Kelowna, B.C.- Get ready for the Harrison Boettiger revenge tour.
Well, that might not be the term the 17-year-old goaltender would use, but he’s relishing the opportunity to showcase his game at the CHL USA Prospects Challenge for a second time.
The catch?
He’s representing the CHL this go-around, rather than the U.S. National Team Development program.
“It’s really an honour to see both sides of it,” Boettiger said. “Last year’s game at the challenge, I think that was a big moment for me because we kind of got killed in Game 1, and then coming out in Game 2, we didn’t really know if it was going to go the same way or not, but we hung in there and I played pretty well.”
That’s an understatement.
The 6-foot-3, 193-pound netminder steered aside 35 of 38 shots, though the CHL would ultimately complete the Prospects Challenge sweep with a 3-2 win.
Since then, Boettiger has opted to come north to join the Kelowna Rockets for his NHL Draft year in hopes of showing scouts just what he’s capable of.
“I think definitely there’s a lot of things I can show that I maybe haven’t gotten a chance to in the past,” Boettiger added. “But I think, you know, it’s a good start, coming to the WHL and getting more games in, and being able to show what I can actually do.
I’d like to say that I’m a really technical goalie. I can be athletic and, you know, make a desperation save when I need to, but I like to play with good positioning and (stay) quiet and calm.”
But it was anything but smooth sailing for the Wheat Ridge, Col. product at the start of the 2025-26 season.
The highly-touted puckstopped had just arrived in the Okanagan and was preparing to travel north for the WHL Yukon Showcase when he was rushed to hospital for an emergency appendectomy.
Welcome to B.C., eh?
Despite missing the first month of the campaign, Boettiger has strung together a 3-2-1-1 record with a 2.67 goals-against average and a .906 save percentage.
In November alone, he’s been among the class of the league with three straight wins, a GAA trimmed down to 2.00 and a .930 save percentage.
“He’s a really calm influence back there,” Rockets Head Coach Derrick Martin said. “He never rides the highs too high or the lows too low. He’s got a next-play mentality.
Sometimes when you talk about even keel people or guys that can remain calm under pressure, people tend to forget how competitive they are. He’s a really competitive individual. He doesn’t like to get scored on in practice. He doesn’t like to get scored on in games. He’s a consummate teammate, and he’s been a real treat to have in our dressing room this year.”
He’s also earned a ‘B’ rating as a potential second or third-round NHL Draft pick from NHL Central Scouting in the agency’s preliminary list in October.
It’s another important step in a lifelong dream.
Boettiger grew up watching Colorado Avalanche games with his father, Bryan, who played goalie in soccer.
To him, there was no question what position he’d play once he hit the ice.
As a kid, Boettiger loved his goalie equipment so much, he even wore his helmet to dentist appointments in hopes of keeping the adults away from his teeth.
He’s moved to Michigan, Minnesota, and now, British Columbia to chase the highest possible levels of hockey- and he’ll also step into the spotlight when Kelowna hosts the 2026 Memorial Cup.
“We’ve got a really good goaltending coach, Eli Wilson, who has continued to work with Harrison and help him evolve his game,” Martin added. “I think over time, what we’ve just seen him get used to and accustomed to is the pace of the game and the level of the shot that’s coming towards him. He’s got some pretty good shooters that shoot on him every day in practice and I think it’s showing up in games. The last three games have been wins for him, and just his ability to adapt to that has been really strong.”
Boettiger looks to carry that momentum to next week’s CHL USA Prospects Challenge.
The CHL USA Prospects Challenge runs on November 25 and 26 in Calgary and Lethbridge, Alta.
In Canada, TSN will carry the games, while fans in the United States and around the world can stream the matches for free on Victory+.
