Rockets host Victoria Wednesday opening stretch of three games in four nights

Photo: Steve Dunsmoor-file

Jaxon Kehrig (25) should be available when the Rockets host Victoria Wednesday

The Kelowna Rockets have a gauntlet of a schedule facing them over the next week-and-a-half.

Beginning Wednesday, the Rockets play seven games over an 11 day span including three games in four nights this week and four games in five nights next week.

Five of the seven are at Prospera Place with the other two back-to-back games in Victoria early next week.

This week, the Rockets will welcome BC Division-leading Victoria (Wednesday), US Division-leading Everett (Friday) and Swift Current (Saturday).

The Rockets hope to come into the week healthier than they closed out last week when injury and illness depleted their roster to just 18 in a 6-4 loss to the Vancouver Giants.

Tij Iginla and Max Graham are both gone for the season following hip and knee surgery respectively while defenceman Gabriel Guilbault and forward Kanjyu Goisic were both sidelined with lower body injuries. Andrew Petruk and Jaxon Kehrig were both ill.

Petruk and Kehrig should be available for Wednesday’s tilt with the Royals while Guilbault and Goisic are listed as day-to-day and are close to returning.

The Rockets come into the week with just an overtime loss to show for their last three games, slipping into a ninth place tie with Kamloops, a single point in back of Wenatchee who hold down the final playoff spot in the Western Conference.

The Royals meantime are 0-1-0-1 in their last two, but 7-2-0-1 over their last 10 to leapfrog the Cougars into top spot in the BC Division.

This is the fifth meeting between the two teams this season.

The teams have split the first four with each team winning twice in the other team’s barn.