Leavitt Machinery Preview – Game 44 at Prince George
RAIDER REVIEW: The Raiders (37-5-0-1) open a six-game road trip tonight in Prince George against the Cougars (16-22-1-2) at the CN Centre. On Saturday, the Raiders ended a five-game homestand with a 7-3 win over the Calgary Hitmen. Parker Kelly led the offensive charge with two goals and an assist. Cole Fonstad, Dante Hannoun, and Ozzy Wiesblatt each chipped in a goal and an assist. Brett Leason and Brayden Pachal also scored for the Raiders. Sergei Sapego added two assists. Ian Scott made 21 saves to earn his 26th win of the year and 75th of his WHL career.
VS. PRINCE GEORGE: This is the only time the Raiders and the Cougars will play this season. Last year, the Raiders knocked off the Cougars 6-2 at the Art Hauser Centre. Parker Kelly and Sean Montgomery each had a goal and two assists. The Raiders’ last win in Prince George came on Dec. 3, 2014 by a 5-2 score.
VS. BC DIVISION: This is the first of five games against the BC Division this year. Last season, the Raiders posted a 3-1-1 record against the division last year by beating the Kamloops Blazers, Prince George Cougars, and Victoria Royals at the Art Hauser Centre.
PARKER POTS HIS 20TH: After having a number of chances through the weekend, winger Parker Kelly broke through in the third period of Saturday’s game against Calgary with a pair of goals. The Ottawa Senators prospect’s two goals gave him 20 on the season, reaching that plateau for the third consecutive campaign. Kelly now has 20 goals and 21 assists in 42 games played this season.
NEARING A MILESTONE: Overager Dante Hannoun is getting closer to another milestone in his WHL career. After recording his 250th career point last week, the Delta, BC product is one goal away from netting the 100th of his career. Hannoun scored his 99th career goal in Saturday’s win over the Calgary Hitmen.
STRINGING POINTS TOGETHER: Defenceman Jeremy Masella is currently riding a three-game point streak, the longest of his WHL career. He made it three games with an assist on Saturday night. The assist also gave him 10 this season, tying his career high set last season split between the Raiders and the Victoria Royals.
HELPING HAND: With an assist on Ozzy Wiesblatt’s power-play goal in the first period of Saturday night’s game against the Calgary Hitmen, Aliaksei Protas reached 20 on the season. He is the first Raiders rookie to record at least 20 assists since the 2014-15 campaign when Simon Stransky notched 30 in his debut season.
MULTI-POINT EFFORT: With a goal and an assist on Saturday, Cole Fonstad tallied his fifth multi-point game since the holiday break. Since then, the Montreal Canadiens prospect has five goals and nine assists in nine games.
NEXT UP: The Raiders continue their BC road trip on Friday night in Kamloops against the Blazers (15-23-2-1) at the Sandman Centre. Puck drop is 9 p.m. CST. The next Raiders’ home game is on Friday, February 1 against the Edmonton Oil Kings. Tickets are available at raiderhockey.com and the Raider Office.
