Parascak’s Hat Trick Powers Cougars Past Royals 4-2
Photo: James Doyle
PRINCE GEORGE, BC – The Prince George Cougars are in the win column once again! The Cats skated to a 4-2 victory over the Victoria Royals on Wednesday night at the CN Centre.
Terik Parascak powered the Cougars’ offence with a hat-trick and a four-point performance, while goaltender Josh Ravensbergen was outstanding, turning aside 34 of 36 shots. With the win, the Cougars move five points ahead of both the Royals and Penticton Vees for first place in the BC Division. “That game was a big-time grind,” said General Manager & Head Coach Mark Lamb. “We got up 3-0, kind of lucky, and we knew it wasn’t going to stay that way. They were going to come back, and that’s exactly what they did. It was a grind. Parascak was unbelievable, and so was Rav (Ravensbergen).”
The Cougars came out flying to start the game, as Parascak scored just 13 seconds into the first period to give Prince George an early lead. The 17-year-old sniper added his second on a power play at 8:14 when his shot deflected off a Royals defender and in.
Prince George kept rolling on another man advantage later in the frame. Parascak made a slick move at the blue line and found a streaking Brock Souch at the back door to extend the lead to 3-0.
Victoria responded with two quick goals late in the period. Miles Cooper got the Royals on the board with a power-play marker at 14:00, and Roan Woodward redirected a point shot from Seth Fryer at 15:46 to cut the deficit to one. The Cougars held a 3-2 lead after 20 minutes.
The Royals pressed hard in the second period, but Ravensbergen shut the door, stopping all 17 shots he faced to preserve the lead heading into the final frame.
In the third, Prince George simplified their game and locked things down defensively, limiting Victoria to just seven shots. Parascak completed his hat-trick at 18:01 to seal the 4-2 victory and cap off a dominant night.
“That’s four huge points,” said Parascak. “It kind of works out to eight with how the standings are right now. It’s huge—and to do it on home ice feels even better.”
Post-Game Interview with GM & Head Coach Mark Lamb
Post-Game Interview with Terik Parascak
The Cougars return to action on Friday night at CN Centre when they play they Kamloops Blazers which will their first meeting of the season series.
