PREVIEW: Vancouver Giants at Prince George Cougars (Game #42)
Tonight in Prince George, a fairly crucial weekend begins for the Vancouver Giants. Michael Dyck’s crew is slooking to snap a six-game losing streak, all while bridging the gap between sixth and seventh place in the Western Conference. The Prince George Cougars enter the weekend on a three-game losing streak of their own, but currently hold a five-point lead on the Giants for sixth place in the West. One losing streak is guaranteed to come to an end tonight.
PRINCE GEORGE COUGARS
OVERVIEW
Record: 18-23-2-1
Home Record: 10-8-1-1
Last Game: A 6-0 loss last Saturday down South in Everett.
Last 10: 3-6-1-0
Record vs. VAN: 5-4-0-0
Goals For/Goals Against: 118 GF/151 GA (-33)
Power Play: 16.8% (18th)
Penalty Kill: 80.2% (7th)
Leading Scorers: Koehn Ziemmer (19-17-36), Riley Heidt (12-23-35), Craig Armstrong (10-17-27)
THE SOPHOMORE STAR
2004-born forward Koehn Ziemmer is putting together a remarkable second season in the WHL. The product of Mayerthorpe, AB heads into the weekend leading the Cougars with 19 goals and 36 points. Six of those 19 goals and 11 of those 36 points have come in nine games against the Vancouver Giants. Ziemmer has cooled off a little bit since mid-January when during a stretch of four games (Jan 14 – 19) he scored seven goals and added two assists for nine points. Ziemmer isn’t NHL Draft eligible until 2023.
YOU JUST MADE THE LIST
Last month, five Prince George Cougars were named to NHL Central Scouting’s Midterm Rankings ahead of the 2022 NHL Draft. Tyler Brennan is the top ranked North American (NA) Goaltender. Ty Young is ranked 21st among NA netminders. Viliam Kmec (92nd), Keaton Dowhaniuk (136th), and Hudson Thornton (211th) are ranked NA Skaters. 53 WHL players were named to the Midterm Rankings.
COUGAR NOTES
- Goaltender Tyler Brennan has, on average, faced 45 shots per game over his last five games played.
- Last Saturday against Everett, Tyler Brennan made a career-high 56 saves in a 6-0 loss.
- Tyler Brennan is 3-2 against Vancouver with a 2.22 goals-against average and a .934 save percentage.
- The Cougars are 6/26 on the power play against Vancouver.
- Riley Heidt has a team-leading seven assists in nine games against Vancouver.
VANCOUVER GIANTS
OVERVIEW
Record: 16-23-2-0
Road Record: 8-12-1-0
Last Game: A 7-2 road loss last Saturday to Seattle.
Last 10: 2-7-1-0
Record vs. PG: 4-4-1-0
Goals For/Goals Against: 113 GF/145 GA (-32)
Power Play: 18.2% (16th)
Penalty Kill: 75.6% (18th)
Leading Scorers: Fabian Lysell (13-19-32), Ty Thorpe (10-22-32), Alex Cotton (11-18-29)
THE PLAYOFF CHASE
Heading into action tonight in Prince George, the Vancouver Giants sit five points shy of the sixth placed Prince George Cougars, and four points up on the eighth placed Tri-City Americans. Four points this weekend would do wonders for the Vancouver Giants who are hoping to secure their third victory on the 2022 calendar year. If the playoffs were to begin today, the Giants and Cougars would both be in. The Giants would face Kamloops as the lower seed, while the Cougars would face Portland, also as the lower seed.
JUST THE RIGHT A’MOUNT’
Last weekend marked the return to the Giants lineup for 2002-born forward Payton Mount. Mount returned to the Giants lineup on February 4th against Kamloops and registered an assist on their first goal of the game. In 35 games this season with Vancouver, Mount has five goals and 12 assists for 17 points. In 174 career WHL games (with both Seattle and Vancouver) Payton Mount has recorded 28 goals and 57 assists for 85 points. Of the current Vancouver Giants, Payton Mount ranks second in career points (trailing only Alex Cotton) and third in career games played (behind Alex Cotton and Connor Horning).
GIANT NOTES
- Ty Thorpe leads all Giants with seven points (2G, 5A) in six games against Prince George.
- Four of Justin Lies’ seven goals this season have been scored against the Cougars.
- Adam Hall and Justin Lies are tied with four goals each against the Cougars.
- Vancouver’s power play against Prince George is 7/25.
- In four meetings with the Cougars, Jesper Vikman is 2-1-1-0 with a 3.24 goals-against average and a .902 save percentage.
