KELOWNA, BC – Sunday night’s contest between the Kelowna Rockets and the Chicoutimi Saguenéens was a massive game for two teams that lost their opening match. The stakes were high: one team would be put on life support with a loss, and the other would have a clear pathway to at least the semifinal.

Kelowna made a goaltending change, starting backup netminder Josh Banini over starting goalie and 2026 NHL Draft-eligible Harrison Boettinger. CanucksArmy asked Rockets head coach Derrick Martin about that decision postgame: “We had a plan as we came into [the tournament]. .. Boettinger has done a great job for us this year. He started the playoffs for us; he started the Memorial Cup for us. It just kind of fell in line with what we talked about as a staff prior to getting here.”

The game started similarly for the Saguenéens, as they allowed their opposition to pour it on in the first 10 minutes and were outshot 6-2 halfway through the first period. However, Chicoutimi kept the Kelowna siege under control, and Liam Lefebvre opened the scoring on a breakaway opportunity. Tij Iginla tied the game halfway through the second period, scoring the first goal of the tournament for the Rockets.

That 1-1 scoreline held for most of the third period, with both teams playing very cautiously to avoid mistakes. The Saguenéens finally broke the tie with six minutes remaining, when Anton Linde tipped a Nathan Lecompte point shot that barely crossed the goal line. But the Rockets didn’t let that discourage them. After the goal, the Rockets rallied together back-to-back threatening shifts, and Mazden Leslie electrified the crowd when the puck bounced right on his stick at the side of the net.

Vancouver Canucks prospect Parker Alcos nearly cost his team the game when he cross-checked Christophe Berthelot up high when he was down on the ice. After reviewing the play, Alcos was given a two-minute cross-checking penalty, sending one of the most lethal power plays to the man advantage. Kelowna killed the penalty, and we were off to overtime.

The Saguenéens heavily dominated the extra frame. They controlled possession for nearly the entire extra frame, and it seemed like only a matter of time before they put the nail in the coffin. Nathan Lecompte ran a one-time shot off the crossbar, but stuck with the play, and found Lefebvre in the right-hand circle to secure the win for Chicoutimi.

CHI 1-0: Liam Lefebvre (1), from Maxim Schäfer (1) and Alonso Gosselin (1).

KEL 1-1: Tij Iginla (1), from Hiroki Gojsic (1).

CHI 2-1: Anton Linde (1), from Nathan Lecompte (2).

KEL 2-2: Mazden Leslie (1), from Tomas Poletin (1) and Nate Corbet (1).

CHI 3-2: Liam Lefebvre (2), from Nathan Lecompte (3) and Peteris Bulans (1).

The Saguenéens get the much-needed win to keep their Memorial Cup dreams alive. Lucas Beckman had a nice bounce-back game, making some key stops. The Rockets slightly outplayed the Saguenéens in regulation, and Beckman was a big reason they secured the victory. Chicoutimi’s slow starts are becoming a talking point. If they want to go far in this tournament, they’re going to need to find a way to find their legs early.

This was a much better outing from the Rockets. They kept up their physical play and had their top offensive players finding more open ice to create scoring opportunities. Los Angeles Kings prospect Vojtech Cihar had a great game with a ton of chances, but couldn’t find a way to beat Beckman. With the loss, they have an uphill battle to force a tiebreaker match. Not only do they need a win on Wednesday night against the CHL’s top team, the Everett Silvertips, who beat them 4-1 in the second round of the WHL playoffs this season, but they will also need another team to reach two losses. While Chicoutimi could very well lose to Kitchener on Tuesday, it might be too much to ask of this Rockets team to beat the Silvertips on Wednesday.

We spoke about Lecompte as someone to watch ahead of yesterday’s game after his costly turnover into the empty net against the Silvertips on Saturday night, and he showed up. He had a goal overturned early due to a hand pass, but was all around the offensive zone for the Saguenéens. He picked up a pair of primary assists with his point shot on the Linde goal and on Lefebvre’s overtime winner. He bounced back in a big way.

Iginla was kept under wraps on Friday night against the Kitchener Rangers. But it was only a matter of time before he made his mark on the Memorial Cup. He displayed his wicked release in the second period and looked more free to attack offensively in this contest. The Utah Mammoth draft pick was demanding the puck at times, dazzled with some moves in the offensive zone, and is a little unlucky to have only finished with one point on the night. He will need to come out in a big way on Wednesday if Kelowna has any chance at keeping their tournament alive.

We were critical of Alcos in the tournament debut, but he played a much better game against the Saguenéens. He had a long stretch pass to Carson Wetsch early in the first period that nearly sprung him on a breakaway, cleaned up his questionable pinches that led to odd-man rushes the other way, and was heavily relied on in both special teams and overtime. That late penalty seemed like an unnecessary play to make with such high stakes on the line, especially after tying the game late and with all the momentum on their side, but it didn’t end up costing his team. A nice redemption game from the Canucks prospect.