GAME 2 PREVIEW: Cougars Aim to Hold Serve at Home vs. Kelowna
PRINCE GEORGE, BC – Tonight, at the CN Centre, the Prince George Cougars take on the Kelowna Rockets in Game 2 of the Western Conference Semi-Finals at 6:00 pm.
The Prince George Cougars secured their first win of the Western Conference Semi-Finals with a 4-0 blanking of the Kelowna Rockets last night at the CN Centre. Josh Ravensbegren earned his first WHL Playoff Shutout, making 21 saves on 21 shots, and four different Cougars found the back of the net with Ephram McNutt, Terik Parascak, Keaton Dowhaniuk, and Borya Valis collecting the tallies.
PG GOAL SCORERS: McNutt, Parascak, Dowhaniuk, Valis
GOALIE: Ravensbergen – 21/21 (1.000)
PP: 0/1
PK: 3/3
COUGARS LAST FIVE RESULTS, Record: 5-0-0-0
DATE | RESULT | GWG | PG GOALIE | OPP. GOALIE |
March 23, 2024 | PG [6] vs SPO [1] | Parascak | Ravensbergen | Cowan |
March 24, 2024 | PG [7] vs SPO [4] | Dezainde | Ravensbergen | Cowan/Michaluk |
April 2, 2024 | PG [4] at SPO [2] | Thornton | Ravensbergen | Michaluk |
April 3, 2024 | PG [3] at SPO [2] | Funk | Young | Cowan |
April 12, 2024 | PG [4] vs KEL [0] | McNutt | Ravensbergen | Kykkanen |
COUGARS UPCOMING SCHEDULE
DATE | TIME (PDT) | OPPONENT | VENUE |
April 13, 2024 | 6:00 pm | Game 2 – vs Kelowna | CN Centre |
April 16, 2024 | 7:05 pm | Game 3 – at Kelowna | Prospera Place |
April 17, 2024 | 7:05 pm | Game 4 – at Kelowna | Prospera Place |
April 19, 2024 | 7:00 pm | Game 5 – vs. Kelowna (IF NEC) | CN Centre |
April 21, 2024 | 2:05 pm | Game 6 – at. Kelowna (IF NEC) | Prospera Place |
PLAYOFF SCHEDULE – PG vs KEL
Apr. 12/2024 – at Prince George (4-0 PG)
Apr. 13/2024– at Prince George
Apr. 16/2024 – at Kelowna
Apr. 17/2024 – at Kelowna
Apr. 19/2024 – at Prince George* (If NEC)
Apr. 21/2024 – at Kelowna * (If NEC)
Apr. 23/2024 – at Prince George * (If NEC)
2023-2024 REGULAR SEASON SERIES
Oct. 3.2023 – at Prince George (3-2 PG)
Oct. 4/2023 – at Prince George (8-1 PG)
Oct. 13/2023 – at Kelowna (5-4 KEL)
Nov. 18/2023 – at Kelowna (5-4 PG)
Jan. 12/2023 – at Prince George (5-2 PG)
Jan. 13/2023 – at Prince George (3-2 KEL/SO)
Feb. 24/2023 – at Kelowna (6-5 PG/SO)
Mar. 13/2023 – at Kelowna (6-5 PG/OT)
2023-2024 PLAYOFF STATS LEADERS
Goals (5): Terik Parascak
Assists (8): Riley Heidt
Points (10): Zac Funk
Plus/Minus (+6): Keaton Dowhaniuk, Ephram McNutt
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TONIGHTS STORYLINES & STATS
TONIGHT: The Cougars battle the Rockets in Game 2 of the Western Conference Semi-Finals. Last night’s win marked the Cougars first win in the second round since 2007. PG finished 49-15-1-3 record (102 points) in the regular season which has won the BC Division and Western Conference. The Cats finished 25-7-1-1 at home and 24-8-0-2 on the road this season.
CAPTAIN INKS PROFESSIONAL DEAL: Cougar captain Hudson Thornton has signed a one year contract with the AHL’ Hershey Bears, the affiliate to the Washington Capitals. “It’s really exciting. It was one of my goals this year to try and earn myself a professional contract and I am super thankful for the opportunity and will do everything I can to try and make that team next year” Thornton said.
THE BENCH BOSS: For the second consecutive season, Cougars GM & Head Coach Mark Lamb has been named the BC Division nominee for the WHL Coach of the Year. Lamb’s 2023-2024 season behind the bench was the most successful regular season in team history.
HEY NOW, YOU’RE AN ALL-STAR: The BC Division’s first and second all-start teams featured six Prince George Cougars. Zac Funk, Riley Heidt, and Hudson Thornton cracked the first all-star team while Viliam Kmec, Terik Parascak, and Joshua Ravensbergen were named to the second all-star team.
HEIDT INKS ENTRY-LEVEL CONTRACT WITH WILD: Cougar forward Riley Heidt signed a three-year entry-level contract with the Minnesota Wild. Heidt was selected 64th overall by the Wild in the 2023 NHL Draft. The fourth year Cougar has accumulated his best season in his WHL career with 117 points.
THIS TEAM: On Saturday, March 16th, the Prince George Cougars won their 46th game of the season which marks them as the winningest team in PG Cougars history. The 2016-17 club won 45 games which was the previous record.
HOW TO WATCH/LISTEN
WHEN: Saturday, April 13th– 6:00 pm
WHERE: CN Centre – Prince George, BC
LISTEN: 94.3 The Goat
WATCH: WHL Live