Game Preview | Cougars vs. Giants | 01/07/25
PRINCE GEORGE, BC – Tonight, at the CN Centre, the Prince George Cougars play host to the Vancouver Giants at 7:00 pm as they continue their four-game home-stand.
THE LAST GAME: Jan. 4, 2025 – PG 3 vs SEA 0
PG Goal Scorers: Shurgot, Valis, Heidt
SEA Goal Scorers: None
Goalies: PG: Michaluk (24/24 – 57:44) SEA: Ratzlaff (39/41 – 58:57)
PG PP: 0/4 PK: 1/1 | Shots: PG: 42 / SEA: 24
3 Stars: 1. Michaluk, PG; 2. Ratzlaff, SEA; 3: Carels, PG
Noteworthy: Riley Heidt collected his 223rd career assist, marking him 13 assists shy of surpassing Mark Morrison’s all-time assist record in Victoria and Prince George Cougars history. Cooper Michaluk earned his first career WHL shutout.
WHO’S HOT:
Riley Heidt has points in 8 of his last 9 (7-5-12) 15 of his last 17 (13-17-27)
Terik Parascak has points in 12 of his last 16 (6-18-24)
Borya Valis has points in 8 of his last 11 (6-7-13)
Aiden Foster has scored 2 goals in his last 3 games
Josh Ravensbergen has won six of his last eight starts
Cooper Michaluk has won his last three starts
MILESTONE WATCH:
Riley Heidt – 223 career assists (13 away from record PG & VIC)
Koehn Ziemmer – 113 career goals (8 away from Cougars record)
Jett Lajoie – 96 career games played (4 away from 100)
Borya Valis – 189 career points (11 away from 200)
Viliam Kmec – 89 career assists (11 away from 100)
Van Eger – 89 career games played (11 away from 100)
Josh Ravensbergen – 44 career wins (6 away from 50)
Aleksey Chichkin – 93 career games played (7 away from 100)
A LOOK AHEAD:
January 7th – vs. Vancouver Giants – 7:00 pm PDT
January 8th – vs. Vancouver Giants – 7:00 pm PDT
January 10th – @ Kelowna Rockets – 7:05 pm PDT
January 11th – @ Kamloops Blazers – 6:00 pm PDT
January 17th – @ Spokane Chiefs – 7:05 pm PDT
January 18th – @ Everett Silvertips – 6:05 pm PDT
January 24th – vs Brandon Wheat Kings – 7:00 pm PDT
January 25th – vs Kamloops Blazers – 6:00 pm
January 28th – vs Swift Current Broncos – 7:00 pm
January 31st – vs. Tri-City Americans – 7:00 pm
February 1st – vs. Tri-City Americans – 6:00 pm
February 4th – at Tri City Americans – 7:05 pm
THE LAST GAME vs VAN: Nov. 24, 2024 – PG 3 at VAN 4
PG Goal Scorers: Valis, Shurgot, Heidt
VAN Goal Scorers: Mittelsteadt, Lin, Zimmer (2)
Goalies: PG: Michaluk (24/28– 58:33) VAN: Capton (22/25 – 60:00)
PG PP: 1/5 PK: 3/3 | Shots: PG: 25 / VAN: 28
3 Stars: 1. Zimmer, VAN; 2. Heidt, PG; 3: Capton, VAN
Noteworthy: Vancouver goaltender Carter Capton made 22 saves and earned a victory in his WHL debut.
SEASON SERIES LEFT: 01/07 in PG, 01/08 in PG, 02/17 in VAN, 03/09 in VAN
NOTED (Team Highlights vs VAN)
The Cougars and Giants meet for the 40th time in the last five seasons in their regular season history…Prince George holds a 25-12-1-1 overall record. The Cougars are 9-3-0-0 in the twelve seven meetings, dating back to the 2023-24 regular season.
NOTED (Player Highlights vs VAN)
–Riley Heidt owns 55 points (14-41-55) in 38 career games against Vancouver
–Koehn Ziemmer owns 43 points (23-19) in 33 career games against Vancouver
–Terik Parascak has 18 points (8-10-18) in 12 career games against Vancouver
– Since joining the Cougars, Borya Valis owns 10 points (5-5-10) against Vancouver
–Josh Ravensbergen is a career 7-0 against Vancouver
CATS ARE HOT: The Cougars enter Saturday’s contest having won six of their last seven games. The Cats enter January after their season-best month of December, sporting an 8-1-0-0 record. The Cougars currently sit atop the BC Division and second in the Western Conference.
MAKING MOVES: On Tuesday, January 7th, the Cougars acquired 6’5 defenceman Aleksey Chichkin from the Regina Pats in exchange for a fourth round selection in 2027. Chichkin, 19, has played 32 games for the Pats this season, while compiling seven points (3-4-7) in that span.
CATS DO BC: Entering tonight’s battle against Vancouver, the Cougars are 12-2-0-1 against the BC Division. The Cougars have outscored their BC division foes 69-44, and are nearly connecting at 30% on the power-play.
