The Kelowna Rockets defeated the Victoria Royals 6-5 on Saturday night at Prospera Place in Kelowna in the Rockets WHL preseason opener.
Calvin Thurkauf and newly acquired Jake Kryski led the Rockets offense as both players scored twice in the game. Prospect Ted Brennan opened the scoring for the Rockets while Kole Lind added an empty netter.
The Rockets built a 5-1 lead in the second period before Victoria came back a strong third period, scoring four times to make the game close.
Kelowna goalies Brodan Salmond and prospect James Porter split time in the Rockets nets, each playing half the game. Victoria outshot Kelowna 40-35.
The Rockets are back in action on Sunday when the team travels to Kamloops to take on the Blazers as part of its five-game WHL Preseason schedule.
Kelowna will also play a home-and-home with Kamloops next weekend, hosting the Blazers Friday night and traveling to Kamloops next Saturday before closing the preseason with a home game against Vancouver Sept. 16
The Rockets open the WHL regular season on Sept. 23 in Kamloops before playing its home opener vs. the Blazers on Sept. 24.