Game Preview:  The rollercoaster ride that has been the start of the 2015-16 Cougars season took a turn for the better last night at home. Led by former Calgary Hitmen netminder Mack Shields, the Cougars earned a 5-2 victory over the visiting Hitmen and are now back at .500 and a victory away from climbing over the .500 mark for the first time this season. Last night was another reminder of just how good this Cougars team can be when they play to their strengths and tonight they’ll look to earn their first double header sweep of the season when they square off once again with the visiting Calgary Hitmen.

CALGARY HITMEN

Overview:

Mark French’s Calgary Hitmen come into tonight’s game with a 6-4-0-1 record through 11 games this season. Over their past 10 games Calgary has gone 5-4-0-1 but have dropped three of their past four games. This is a difficult portion of schedule for Calgary who tonight will be playing their fifth game in seven days when they rematch against the Cougars. Last night the Hitmen played without some key pieces in: Brendan Burke, Jake Bean, Pavel Karnaukhov, Taylor Sanheim and Terrell Draude. I’m sure that the Calgary camp is hoping to have some of the above available to them tonight, but time will ultimately tell.

Who’s Up Front:

Offensively the Hitmen struggled at times last night. Credit the Cougars who stayed disciplined and did their part defensively, but as mentioned above the Hitmen were missing some key pieces up front. The duo of Chase Lang and Radel Fazleev did most of the heavy lifting offensively for Calgary in last night’s game, and rightfully so as both are looked upon to provide consistent offense. Fazleev made a terrific play on the first Calgary goal to get them on the board and showed terrific poise and patience with the puck offensively. Tonight they’ll need a similar effort from him and some of the other Calgary veteran forwards if they hope to split.

Who’s on D:

Philadelphia Flyer’s prospect Travis Sanheim was as good as advertised last night for the Hitmen.  The 19-year-old provided both of Calgary’s goals and played a TON in all situations. His game oozes confidence, and he’s a terrific skater with good instincts. His two goals last night give him five on the year, and his 17 points in 11 games is tops on the team. The Cougars can once again expect a steady diet of Travis Sanheim again tonight.

Who’s in Goal:

18-year-old Lasse Petersen battled hard for Calgary between the pipes and turned aside 35 of the 39 shots he faced in a losing cause. Despite the loss, Petersen was a bright spot for Calgary as made a series of key saves when the game was close to keep his team within striking distance. 20-year-old veteran Brendan Burke appears ‘close’ to returning and might even get the nod tonight depending on how his skate goes today, but if not Mark French needs to decide whether he goes back to Petersen or does he go with the younger Kyle Dumba. Given that it’s their fifth game in seven days, it will be important for the Hitmen to try and cut down the number of shots against in tonight’s rematch.

X-Factor:

Tonight the Calgary Hitmen will need to manage their energy as best as possible. Five games in seven days is a tall order no matter who you are, and tonight it will be all about a simple and structured approach to the rematch. A big key for Calgary will be to strike offensively early and force the Cougars to play from behind, because if they get into a run-and-gun type of game it doesn’t necessarily favor them given their injuries. Simplicity and structure is the name of the game tonight for the Hitmen.

PRINCE GEORGE COUGARS

Overview:

Mark Holick’s Prince George Cougars come into tonight’s game with an even 4-4 record on the season. On their current six game homestand they’ve gone 3-2 and a win tonight would certainly qualify this homestand as a successful one considering the calibre of opponents that the Cougars have gone up against. Last night the Cougars were strong in all three areas of the ice, and responded well after a tough outing last Saturday. Tonight the message remains the same: Play to your strengths, stay disciplined and outwork your opposition and you’ll more often than not be successful.

Who’s Up Front:

Kody McDonald picked a terrific game to break out. The sophomore forward from Lethbridge, AB scored a goal and added two assists and played a terrific two-way game on his way to a first star selection. He and his linemates Tyler Mrkonjic and Colby McAuley were locked in from the start and did a terrific job against Calgary’s top line defensively. If this line can continue to play that type of hockey it is going to bode very well for the Prince George Cougars, particularly with a four game road trip looming.

Who’s on D:

In only took eight games, but sophomore defenceman Josh Anderson has already matched his point total from a season ago with four. The rugged blueliner was terrific again last night recording two assists and was a +1. He and his defense partner Sam Ruopp are a combined +12 and have done a terrific job at containing the opposing team’s top lines on most nights this season. The 21 goals against in eight games is stat of pride right now for the Cougars and tonight the Cougars will look to keep the Calgary offense in check. If they can do so, a 5-4 record is a definite possibility for Prince George.

Who’s in Goal:

It was a storybook kind of night for Cougars 20-year-old goaltender Mack Shields who turned aside 25 of the 27 shots he faced en route to a victory against his former WHL team. From the drop of the puck Shields was locked in, and while he didn’t have to make many A+ saves, he calmly and assertively went about his business and was a big factor in his team’s win. Does that warrant another kick at the can tonight for Shields? Or do the Cougars go back with Ty Edmonds who’s got a 1.93 goals-against-average and a .940 save percentage through five starts. Regardless of who gets the nod for the Cougars in net tonight, the team will play with confidence knowing that both are very capable and confident at this stage of the season.

X-Factor:

This is the fourth back-to-back game for the Cougars this season, and so far all three times the Cougars have only come away with a split regardless of whether they’ve won or lost the first game. Tonight the Cougars look to turn that corner and earn their first double-header sweep of the season. There’s no telling what type of positive effect that a 5-4 record would have on this group as they prepare for a four game road swing. The big key: Don’t veer from what made you successful in the first place.