‘Have to play with a lot more urgency’: Rockets look to turn it around in game 3 tonight

It’s not an elimination game, but tonight’s showdown between the Kelowna Rockets and Prince George Cougars at Prospera Place is as close to a must-win as you can get for the home team.

The Cougars held serve during games one and two of the second-round series between the two teams, winning both matchups on home ice in convincing fashion.

They outscored the Rockets 9-0 over 120 minutes of play and the shots were 77-37 in Prince George’s favour.

While it certainly wasn’t pretty for Kelowna, they now have two games on home ice with a chance to right the ship and make this a competitive series again.

🚀 G A M E D A Y 🚀

The Rockets will aim to turn things around on home ice tonight at Prospera Place.

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— Kelowna Rockets (@Kelowna_Rockets) April 16, 2024

Head coach Kris Mallette called the environment at CN Centre “a lot” for the Rockets young roster and said his team played into the Cougars’ hand.

The Rockets have to play with “a lot more urgency,” he said, adding that he doesn’t believe they’ve shown their best yet.

“I think that potentially we’re respecting them a lot and they’ve got a great group of players over there with a lot of speed,” Mallette explained.

“I think we’re giving them the time and the space to make the plays they need. We’re at our best when we’re aggressive, that’s our top six through our bottom six it doesn’t matter.”

Both games in Prince George saw nearly 6,000 fans in the building and the Rockets will be hoping for a similar electric home crowd to aid their efforts in Kelowna over the next two nights.

Tickets for both tonight and Wednesday’s matchups are still available either online, by calling 250-762-5050 or in person at the Prospera Place box office.

Puck drop for both games is set for 7:05 pm.

_{Thumbnail photo courtesy of the Kelowna Rockets on X.}