Wenatchee Power Play Connects Early as Wild Fall Friday at Kelowna, 5-1
WHL Wenatchee Wild

Wenatchee Power Play Connects Early as Wild Fall Friday at Kelowna, 5-1

Published on February 27, 2026 under Western Hockey League (WHL)
Wenatchee Wild News Release


Wenatchee Wild's Caelan Joudrey in action
Wenatchee Wild's Caelan Joudrey in action
(Wenatchee Wild, Credit: Janise Michel/Lethbridge Hurricanes)

KELOWNA, British Columbia - The Wenatchee Wild didn't need long to score on their first power play of Friday's Western Hockey League game at the Kelowna Rockets. The goals they needed later in the night, though, never came.

The Rockets scored five straight after that initial tally to earn a 5-1 win at Prospera Place, with a rematch set for Saturday in Wenatchee to wrap up the 2025-26 season series. Wenatchee moved to 22-31-3-2 with the loss, while the Rockets climbed to 33-18-5-2 on the year, earning their sixth consecutive win.

The first Wild power play came on an interference call to Rowan Guest, and they needed just 19 seconds to leave their mark - at the 7:01 mark of the first, Luka Shcherbyna's right-point shot popped up at the edge of the net for Caelan Joudrey to bat in out of mid-air, and Wenatchee jumped in front first.

Kelowna would jump in front to stay with a pair of goals late in the period - with the Wild on the penalty kill, Tij Iginla's fadeaway chance down the slot took a fortuitous bounce off of Cal Conway and right to Carson Wetsch in front, who banged in the tying goal with 3:29 on the clock. Mazden Leslie scored the game's first five-on-five goal with 49 seconds left in the period, walking it to the middle of the slot before snapping home the go-ahead marker.

From there, the Rockets hopped into the driver's seat, as Nate Corbet made it a 3-1 game 4:27 into the second, scoring off a drop pass atop the left circle from Hayden Paupanekis. The Rockets posted nine of the first 11 shots of the third, getting a goal from Wetsch at 3:32 when he tapped in his own rebound following a shot high off the end glass. 35 seconds later, Corbet threw the puck to the front of the net from the left point, and Connor Pankratz finished the play to push the lead to four.

Wetsch finished the night with a pair of goals, while Pankratz, Leslie and Corbet each ended up with a goal and an assist. Harrison Boettiger posted 25 saves on 26 Wenatchee chances to pick up his 21st win of the season, while Conway turned aside 32 Kelowna shots in the loss. Each team finished 1-for-4 on the power play.

Shcherbyna and Josh Toll both notched assists on Joudrey's power play goal, keeping them six points apart in the race for the Wenatchee scoring lead. Sam Elliott did not post a point, but had the best line for either team on faceoffs, winning 11 of his 18 restarts.

The home team has won all three games this season, and the Wild will look to continue that trend with a Saturday night rematch at Town Toyota Center in Wenatchee. Saturday's game is also Wenatchee's annual Hockey Fights Cancer night, as well as a Kids In Free promotion thanks to Washington Healthplanfinder. The opening puck drop is scheduled for 6 p.m.

Tickets for Saturday's game and all remaining regular-season Wild home games, as well as 2026-27 season tickets, are on sale now by phone at 509-888-7825, or by visiting the team office at Town Toyota Center. Updated news and information on Wild hockey are always available through the team's website and on the team's social media platforms on Facebook, X, Instagram and YouTube.

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Images from this story

Wenatchee Wild's Caelan Joudrey in action
Wenatchee Wild's Caelan Joudrey in action
(Janise Michel/Lethbridge Hurricanes)		   



Western Hockey League Stories from February 27, 2026


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