Tonight in Kamloops, the Prince George Cougars have a chance to get back to the .500 mark when they take on the Kamloops Blazers for the fourth time this season. The Cougars are coming off one of their most spirited victories of the season, a 4-3 decision in Kelowna against the league leading Kelowna Rockets last night. Yet as positive as the mood is right now, it will be important for the Cougars to try and gain some traction and not dwell on their success from last night as they look to exact some revenge on the Blazers.

KAMLOOPS BLAZERS

Overview:

Don Hay’s Kamloops Blazers come into tonight’s game with a 12-14-3-2 record. Their 29 points has them ranked third in the B.C. Division just one point ahead of the Cougars. In their past 10 games, Kamloops is 3-5-1-1. They are coming off a 5-4 loss last night to the Prince Albert Raiders. So far this season they are 1-1-0-1 against the Cougars.

Who’s Up Front:

Dallas Stars prospect Cole Ully continues to lead the charge offensively for the Kamloops Blazers. Through 29 games, Ully has scored 13 goals and has added 26 assists for 39 points in 28 games. He’s the type of player that can score goals in bunches, and always seems to find the open spots on the ice to make positive plays for his team. So far this season he’s recorded one goal and an assist against Prince George.

Who’s on D:

After a somewhat slow start, 19-year-old defenceman Josh Connolly has started to find the score sheet with much more regularity. Over his past nine games, he’s recorded a goal and 10 assists and leads all Kamloops defencemen with four goals and 21 points in 29 games. The last time the Cougars faced the Blazers, Connolly registered four assists.

Who’s in Goal:

The 17-year-old duo of Connor Ingram and Cole Kehler continues to provide Kamloops with a chance to win on a nightly basis. Ingram has started to establish himself as the go-too guy in Kamloops, but that’s not to suggest that Kehler is not just as capable. Ingram has played in 17 games and is 5-6-1-2 with a .900 save percentage and a 3.04 goals-against-average. Kehler is 3-6-2-0 with an .883 save percentage and a 3.85 goals-against-average. For what it’s worth, Ingram played last night in the 5-4 loss to Prince Albert.

X-Factor:

Tonight is Teddy Bear Toss for the Blazers and Teddy Bear Toss always seems to provide an added spark for the home team. That said, it’s one of those situations where the longer the home team goes without scoring a goal, the tougher it will be on them mentally. A major key for the Cougars tonight will be to try and score an early goal or two to take the crowd out of the game as much as possible. On the otherside, you know that the Blazers are going to want to get that first goal out of the way as soon as possible.

PRINCE GEORGE COUGARS

Overview:

Mark Holick’s Prince George Cougars come into tonight’s game with a 14-15-0-0 record. They are 4-6 in their last 10 games, and are knocking on the door of third place in the B.C. Division just one point shy of Kamloops. Last night in Kelowna the Cougars battled through a ton of adversity en route to a 4-3 victory on national TV against Kelowna. The key word here is ‘traction.’ And hopefully tonight the Cougars can continue to build some traction with another positive outing against a B.C. Division rival.

Who’s Up Front:

Prior to last night’s game, Mark Holick decided to shuffle the deck up front and alter all four of his forward lines. Wow did it pay off last night. Chase Witala, Zach Pochiro and David Soltes were outstanding in their first game together. Witala led the way with two goals and two assists while David Soltes chipped in with three assists and Pochiro added two helpers of his own. Witala now leads the Cougars in goals (15) and is now tied with Jansen Harkins for the team lead in scoring with 29 points.

Who’s on D:

Defensively the Cougars were full marks last night against the Kelowna Rockets. They blocked shot after shot, they played physically against the Rockets and got offensive contributions from both Sam Ruopp and Marc McNulty. The key for the defense tonight? TRACTION! Take the effort from last night, and build on it and replicate it tonight in Kamloops.

Who’s in Goal:

Ty Edmonds was marvelous between the pipes last night for the Cougars. He faced 40 shots, and turned aside 37 of them for his 12^th victory of the season. Edmonds controlled his rebounds, was excellent laterally and the best part? He instilled confidence in his team. The key word tonight for Edmonds? You guessed it: Traction! Hopefully he can use last night’s outing as a major confidence booster for not only himself, but his entire team.

X-Factor:

Last night’s win in Kelowna could be a major turning point for this young Cougars team. It’s not easy to beat the Rockets at any given time, let alone in their home rink on a Friday night and the Cougars did just that. So now they need to harness the positives, and harness the emotion that comes along with a performance like that and will need to try and replicate that as best as possible here tonight in Kamloops. A win for the Cougars move them back into the top three in the B.C. Division, and would also give them back-to-back wins on the road against B.C. Division opponents for the first time this season.