Cooke calm and cool in first WHL start

Rookie goaltender Jordon Cooke earns his first win in his first WHL start in a 4-3 shootout victory over the Everett Silvertips Sunday. Cooke was named the games first star.

• Jordon Cooke had a lot of things going against him heading into his first WHL start Sunday in Everett. For starters, his team was playing its third game in three nights while the Tips were as fresh as a daisy having not played since Wednesday. The 17 year-old was also playing against, arguably, one of the top teams in the country. That's if you believe what you read when the CHL announces its weekly top ten junior rankings. Oh ya, and it was also his first career start so being nervous was a distinct possibility. The Leduc, Alberta product threw all of those negatives behind him by leading the Rockets to a 4-3 shootout win Sunday night. Cooke was named the games first star. Cooke was sharp, showing a quick glove hand. Just ask Tips forward Landon Ferraro if you don’t believe me.

• The Rockets power play looked awful after giving up two shorthanded goals. But in saying that, the power play did manufacture a goal five minutes into the third period to cut the deficit to 3-1. The goal was significant considering the Rockets had gone 0 for 18 in their previous two games.

• Mitchell Callahan scored twice and added one assist in the win. Callahan set up line mate Zach Franko for the tying goal with just over a minute left in regulation time. It was Callahan’s first two goals of the season after being shutout in the previous five games.
• Callahan is no stranger to big games against the Tips. Callahan had two goals and two assists in a game against Everett December 2/2009.
• It was Callahan's sixth-two goal game of his career.
  

• I liked the emotion Franko showed after scoring the goal. He’s been snake bitten around the net and he knew it. His hard work and that of his line mates paid off .

• The Rockets used Geordie Wudrick and Shane McColgan in the shootout. Both scored. Wudrick is money in the shootout. McColgan ain’t half bad either.

• Colton Jobke doesn’t get much love on this blog by readers leaving comments, but he was solid on the blue line Sunday night. I like how he engaged with Tips forward Markus McCrea after a hard hit on teammate Cody Chikie. Jobke is a character player. Too bad some readers don’t realized that.