Calgary, AB – After a day off from competition in Calgary, the Cariboo Cougars are set to begin their quest towards a first ever Mac’s Midget tournament Thursday with their round-robin opening game against the Winnipeg Wild.

After coming just shy of a playoff berth last year, the Cougars are looking to get back to the elimination round but have a tough first test against one of Manitoba’s top midget squads. The Wild downed the Prince Albert Mintos 5-2 Wednesday afternoon and sit tied atop the Cougars pool with the Edmonton SSAC Athletics who easily beat the Calgary Northstars 4-1 earlier in the day.

A couple changes to the Cougars roster have been made ahead of Thursday’s matchup as the team welcomes back Riley Pettitt from injury along with Thane Anderson who has joined the team for the rest of the season. After a stellar start of the year with the Prince George Tier 1 Midget Cougars, Anderson will don the number 12 for the Cats for the first time against the Wild.