The Kelowna Rockets take on the Vancouver Giants Sunday afternoon in what will be their second meeting this weekend. This time, they’ll face off in Vancouver.
So far, the season series between the two clubs has been one sided — the Rockets have won all three matchups, including at 5-2 win on home ice on Friday.
Rockets leading scoring and Washington Capitals prospect Andrew Cristall is riding high coming into Sunday’s tilt, looking to extend his point streak to 23 games. Whether it be a goal or an assist, Cristall has been on the scoresheet in every game since Nov. 11.
Another Kelowna forward to watch in Vancouver is Tij Iginla. He registered three goals and an assist to cap off a four-point night in Fridays’ win over the Giants. Iginla now has 55 points this season, and while his impressive play has caught the eyes of NHL Central Scouting, he still has some work to do if he wants to catch up to teammate Andrew Cristall in the points department, who has 73 points on the year.
Leading the Vancouver Giants squad on points this year is 19-year-old Jaden Lapinsky. In 42 games played, he’s deposited 12 goals and dished out 27 assists for a total of 39 points. The Scottsdale, Ariz., native was drafted by the Calgary Flames in 2023 in the fourth round at 112 overall.
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Neither team has announced their starting goalies, but Jake Pilon had the start on Friday for Kelowna, stopping 24 of 26 shots he faced to collect his fifth win of the year. Matthew Hutchison got the nod for the Giants that night, setting aside 29 of the 33 shots throw his way.
The Giants are the league’s second-most penalized team this season with a total of 593 penalty minutes. Kelowna’s power play units will want to take advantage of that if they can. They’ve scored 36 goals on 165 attempts with the man advantage this year. That’s not bad by any stretch, but it’s a different story if you take a closer look at their power play numbers on the road. The Rockets have struggled to score on the power play when they’re away from Prospera Place and their fans, only scoring eight times on 76 opportunities.
The Rockets are currently in third place in the B.C. Division with 44 points, and a record of 21-19-2-0. The Giants are only eight points back and are currently fourth place in the league with a record of 17-24-2-0.
The Rockets are looking to extend their winning streak to two games, while the Giants are looking to snap their two-game losing skid. The teams will face each other four more times this season.
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