The challenging pursuit of a playoff spot in the Western Conference continues tonight on the road for the Prince George Cougars. Tonight in Kelowna, the Prince George Cougars will look to extend their road winning streak to five games and put some more pressure on the Tri-City Americans who are also in action. But again the Cougars are going to be in tough as they have not only the top team in the West opposite them tonight, but also the top team in the entire country.

OVERVIEW:

Ryan Huska's Kelowna Rockets come into tonight's game with the league's top record: 45-8-0-4. They are 6-2-0-2 in their past 10 games and currently hold a nine point edge on the Portland Winterhawks for first in the Western Conference. They are a team that prides itself on depth and defense, and might be the most stacked team from top-to-bottom in the WHL. They are 4-0 against the Cougars so far this season.

WHO'S UP FRONT:

Offensively it's hard to find a player more consistent than 20-year-old Myles Bell. With 38 goals and 66 points in just 55 games, Bell has really caught fire as of late for the Rockets. Earlier in February, Bell had a four goal, six point game against the Kamloops Blazers. So far this season Bell has two goals and one assist in four games played against the Cougars.

WHO'S ON D:

When it comes to offense from the back-end, the Kelowna Rockets are as good as it gets. The dynamic duo of Madison Bowey and Damon Severson have 49 and 48 points respectively on the season, and more importantly they are both extremely reliable and strong in their own zone as well. With a goal and five assists, Damon Severson leads all Rockets this season in scoring against the Cougars.

WHO'S IN GOAL:

The stats of 20-year-old Jordan Cooke and 18-year-old Jackson Whistle are very similar, save and except the games played column. In 40 games, Cooke has put together a record of 31-5-0-4 while Whistle is 14-3 in 17 starts. On any given night, either guy gives the Rockets a tremendous shot at victory, and the Cougars are going to have to work extremely hard to capitalize on either netminder.

X-FACTOR:

The Kelowna Rockets might not be as top-heavy as a team like Portland, but their DEPTH is what continually seperates the Rockets from most other teams in the WHL. The Rockets have 12 different players on their roster with 10-or-more goals, which just goes to show that it doesn't matter which line they have on the ice, they are capable of scoring either way. Tonight the Cougars will need to be mindful of this fact, and try to keep the Rockets in check offensively through an entire 60 minute game.

OVERVIEW:

Mark Holick's Prince George Cougars are currently riding a four-game road winning streak heading into tonight's contest. At 24-28-2-5 the Cougars are five points shy of the eighth placed Tri-City Americans in the Western Conference standings. Although they are 0-3-0-1 against the Rockets this season, the Cougars have definitely hung right in there with Kelowna in all four games. If the Cougars are hoping to make the jump into eighth, they are going to have to take down a tough team or two. Why not tonight?

WHO'S UP FRONT:

With two goals and an assist in Wednesday night's game with Portland, Cougars captain Troy Bourke continues to light up the scoresheet in February. In five February games, the Cougars captain has six goals and 12 points, and continues to find some consistent offensive success alongside his linemates Jordan Tkatch and Brad Morrison. Here's hoping Bourke and company can be in top form again here tonight.

WHO'S ON D:

Another game and another goal for Cougars defenceman Marc McNulty who is now at 15 for the season. McNulty has now recorded at least one point in each of his past eight games, and has nine points over that span. McNulty will likely be the Cougars icetime leader again tonight, and hopefully he's up for the task of trying to neutralize the likes of Myles Bell, Marek Tvrdon and Tyson Baillie.

WHO'S IN GOAL:

Ty Edmonds got the call on Wednesday against Portland and surrendered six goals against on 35 shots faced. Edmonds made some timely saves, but unfortunately wasn't able to match the timely stops that Corbin Boes made at the other end. Adam Beukeboom is also coming off a loss on Monday, so Mark Holick now has to decide which goaltender he feels gives him the best chance against Kelowna. Either way, the Cougars are going to need a top-notch goaltending performance in order to win.

X-FACTOR:

There are a number of positives that the Cougars can take from Wednesday's game with Portland. From the drop of the first puck, the Cougars were engaged physically and were not in awe of Portland in the way that they maybe were on Monday. Tonight it has to be a similar mindset as they face the division leaders. If the Cougars can shrug off the Rockets recent success, and just play to their own strengths, they will give themselves a legitimate shot at winning.