading Saskatoon Blades.

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Dylan Ernst stopped 30 of 32 shots for the Blazers, the league’s second-worst team with just 23 points through 34 games.

The Edmonton Oil Kings (10-20-0-1) are the league’s worst team, with only 21 points. Saskatoon (24-8-2-0) currently leads the league in points with 50.

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Kamloops was 1-for-3 on the power play, with Kelowna going 0-for-3.

Wednesday’s tilt was also the first meeting of the season between the two B.C. Division rivals. The clubs will meet another seven times this season, including Friday’s game at Prospera Place.

After that game, Kelowna will host the Calgary Hitmen (13-15-3-1) on Saturday night.