Kelowna Rockets @ Kamloops Blazers
Western Hockey League, Regular Season Game
December 4, 2021
Scout: Brant Kersey, Saskatchewan
The North Okanagan rivalry was in full bloom Saturday, December 4 when the Kelowna Rockets travelled to Kamloops to take on the division leading Blazers. The Blazers are tough on home ice, but even tougher when, for the first time since March 2020, Kamloops arena had zero capacity restrictions. The stars were out to shine with the likes of Colton Dach, Logan Stankoven and some incredibly gifted youngsters taking the ice. The game was fast, physical and very well played. Colton Dach and undrafted 2003 Tanner McMillen led the way for Kelowna with 2 goals each, with Matthew Seminoff, Connor Levis and Caedan Bankier scoring one each for Kamloops. Kelowna was able to win 4-3 in regulation stealing two big points.
Key Players for the Rockets were:
| Colton Dach | Kelowna Rockets | WHL | L | C | 6’4″ | 205 | Saskatoon Blades | 2018 | Fort Saskatchewan, AB | 2003 | 2020-2021: B+ |
2021 round 2 #62 overall by Chicago Blackhawks. Colton showed why he regarded as a strong NHL prospect. The big centre was dominant each and every shift. From the faceoff, where he was stronger, quicker and smarter than his opponents all the way to the following whistle he was the player to watch. Both goals he scored were very hard, quick and accurate shots. His skating is strong and effective, but will need another gear to be effective at the next level. Currently he uses his physical attributes to dominate, but that will all change and he’ll need to figure out how to play his game going forward. Grade A
| Andrew Cristall | Kelowna Rockets | WHL | L | F | 5’9″ | 150 | Kelowna Rockets | 2020 | Burnaby, BC | 2005 | Not yet rated |
Andrew wasn’t as dominant shift in and shift out as Colton Dach, but he was definitely as noticeable … this kid is the real deal. His skating is excellent, he doesn’t have that explosive breakaway speed quite yet, but you can tell he’s on the brink of finding it. His edgework and quickness are very good. He’s able to use those skills, along with his smarts, to create room like another young WHL phenom that is already a household name. His hands are as good as we’ve seen and his vision is sensational. He makes difficult plays look simple and from a birds-eye they don’t look all that spectacular – however given his stature and the speed of the WHL game and what he is able to accomplish combined with how easy he makes it look is jaw-dropping. His pass to Dach on Dach’s second goal was as perfect as it can get. It happened so quickly and was delivered so accurately no one on the ice knew it was happening besides Dach. Other little plays in traffic at both ends show he has the poise and smarts to make both, the smart play, and the creative one. His trajectory is on the rise and he will no- doubt be on everyone’s radar for the 2023 NHL draft. Grade A
| Turner McMillen | Kelowna Rockets | WHL | L | F | 5’10” | 154 | Kelowna Rockets | 2019 | Carievale, SK | 2003 | 2021-2022: C |
Turner isn’t the type of player who will turn heads with his play, however he is a player coaches will appreciate in their line-up every night. First off, Turner is a quite fast. He has a very nice skating stride and has the ability to get up and down the ice at a high pace. He’s quick on the forecheck and equally as quick on the backcheck. On the forecheck he was pretty consistent at separating his man from the puck and often finished his checks. Heading back toward his end he offered great support to his defence with added back pressure to attacking forwards. On the night, he had two chances to score and he buried them both. The first was a very nice play in which he pivoted close to the net to offer up a passing lane, once he received the puck it was a quick stickhandle in tight and into the back of the net on his backhand. His second goal was from the blue paint as well. Once again Turner executed a perfect centre net drive and picked up the trash. His shot is adequate, but that comes from seeing him before as he didn’t let any shots go in this game. It’s his effort and his ability to play within the role given to him that makes him a solid teammate and player. Grade B+
| Noah Dorey | Kelowna Rockets | WHL | L | D | 6’3″ | 192 | Kelowna Rockets | 2018 | Surrey, BC | 2003 | 2021-2022: C+ |
Noah is a physical, hard to play against defenceman, and he plays alongside Kelowna’s top-end offensive defenceman for a reason. That is a great compliment to any stay- at-home player, however Noah is more than just a stay-at-home defenceman. He does excel at that, however there were a few times he turned the puck up the ice and looked quite fluid. Head up, strong lateral movement and then delivered nice crisp passes. I wouldn’t expect him to be a coast-to-coast guy, but he definitely has the ability to move the puck up the ice in a variety of ways. Not long into the game Noah started to establish his physicality when he threw a couple beautiful body-checks. One of his better plays on the evening was in a flat out 1 on-1 with Logan Stankoven. Stankoven exited his zone with full speed through the neutral zone, and Dorey played him perfectly. He kept a tight gap, guided him out of the middle and allowed Stankoven to get within striking distance. Stankoven’s hands and speed are on the elite level and Dorey made him look like anything but that. His lightning quick poke check ended the rush just around the blueline. Dorey’s skating and footwork were on full-display during this sequence. Grade B
| Jake Lee | Kelowna Rockets | WHL | L | D | 6’2″ | 194 | Seattle Thunderbirds | 2016 | Sherwood Park, AB | 2001 | Free Agent |
Jake is the type of overage player you want on your team. He is a big, smooth- skating defenceman with the ability to log a lot of minutes. He plays and does very well in all situations. On the power play he makes great first passes and then moves the puck around from the blue line. When given a lane to unload his shot it’s a quick release, hard and accurate. His skating is quite strong and his footwork good enough to not get exploited. Moving up ice with the puck he looks very strong, he is smooth, heads-up and moves at a good speed. When he tries to attack defenders on the rush he is a little clumsy and would be better suited on a dump or delay. Grade B-
| Nolan Flamand | Kelowna Rockets | WHL | L | LW | 5’9″ | 159 | Kelowna Rockets | 2019 | Saskatoon, SK | 2004 | 2021-2022: C |
Nolan had a solid game and works well with his line mate Andrew Cristall. The two of them work off of one-another and have similar hockey IQ’s. Nolan’s skating is sold, but not dynamic. He can get from point A to point B at a fairly rapid pace, but when it comes to blowing the doors off a defenceman on a rush it wasn’t in the cards on this night. His hands are above average, picking up passes and making quick handles in traffic wasn’t an issue. Furthermore he uses his smarts combined with those skills to make things look a little too easy sometimes. Kelowna has had high hopes for Nolan and he has delivered to some extent as he sits fourth in team scoring and is averaging 0.75 ppg. He has a stong offensive upside, but also consider his defensive play, which is quite strong and responsible. Grade C+
| Pavel Novak | Kelowna Rockets | WHL | R | F | 5’9″ | 170 | Kelowna Rockets | 2019 | Tabor, CZE | 2002 | 2019-2020: B |
2020 round 5 #146 overall by Minnesota Wild. Pavel is one of the players I was the most excited to watch in this game. His highlights have shown he has all the ability a player would need to exceed at the next level. The one thing, however, highlights don’t show of course are the lowlights. This was not a good game for Pavel, he floated around the entire game and didn’t show me a single bit of what I expected. His line mate carried the play and often had no one to pass to. We’ll have to get a good look at him again as he is obviously a dangerous offensive threat and a point producer. Grade C-
Key players for the Blazers were:
| Logan Stankoven | Kamloops Blazers | WHL | R | C | 5’8″ | 170 | Kamloops Blazers | 2018 | Kamloops, BC | 2003 | 2020-2021: B+ |
2021 round 2 #47 overall by Dallas Stars. Logan is one of the most fun players to watch. He plays with such passion and energy, he is the perfect lead by example Captain in the WHL. Every time he hits the ice he’s at full-speed. This is great for energy levels and pushing the pace, however Logan could use a lower gear … sometimes. In 1-on-1 situations he seems too easy to read, if he changed up his pace a little his explosiveness could easily catch defenders off-guard. Logan’s hands and passing are excellent. He has very quick handles and it seems eyes in the back of his head. He makes passes half the players wouldn’t think of attempting and the other half wouldn’t even see. Offensively he is very gifted, but he takes care of his own end first all the time. The one odd thing about Logan is I think he choice of equipment is a hinderance. His upper-body gear seems too bulky and he’d be better off with smaller, more agile gear. Grade A
| Mats Lindgren | Kamloops Blazers | WHL | L | D | 6’0″ | 176 | Kamloops Blazers | 2019 | North Cancouver, BC | 2004 | 2021-2022: B |
Mats had quite a strong game. He showed plenty of upside all over the ice. He has the ability to move the puck up the ice like a veteran defenceman. When he turns it up ice it is with purpose, he has his head up and is moving very fast and deliberate. He can make the pass off the rush or carry it end-to-end and make plays. On the power play he did fine and was able to distribute the puck confidently, however under pressure and when rushed to make a decision he lacked the necessary poise a power play quarterback needs. In his own end he was fine defensively and looked at home in most situations. The one play that concerned me was when he was pressured on the forecheck by a bigger Rockets forward and he seemed to back off and let the opposing forward take the puck. He has the skating ability to beat most any forechecker to a loose puck and when this happened it was definitely a head-scratcher. Overall Mats played and showed well. Grade B+
| Matthew Seminoff | Kamloops Blazers | WHL | R | RW | 5’11” | 183 | Kamloops Blazers | 2018 | Coquitlam, BC | 2003 | 2021-2022: C+ |
Matthew made a statement early in this game showing his breakaway speed and incredible hands on the game’s first goal. Just minutes into the game he got a step on the defenceman and he was off to the races. He felt the pressure on his forehand side and protected the puck beautifully before burying a straight-on backhand shot. His awareness and ability to protect the puck was very impressive. Matthew is all about the puck possession, which is good and bad. Many times he was eager to attack and challenge defenders to create opportunities, well, sometimes it worked and he looked really good and sometimes he caused turnovers at inopportune times and he looked really bad. Nevertheless, he believes in his ability to beat players one-on-one every single time, I admire that bravado. Outside of his initial goal Matthew showed just a few more times he’s a gifted offensive threat, and playing with Logan Stankoven it needs to be shown more often. Grade B
| Quinn Schmiemann | Kamloops Blazers | WHL | L | D | 6’2″ | 201 | Kamloops Blazers | 2016 | Wilcox, SK | 2001 | 2018-2019: C+ |
2019 round 6 #182 overall by Tampa Bay Lightning. Quinn is, with a doubt, Kamloops’ workhorse on the blue line. He excels in all situations and at times can dominate shifts and change the momentum of the game. The Tampa Bay draft pick is getting better and better each season with this year averaging nearly a ppg with a career high in goals just 15 games into the season. His skating has improved year over year as well. He moves very well with and without the puck, and his lines to the loose pucks are efficient. In his own end he is erasing forwards constantly, and he takes on the other team’s top line each night. The Blazers have done a fine job developing Quinn and you can also see his off-season work has paid off. I’d expect to see him fighting for a job with the Lightning in the coming years. Grade B
| Josh Pillar | Kamloops Blazers | WHL | L | RW | 5’11” | 172 | Kamloops Blazers | 2017 | Warman, SK | 2002 | 2019-2020: C |
2021 round 4 #127 overall by Minnesota Wild. Josh is quite the hockey player. He has some high-end skill and the grit to go with it. His skating is above average, but not mind-blowing. He’ll need another gear to move to the next level. His hands are very smooth, his handling of the puck and deking are strong, as is his ability to make quick adjustments to deliver passes through lanes in all areas of the ice, especially on zone exits. His grittiness is a nice add-on. He’d be a fine prospect without it, however with it, it adds another level of versatility to his game. He threw a handful of really hard body checks and then when confronted he wasn’t afraid to play through opponents. He makes for a really nice addition to the high-skill line of Stankoven and Seminoff. Grade B-
| Caedan Bankier | Kamloops Blazers | WHL | L | F | 6’2″ | 192 | Kamloops Blazers | 2018 | Cloverdale, BC | 2003 | 2020-2021: C+ |
2021 round 3 #86 overall by Minnesota Wild. The play Caeden scored on was well worth the wait and it got him on my list of key players. Had he not scored the outstanding coast-to-coast goal he would have zero notes. The rush alone showed he has dynamite skating ability. He moved up the ice at blazing speed and flew past his opponents. Once across the offensive blue line he found a lane to the net and went there quickly and untouched before making a perfect move to deke out the goaltender and score the goal. It was hands-down the highlight of the game and made it worth adding Caeden to the key players. Grade C
Logo courtesy of Kelowna Rockets
Evaluation: Brant Kersey, Saskatchewan
Stats provided by InStat