You can feel the excitement and the anticipation brewing in the City of Prince George as we get closer and closer to puck drop. Yes, it’s Teddy Bear Toss 2014, and tonight the Prince George Cougars will go toe-to-toe with the Saskatoon Blades in front of what is expected to be an enormous crowd at the CN Centre. There’s always added excitement and build up for Teddy Bear Toss, yet the important thing from a hockey perspective is the two points that are on the line against a Blades team that is nearing the end of their B.C. Division road trip.

SASKATOON BLADES

Overview:

Bob Woods’ Saskatoon Blades come into tonight’s game with a record of 7-21-2-1 which puts them in sixth place in the Eastern Division and 11^th out of 12 teams in the Eastern Conference standings. They’re winless in their past seven games, and are 1-6-2-1 in their past 10 games. They’re 144 goals against is the highest total in the WHL. Now with all of that said, the one thing that the Blades bring to the rink on a nightly basis is work ethic, and you know that they don’t want to head back to Saskatoon empty-handed from this road trip. Tonight is going to be a big time battle.

Who’s Up Front:

Tonight’s game has big implications in many respects, but one player on the Blades roster in particular has been looking forward to this game for a long time. Alex Forsberg’s tenure with the Prince George Cougars was filled with some staggering highs and lows, and the Forsberg saga finally came to an end in Prince George at the 2014 Bantam Draft when he was shipped to Saskatoon in exchange for Haydn Hopkins and a third round pick. Forsberg has seemed to fit right in with his new team as he leads their team in goals (11) and points (23) in 27 games. It goes without saying that he’ll be jacked up for his return to Prince George.

Who’s on D:

20-year-old Adam Henry leads the way on the back-end for the Saskatoon Blades with three goals and 18 points. The former Seattle Thunderbird and Lethbridge Hurricane will play in his 200^th career WHL game tonight. Since joining the Blades he’s added some veteran stability to a young team that’s still trying to create an identity for itself. The Cougars can expect to get a healthy dose of Adam Henry tonight.

Who’s in Goal:

The young goaltending duo of Trevor Martin and Nik Amundrud have put up some remarkably similar numbers to this point in the season. The 18-year-old Martin comes into tonight with a record of 2-7-2-0, a goals-against-average of 4.22 and a save percentage of .885. The younger Amudrud was the key piece in the trade that sent Nikita Scherbak to the Everett Silvertips earlier this season. In 11 games, he’s posted a 2-6-0-1 record with a 4.09 goals-against-average and an .895 save percentage. Amundrud is coming off a 38-save shootout loss to the Vancouver Giants on Saturday night.

X-Factor:

As mentioned earlier in the article, the Saskatoon Blades are playing the last game of a lengthy B.C. Division road trip, and up to this point they are winless. That said they’ve played some close games against some tough teams, and perhaps have not been rewarded justly for their efforts. Tonight is their last chance to secure a victory against a B.C. Division team this season and they’d love nothing better than to spoil the Teddy Bear Toss party this evening for the Cougars and their fans. For the Blades tonight it’s all about matching or surpassing the Cougars work ethic.

PRINCE GEORGE COUGARS

Overview:

Mark Holick’s Prince George Cougars are back at the .500 mark after a remarkable weekend in the Okanagan. Their 15-15-0-0 record puts them in third place in the B.C. Division and in sixth place overall in the Western Conference. It’s amazing what a couple of road victories can do to a team’s confidence. Admittedly the Cougars took to the road last week in need of some answers, and hopefully the road success can translate into a big victory and some more traction tonight at home to push the Cougars over .500.

Who’s Up Front:

Sophomore forward Jansen Harkins had himself a big night in Kamloops on Saturday. The draft-eligible forward had two goals and two assists and leads all Cougars in scoring with nine goals and 24 assists. With 33 points, Harkins now sits just one point shy of matching his point totals from a season ago. Hopefully the game in Kamloops can be the start of something big in December for Harkins who has the skillset to take over a team, and make everybody around him better. He’s as good a bet as any to get the Teddy Bear goal in 2014-15.

Who’s on D:

Saturday night in Kamloops might have been Marc McNulty’s best game ever as a WHLer. The 6’6” Detroit Red Wings prospect led the Cougars on the back-end with a goal, two assists and a fight to secure the Gordie Howe hat-trick. His presence on the blueline was felt immediately as he laid two big-time body checks on both Matt Needham and Cole Ully. When McNulty is engaged physically, offensive success is never too far behind, and hopefully tonight he can follow up his Saturday effort with something similar. If he can, look out, because he can be a major game-changer when all systems are go.

Who’s in Goal:

Speaking of traction, Ty Edmonds is starting to find some. Last weekend he dressed in both games, and turned aside 63 of the 69 shots he faced in back-to-back wins against Kelowna and Kamloops. Edmonds made the saves he was supposed to make, and then a couple that maybe should have gotten past him but didn’t. Hopefully tonight (assuming he’s starting) he’s able to replicate the success from the weekend into tonight’s matchup with Saskatoon because solid consistent goaltending is often the major difference in games.

X-Factor:

Tickets for this game selling like mad, and it’s not unrealistic to think that by the time the puck drops every single green seat at the CN Centre will be spoken for. It’s one of the most enjoyable nights of the season for fans and players alike, and hopefully the massive crowd can make their presence felt in a big way tonight at the CN Centre.