Game Preview | Cougars vs. Giants | 11/09/24
PRINCE GEORGE, BC – Tonight, at the CN Centre, the Prince George Cougars continue their six-game home stand as they battle the Vancouver Giants at 6:00. Tonight also marks Community Heroes Weekend at the CN Centre as a capacity crowd is expected.
18 DOWN: The Prince George Cougars enter tonight with a 9-4-3-2 record (22 points) after eighteen games. The Cats are 4-0-3-2 at home and 5-4-0-0 on the road this season.
LAST GAME RECAP: On Tuesday, November 5th, the Prince George Cougars suffered a 5-4 overtime loss to the Saskatoon Blades. The Blades scored two late third-period goals to force overtime and ultimately win the game. Koehn Ziemmer, once again, led the Cougar offence scoring twice, while Terik Parascak and Borya Valis also found the back of the net for Prince George.
100 TUCK ZIEMS: On Saturday, November 2nd, Koehn Ziemmer scored his 100th WHL goal. Ziemmer becomes just the fourth Cougar in team history to reach the 100 plateau. He joins Chris Falloon, Eric Hunter, and Chase Witala. In 194 games as a Cougar, Ziemmer owns 103 goals and 104 assists.
LEONARD TO PG: On Thursday, October 31, the Cougars acquired defenceman Fraser Leonard (06) from the Calgary Hitmen in exchange for Drew Peterson (06) and a 2025 sixth-round selection. Leonard, 18, joins the Cougars after playing 59 games with the Hitmen and Saskatoon Blades. In those 59 games, the Cochrane, AB product owns four goals and five assists. In 2021, the 6’2 right-handed shot blue-liner was selected in the fourth round by Saskatoon at 68th overall.
THE 300 CLUB: On Saturday, October 27th, Riley Heidt became the first Prince George Cougar in team history to reach the 300-point plateau. After scoring two goals on Saturday against Victoria, the Saskatoon, SK product enters tonight with 93 goals and 207 assists in 233 games.
HOME COOKING: The Prince George Cougars have not been beaten in regulation at the CN Centre during the regular season since January 2024. The Cats’ last regulation loss in the regular season on home ice occurred on January 20, 2024, against the Portland Winterhawks. This season, Prince George is 4-0-2-2 at the CN Centre.
NHL CENTRAL SCOUTING: Three Prince George Cougars have been named to NHL Central Scouting’s Preliminary List. Goaltender Josh Ravensbergen and forwards Jett Lajoie and Aiden Foster were three Prince George Cougars named to the list. In total, 55 WHL players were named to the list. Ravensbergen was named an ‘A’ rating, which indicates the North Vancouver, BC product as a potential first-round selection. For Lajoie and Foster, they have them named a ‘C’ rating, which classifies the duo as a possible fourth or fifth-round pick.
RAVENSBERGEN TO CHL ROSTER: Cougar goaltender Joshua Ravensbergen has been named to Team CHL for the first edition of the CHL USA Prospects Challenge presented by Kubota. The draft-eligible netminder enters tonight as the WHL’s league leader in wins with six. The Prospects Challenge is a two-game series between the CHL and USA Hockey’s National Development Program (NTDP). The first game of the new event will take place Tuesday, November 26th, in London, ON, and the second contest will be Wednesday, November 27, in Oshawa, ON.
CHL TOP 10 RANKINGS: In the sixth week of the CHL Top 10 Power Rankings, the Prince George Cougars are ranked at number six. This marks the sixth consecutive week Prince George has been listed in the Canadian Hockey League’s Top 10 rankings.
BIG BAD BORYA: Cougar 20-year-old forward Borya Valis has been on a tear to start his final season of junior hockey. The Denver, CO product enters tonight in the top ten in league scoring. Valis owns 25 points (8-17-24) in 16 games. Valis was acquired in January of 2024 from the Cougars from the Regina Pats. On Saturday, October 27th, Valis collected his 100th career assist.
ZOOMIN ZIEMMER: Koehn Ziemmer enters tonight as one of the hottest scorers in the WHL. The LA Kings prospect enters tonight with three consecutive multi-goal games. The product of Mayerthorpe, AB has tallied twelve times this season.
HE’S PLUS WHAT!?: Cougar over-age and import blue-liner Viliam Kmec has been a staple on the Cougar blue-line to begin the 2024-25 season. A signed prospect of the Vegas Golden Knights, Kmec owns a +18 rating which ranks third among all WHL skaters. On top of that +18, Kmec owns 16 points in his first 16 games of the season (3-15-18).
27/13 CHASING HISTORY: Veteran forwards and NHL prospects Riley Heidt and Koehn Ziemmer are on history watch. For Ziemmer, he currently sits at 103 goals which is 18 behind current Cougars’ record holder Chase Witala (120). For Heidt, he is also on track for history. Heidt is 24 assists away from eclipsing Mark Morrison’s all-time Cougars record (VIC & PG) who owned 235.
SPECIAL TEAMS: Once again, the Prince George Cougars’ special teams have been strong to start the season. The Cats PK opened with eight consecutive kills at home before allowing a goal. Entering tonight against the Vancouver Giants, the Cougars are fourth in the WHL at 80.8% on the PK. Prince George also leads in the WHL in short-handed goals with four. The power-play for Prince George has also been connecting consistently. The PP is fifth in the WHL at 28.1% and is fourth in the WHL in goals for with 18.
MILESTONE WATCH:
Riley Heidt – 93 career goals (7 away from 100)
Riley Heidt – 211 career assists (24 away from all-time record PG & VIC)
Koehn Ziemmer – 194 games played (6 away from 200)
Koehn Ziemmer – 103 career goals (18 away from all-time Cougar record)
Matteo Danis – 49 career points (1 away from 50)
Viliam Kmec – 196 career games played (4 away from 200)
Viliam Kmec – 98 career points (2 away from 100)
Hunter Laing – 90 career games played (10 away from 100)
Terik Parascak – 86 career games played (14 away from 100)
HOW TO WATCH/LISTEN
TICKETS: HERE
WHERE: CN Centre – Prince George, BC
WHEN: Saturday, November 9 @ 6:00 pm
LISTEN: 94.3 The Goat
WATCH: WHL Live
