There is NEVER a dull moment when the Prince George Cougars and Kamloops Blazers get together and tonight another chapter in the famed Cougars-Blazers rivalry will be written at the CN Centre. Tonight the Blazers bring their 41-18-2-3 record to town for their sixth meeting of the season with the Prince George Cougars who continue their chase for a playoff spot in the Western Conference.

Overview:

Guy Charron’s Kamloops Blazers head into tonight with a 7-3 record in their last 10 games. They currently sit seven points back of Kelowna for the B.C. division lead with eight games remaining in their season. While first place might seem like a bit of a long-shot at this point, the Blazers are obviously focused on preparing themselves for the post-season, and you know that they’ll want to do all they can to hinder the Cougars playoff chances with a win tonight.

Who’s Up Front:

The dream season for Colin Smith continues. The 19-year-old Colorado Avalanche prospect leads the Blazers with 38 goals and 96 points, and is currently fourth in league scoring behind only Nic Petan, Brendan Leipsic and Ty Rattie of Portland. Smith posted 16 points in 11 February games, and he and linemates JC Lipon and Tim Bozon will be looked upon to supply some offense for Kamloops on the road this evening.

Who’s on D:

Though the Blazers may lack ‘star power’ on the back-end, they make up for it with depth and dependability. Joel Edmundson, Marek Hrbas, Tyler Hanson and Sam Grist provide the Blazers with an even mix of offense and defense, and have all proven to be very valuable this season for Guy Charron’s club. Sam Grist had the O.T. winner for Kamloops when these teams last met in mid-January.

Who’s in Goal:

This season the Kamloops Blazers have relied on the tandem of  Cole Cheveldave and Taran Kozun to protect their net, and that’s exactly what both have done this season. Cheveldave has appeared in 49 games and is 31-14-1-1 with a .903 save percentage and a goals-against-average of 2.52. Kozun is 10-4-1-2 with a goals-against-average of 2.50 and a save percentage of .908. Cole Cheveldave has started in all five games for Kamloops this season against Prince George.

X-Factor:

The Kamloops Blazers come into tonight boasting the fourth best power play in the WHL. On the flip side, the Cougars have surrendered at least one power play goal against in each of their past nine games. If the likes of Tim Bozon, JC Lipon, Colin Smith and Brendan Ranford are given the extra space to make plays they will burn you. The Kamloops man advantage is certainly a large X-Factor heading into tonight’s contest.

Overview:

Mark Holick’s Prince George Cougars head into tonight’s game looking to snap a three-game losing streak. At 18-36-2-6 the Cougars are five points back of Everett and six points behind Seattle with games in hand on both clubs. In five meetings with the Blazers this season the Cougars have earned points in four of them.

Who’s Up Front:

Zach Pochiro led all Cougars with 12 points in 11 February games. Since Mark Holick took over as head coach, Zach Pochiro has flourished with 13 points in 15 games, and no doubt he’ll be looking to continue that offensive success into the month of March. Colin Jacobs also had a strong February posting 10 points in 11 games. The Cougars will need the likes of Jacobs, Pochiro, Troy Bourke and Chase Witala to provide the Cougars with some offense tonight.

Who’s on D:

As the month of March begins the Prince George Cougars are going to need to cut down on the goals-against. This does not just fall onto the shoulders of the defensemen, but it certainly starts on the back-end. 20-year-olds Dan Gibb and Dallas Ehrhardt have provided the Cougars with strong minutes all season, and if this team wants to make a push to the playoffs, both will need to dig even deeper to help lead the charge, at least from the back end. Ehrhardt leads all Cougars defensemen with 20 points.

Who’s in Goal:

With 10 games remaining in the regular season one of Mac Engel or Brett Zarowny is going to need to grab the ball here and run with it between the pipes if the Cougars want to crack the top eight. Both have showed signs of brilliance this season, and both have had their moments of struggle.

X-Factor:

Since Mark Holick arrived in Prince George his message has remained constant: If the Cougars outwork the opposition they’ll find success more often than not. Well tonight that effort will need to be there as the Cougars kick off the month of March. A win tonight for the Cougars puts them right back within striking distance of the Silvertips and the Thunderbirds, provided the Tri-City Americans and Edmonton Oil Kings also cooperate. What could be better than a Friday night matchup on home ice against a heated rival to turn the tide on the Western Conference playoff race.