Chiefs Lose Game, Rossiter Defenseman Suffers Shoulder Injury In First Period As Spokane Falls 4-1

They didn’t play particularly smart Wednesday night but that wasn’t the worst of the Spokane Chiefs’ 4-1 loss to the Kelowna Rockets.

The Chiefs lost defenseman Kyle Rossiter to a shoulder separation early in the Western Hockey League game before 5,805 in the Arena.

Rossiter, the Chiefs most improved player and the club’s top prospect for the National Hockey League entry draft in June, took a hit and was taken to a Spokane hospital where he was diagnosed with “at least a second-degree and probably a third-degree separation” of the shoulder that could require surgery, Chiefs coach Mike Babcock said.

“He must have gotten hit from behind and down,” the coach added. “Sometimes you get hit a certain way and get hurt. Obviously it wasn’t a big check or we would have known.”

How long Rossiter is likely to be out will be determined today.

Meanwhile, the Chiefs slipped into a tie for second in the Western Hockey League West with the Prince George Cougars, a 4-2 winner at Edmonton, despite outshooting the Rockets 47-23.

Chris Noble swept aside 46 shots in what Rockets coach Peter Anholt said, “a Hasek-like performance,” referring to Buffalo goaltender Dominik Hasek.

“It was probably my best game,” said the 19-year-old Noble. “Sometimes you struggle to get into games when you don’t get shots the first couple of minutes. They got 25 in the first. I was right in the game from the start.”

Apart from the netminder “We were certainly outplayed tonight,” Anholt said.

Physically, no doubt. Mentally, that’s debatable.

“We shot ourselves in the foot,” Babcock said. “We beat ourselves tonight. Our lack of discipline directly resulted in a loss (the Chiefs’ 20th against 38 wins and 4 ties). Give them credit but we were in the driver’s seat when we wanted to be and we decided not to get the job done.

“From the 5-minute mark of the first period to the 15-minute mark of the second, we dominated the game. And then we get seven of the last eight penalties, which means we were shorthanded for 14 of the last 22 minutes.”

With Trent Whitfield, Ty Jones, Marian Cisar, Derek Schutz and the other goal scorers burning themselves out killing penalties, “how do you come back?” the coach wondered.

“Goaltending tonight was not the issue,” Babcock said. “You’ve got to score more than one goal. And it’s unfair to have your goaltender penalty-killing through most of the third period. We’ve got to challenge our goaltenders to be better but our team has to be better than it was tonight.”

The firepower came from Rocket Luke Curtin, who had a pair of goals and an assist.

The win went to Noble, who stopped 24 shots in the first 20 minutes when the Chiefs outshot Kelona 25-10. Spokane had a 14-5 shot advantage in the second period but gave up a power-play goal inside the final minute.

With defenseman Rick Berry off for a hold, the Chiefs were skating a man short when Curtin sent a wrist shot through a screen past Miller’s glove with 32 seconds left in the second period.

Miller’s vision was blocked by a screen in front of the net.

“I just walked to the middle and took a wrist shot,” Curtin said. “With big Scott Parker in front of the net I don’t think Miller saw much of it.” Kelowna jumped on top when Bryan Randall continued his hot pace since the Rockets picked him up from Regina. Randall swept the backhand past Miller midway in the first period.

The Rockets took advantage of critical Spokane penalties down the stretch. Brad Swanson’s slap shot from the high slot on the power play - following a high-sticking call on Schutz - put them ahead 3-1.

Curtin scored into an empty net inside the final minute after the Chiefs pulled Miller. The Chiefs were without scoring leader Greg Leeb, who served the second game of a two-game suspension.

, DataTimes MEMO: This sidebar appeared with the story: Coming up Friday: Seattle at Spokane, Arena, 7:05. Saturday: Regina at Spokane, 7:05. Radio: 1510 KGA