Kelowna Rockets win WHL Western Conference final in six games

KELOWNA – The Kelowna Rockets are the WHL Western Conference champions.

Kelowna claimed the trophy Sunday night with a 8-4 win over the Portland Winterhawks in Oregon to take the series four game to two.

It was a rough start to the night for the Rockets as Portland notched three goals within 14 minutes of the first period before Madison Bowey put Kelowna on the board late in the frame.

“It really raised our level,” says Rockets head coach Dan Lambert. “On the bench the feeling was we we’re going to be able to come back and that certainly was the message at the end of the first period, the belief was there.”

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Kelowna got the only two markers in the second period. The first coming off the stick of Dillon Dube while Bowey notched his second goal of the night with a shorthanded effort.

In the third period the flood gates opened for the Rockets with five goals, two of those into the empty net, while the Winterhawks responded just once in the final frame.

“We are a resilient group,” says Lambert. “I think we’ve showed that a few times in the playoffs which is really nice to see because there was a part of the season after we made the acquisitions (Leon Draisaitl and Josh Morrissey) where it seemed the resilience wasn’t quite there, or where we needed it to be.”

The Rockets leave Wednesday on a charter flight to Manitoba and Friday and Saturday night tangles with the Brandon Wheat Kings in the first games of the WHL championship series.

“They had more points than us so they’ve had a great year. Who would think you’d get well over 100 points and you’re still not the home team in the playoff’s final round. So they’re a good team,” says Rockets General Manager Bruce Hamilton.

Games three and four are May 11th and 13th at Prospera Place.

The Rockets are hoping for the return of two key players sidelined by injury.

Tyler Goulbourne suffered a lacerated calf muscle when cut by a skate in Friday night’s game against Portland.

And Rourke Chartier, one of the league’s top scorers, is said to be “banged up” but is expected to see action in the Brandon series.