WHL HEADLINES

PRINCE GEORGE @ CALGARY TONIGHT ON SHAW – Nicholas Drazenovic (pictured) and the Prince George Cougars (20-25-3-1) kick off a Central division road swing as they visit the Calgary Hitmen (25-17-6-2) in one of nine Western Hockey League contests on Friday.
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rTonight’s contest between the Cougars and Hitmen can be seen throughout the Alberta and B.C. regions on SHAW.
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rThe Cougars, who sit fourth in the B.C. division, are coming off a 6-0 loss to Kamloops last Sunday and have dropped three of their last four games. Prince George has managed only six road wins this season and has lost four in a row away from home. Dustin Byfuglien (16g-23a) leads the Cougars in scoring with 39 points.
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rThe Hitmen, who sit third in the Central division, beat Red Deer 2-1 on Wednesday night and are 7-3 in their last 10 contests. Calgary has dropped only six games on home ice this season and also boasts the league’s second-best power play at home. Ryan Getzlaf (23g-17a) leads the team in scoring with 40 points.
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rIt’s the third meeting of the season between the clubs. Each team has won once in the previous two encounters. The road team has won in both previous games between the Cougars and Hitmen this season.
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rTonight’s SHAW broadcast can be seen in Alberta locally in Calgary, Edmonton, Lethbridge, Red Deer Medicine Hat, and Fort McMurray. In B.C., the game will air locally in Castlegar, Chilliwack, Cranbrook, Duncan, Kamloops, Kelowna, Nanaimo, Penticton, Prince George, Quesnel, Vancouver, Vernon, Victoria, and Williams Lake.
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rElsewhere on Friday, the Everett Silvertips (21-19-6-2) welcome the Portland Winter Hawks (20-22-4-4) in a pivotal U.S. division match-up.
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rThe struggling Silvertips, who currently sit second in the U.S. division, are coming off Wednesday’s 4-1 loss in Kelowna and have only managed two wins in their last 10 games. The ‘Tips are 12-8-3 at home this season.
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rThe Hawks, who currently sit only two points behind Everett for second in the U.S. division, have been idle since Sunday’s 5-2 win over Vancouver and are 5-4-1 in their last 10 contests. Portland is 8-17-2 on the road this season.
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rIt’s the eighth meeting of the season between the division rivals. Everett has a 4-1-2 edge in the series and is undefeated versus Portland in the last six meetings.
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rThe Lethbridge Hurricanes (26-12-10-1) host the Medicine Hat Tigers (28-14-3-2) in a battle between Central division powerhouses.
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rThe Hurricanes, who currently top the division, are coming off Wednesday’s 8-2 win over Brandon – their only win in their last five outings. Jonathan Filewich, who tallied four times in Wednesday’s win, leads the team with 33 goals.
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rThe Tigers, who currently occupy second in the Central division – only two points behind Lethbridge, beat Brandon 5-1 on Tuesday and have won seven of their last 10 games. The Tigers are 12-11-2 on the road this season.
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rIt’s the fifth of eight meetings between the teams. Medicine Hat leads the series 3-1 through the first four meetings.
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rThe Prince Albert Raiders (19-24-4-2) host the Regina Pats (11-31-3-4) in an East division match-up tonight.
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rThe Raiders, who currently sit third in the East division, have been off since last Saturday’s 3-0 win over the Warriors and are 5-5 in their last 10 outings. Aki Seitsonen (19g-17a) leads the Raiders in scoring with 36 points.
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rThe Pats, who sit fourth in the East division, were beaten 6-2 by Red Deer last Sunday and are winless in eight straight contests. The Pats’ 20th-ranked penalty-killing unit has allowed a league-high 63 power play goals this season.
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rIt’s the sixth meeting of the season between the Pats and Raiders. The Series is tied 2-2-1 after the first five encounters.
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rThe Brandon Wheat Kings (24-17-5-1) continue their tour through the Central division as they visit the Red Deer Rebels (24-17-4-4) tonight.
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rThe Wheat Kings, who sit second in the East division, were thumped 8-2 in Lethbridge on Wednesday after being dumped 5-1 in Medicine Hat the night before. Eric Fehr leads the league in the goal-scoring department with 40 tallies this season.
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rThe Rebels, who currently sit fourth in the Central division, were edged 2-1 in Calgary on Wednesday and are 6-4 in their last 10 games. Roman Wick has recorded at least one point in 20 of his last 22 games.
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rIt’s the fourth meeting of the season between the teams. Brandon is a perfect 3-0 versus Red Deer through the first three encounters. Fehr has scored five goals versus the Rebels this season.
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rThe Saskatoon Blades (27-15-5-4) host the Moose Jaw Warriors (7-34-7-1) tonight in an East division battle.
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rThe Blades, who top the division, were beaten 6-4 in Moose Jaw on Wednesday and are 4-6 in their last 10 outings. The Blades are 13-8-2 at home this season.
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rThe Warriors, who currently sit fifth in the East division, snapped a 12-game winless skid with Wednesday’s win over Saskatoon. The Warriors have managed just one win away from home all season.
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rIt’s the seventh meeting of the season between the teams. Saskatoon leads the season series 5-1 after the first six meetings.
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rThe Seattle Thunderbirds (32-14-0-1) welcome the Kamloops Blazers (18-25-4-2) tonight.
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rThe Thunderbirds, who top the U.S. division, suffered an 8-1 loss to Tri-City on Wednesday and have dropped three of their last four outings. Seattle owns the second-best penalty-killing unit in the league.
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rThe Blazers, who sit fifth in the B.C. division, skated to a 3-3 tie versus Vancouver on Wednesday and are 4-4-2 in their last 10 contests. Kamloops is 5-16-2 on the road this season.
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rIt’s the third meeting of the season between the teams. Kamloops has won both previous meetings versus the T-Birds this season.
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rThe Kootenay Ice (31-13-4-0) pay a visit to the Swift Current Broncos (16-25-6-1) tonight.
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rThe red-hot Ice, who currently sit second in the B.C. division, have been idle since last Sunday’s 5-2 win over the Americans and have won nine straight games. The Ice are 10-9-1 on the road this season.
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rThe Broncos – fifth in the Central division – are coming off a 4-2 win over Medicine Hat last Saturday and have lost only one of their last five contests. The Broncos are 9-12-3 at home this season.
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rIt’s the second of three meetings between the teams this season. Kootenay won the first meeting 4-0 in Cranbrook back in December.
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rIn other action Friday night, the Tri-City Americans (17-21-5-2) visit the Vancouver Giants (25-20-2-2).
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rThe Ams, who sit tied with Spokane for fourth in the U.S. division, hammered Seattle 8-1 on Wednesday night but have managed only three wins in their last 10 games. The Americans are 8-9-3 on the road this season.
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rThe Giants, who currently sit third in the B.C. division, are coming off Wednesday’s 3-3 draw with Kamloops and are winless in their last four outings. Gilbert Brule leads the Giants with 27 goals and 63 points.
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rIt’s the third meeting of the season between the teams. Tri-City has won both previous encounters versus the Giants this season.
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rWHL ANNOUNCES SUSPENSION AND FINE
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r-Ryan Stone of the Brandon Wheat Kings has been suspended for one game for receiving an elbowing major and a game misconduct at Lethbridge on January 26.
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r-Al Conroy, head coach of the Spokane Chiefs, has been fined $250.00 for receiving a game misconduct following game versus Seattle on January 25.
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rWHL UPCOMING T.V BROADCASTS
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rSHAW
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rSunday, January 30
rRegina @ Swift Current
r7:00 p.m., Saskatchewan and Manitoba regions
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rFriday, February 4
rKamloops @ Kelowna
r7:00 p.m., B.C. region
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rRogers Sportsnet
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rWednesday, February 16
rRed Deer @ Vancouver
r7:00 p.m. PT (West, Pacific)
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rWednesday, February 23
rTri-City @ Vancouver
r7:00 p.m. PT (West, Pacific)
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