Locals rock Canucks games

Photo: Lucky Monkey Band

Kelowna's Lucky Monkey (from left to right: Ryan Zeleznik, Josh Evans, Cass Hritzuk and Dylan Losell) prepares for their show at Rogers Arena Tuesday. 

A local band will be playing their biggest show of their careers tonight.

Lucky Monkey has only been together for a little over a year, but they'll be playing in front of well over 10,000 people at Rogers Arena for three Canucks preseason games this week, starting Tuesday night at the game against the Edmonton Oilers.

“It'll be a little bigger than Doc's I think,” said lead singer Cass Hritzuk, referencing their usual shows at Kelowna's Doc Whilloughby's Pub.

The band will be playing music at the beginning of the game and during the intermissions between periods from the arena's broadcast booth, and their performance will be broadcast on the jumbotron to the thousands of hockey fans in attendance.

“It was really last minute, we've known for not even a week, maybe five days. We dropped everything and came. We were all ready to just quit our jobs, everything,” Hritzuk said with a laugh.

“We're all losing our minds.”

The opportunity came by way of the band's guitarist Ryan Zeleznik, whose cousin works for the Canucks.

“We were recommended and next thing you know we're playing the shows,” Hritzuk said.

The game is being televised on Sportsnet this evening, but Hritzuk isn't sure if they'll be making it on the broadcast.

The band has a busy week ahead, as they'll also be playing during the Canucks preseason games against the Calgary Flames Wednesday and the LA Kings Thursday, followed by a show in Surrey Friday. 

The shows come just a couple weeks before the band is set to release their first music video for their song Go. The video will be available through their website on Oct. 4.