Former Kelowna Rockets goaltender Jackson Whistle has helped Great Britain earn a spot at the IIHF World Championship next year in Slovakia.
With Whistle serving as the back up, the British team qualified for the 2019 tournament by finishing first in the Division 1A standings of the 2018 world championship in Budapest, Hungary.
While Great Britain starter Ben Bowns played all five games at the tournament, Whistle did get into one game, stopping eight of nine shots in 14:05 of action.
Winning the division qualifies Great Britain for the top group at the IIHF World Championship for the first time in 25 years.
It was Whistle’s first time playing for Great Britain.
The Kelowna product spent the last two seasons playing for the Belfast Giants of the EIHL. In his rookie season, 2016-17, Whistle, 22, played in 14 games, posting a 10-3 record, one shutout and a 2.60 goals against average.
In 2017-18, Whistle finished fifth in the league in wins with a record of 27-15, accompanied by a 3.38 goals against average and a .895 save percentage.
Whistle played four full seasons with the Rockets from the 2012 to 2016, after spending one season in Vancouver with the Giants in 2011-2012.
In 141 WHL games played (120 with Kelowna), he posted an 87-29-8-3 record, with a 2.59 goals against average and a .912 save percentage. Whistle also helped the Rockets to an Ed Chynoweth Cup title in 2015 and an appearance in the Memorial Cup final.
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