The Prince George Cougars rivalry with the Kamloops Blazers needs little introduction. These teams do not like each other. It’s that simple.When these teams face off the games are almost always physical, and nasty and it sure helps that the two rivals are neck and neck in the B.C. Division standings. Tonight marks the start of a three game homestand for the Prince George Cougars and the first of back-to-back games against the Kamloops Blazers. The Cougars admittedly have had a somewhat hot and cold January up to this point and they’d love to gain some traction and some separation tonight with a victory.

KAMLOOPS BLAZERS

Overview:

Don Hay’s Kamloops Blazers come into tonight’s game with an overall record of 22-16-4-3. Their 51 points puts them fourth in the B.C. Division and seventh in the Western Conference and they currently trail the third place Prince George Cougars by five points while holding a game in hand. So far this season the Blazers are 3-1-0-1 against the Cougars and despite only winning five of their last 10 games they’ve managed at least a point in eight of them having gone 5-2-1-2. At CN Centre this season the Blazers are 1-1.

Who’s Up Front:

19-year-old forward Collin Shirley is having a heck of a season. Through 45 games Shirley has scored 27 times and also leads the Blazers with 51 points and is a +18. In six games against the Cougars this season Shirley has six goals and six assists for 12 points total. Lately though Shirley has struggled posting just one goal in his past six games. The Cougars are hoping that he doesn’t decide to break out of that skid this weekend.

Who’s on D:

Leading the way defensively for Kamloops is the duo of 20-year-old Ryan Rehill and 17-year-old Dawson Davidson. Rehill, a New Jersey Devils prospect leads the Blazers blueliners with six goals and 25 points while Davidson has four goals and 18 assists and is a plus 10. Davidson has has a ton of success this season against the Cougars having registered three goals and four assists against the Cougars in five games against them this season. He was recently ranked 197^th in Central Scouting’s Mid-Term Rankings. Rehill is a strong two-way defender with a mean streak and you can definitely expect that he’ll see a bulk of the minutes against the Cougars top forwards tonight.

Who’s in Goal:

When Connor Ingram is on his game he might be one of the best and most underrated goaltenders in the entire WHL. This season he’s been a mainstay between the pipes for Kamloops having posted a 19-10-4-3 record with a .916 save percentage, a 2.74 goals-against-average and two shutouts. Ingram has started all six games against the Cougars this season and is 4-1-0-1 with a 2.45 goals-against-average and a .934 save percentage. He was listed as the 12^th top goaltender in NHL Central Scouting’s Mid-Term rankings for North American born players earlier this week.

X-Factor:

Depth has been a major factor in the Blazers success especially against the Cougars. Yes Shirley has done the most dirty work with 12 points in six games against the Cougars but four other forwards: Matt Revel, Deven Sideroff, Matt Needham and Gage Quinney are all averaging a point-per-game or more against Prince George. Add the fact that both Dawson Davidson and Ondrej Vala are also point-per-game guys from the back-end and you’ve got a very potent and dangerous Blazers lineup that is also starting to get fully healthy again. The Cougars cannot afford to take shifts off against this group because it can easily come back to bite them.

PRINCE GEORGE COUGARS

Overview:

Mark Holick’s Prince George Cougars are humming right along. They are 27-17-1-1, third in the B.C. Division and are three points back of the Victoria Royals for second place with a game still in hand on them. Over their past five games they are 5-5 though and haven’t been able to establish the same type of success and traction that they did in December when they went 10-3. Now with that said the Cougars are still 14 points ahead of their pace from a season ago and after some major struggles against the Blazers earlier this season the Cougars have turned the tide winning two straight games against them and earning points in three consecutive meetings against them. Tonight the Cougars seek their 16^th home ice victory.

Who’s Up Front:

With five goals in his past two games, Brad Morrison is red hot for the Prince George Cougars. He now sits third on the team in goals with 19 and his 39 points also put him third on the team in overall scoring. When Morrison is skating and ‘hunting’ for pucks he’s easily one of the most talented, flashy and exciting players to watch in the entire WHL and lately he’s been bringing that type of urgency which has made everyone around him a better player too. Morrison has a goal and three assists against the Blazers this season and is a player that the Blazers will have to key on, because he can burn you quickly and often.

Who’s on D:

When the Cougars have won games this season it’s largely been because of the fact that their attention to detail defensively has been spot on. Despite going 1-1 on their recent road trip, the Cougars are no doubt a little sour at the fact that they have surrendered 11 goals against in their past two games. The injury to Josh Anderson also doesn’t make things any easier as now even more onus is on the shoulders of Sam Ruopp, Tate Olson and Joe Carvalho, the three veteran defencemen who log the most minutes. A big game defensively from those three will be a big key as the Cougars look to try and shut down the high powered offense of the Blazers.

Who’s in Goal:

Tonight will mark the eighth straight start for Cougars goaltender Ty Edmonds who no doubt will be looking to rebound after a 7-4 setback on Tuesday in Kelowna. The encouraging thing is that Edmonds has always seemed to bounce back after tough losses, and he’ll get a boost knowing that his next victory in a Cougars uniform would match him with Billy Thompson for second on the Cougars all-time list of victories for a goaltender with 64. Edmonds’ record this season is 15-10-1-0 and is 2-1 this season against the Kamloops Blazers.

X-Factor:

The Prince George Cougars need to dictate the pace of play in tonight’s game. That means playing the game with physicality, intensity and structure. The Blazers are a very fast team in transition and the feast off of mistakes and turnovers. The Cougars can avoid that by being the aggressors and not allowing the Blazers the ability to float freely through the neutral zone with speed. A few early hits, maybe an early goal and some strong play on the puck will be a big key tonight for the Cougars as they look to get a big crowd into the game early on tonight.