Tonight in Victoria the Prince George Cougars and Victoria Royals will renew hostilities on Vancouver Island. These teams met in Round 1 of the 2014-15 playoffs and have built up quite a rivalry .

Both teams have three victories against the other in 2015-16 and there is a very real possibility that the Prince George Cougars and Victoria Royals could ultimately meet each other in Round 1 of the 2015-16 post-season. Tonight for the Cougars it’s about building off of the positives from Wednesday in Kelowna, but the league leading Victoria Royals aren’t about to make things easy on the Cougars as they look to maintain their grasp on first overall in the WHL standings.

VICTORIA ROYALS

Overview:

Head Coach: Dave Lowry

• Record: 45-16-3-0 (1^st in the West. 1^st in the B.C. Division. 1^st in the WHL)
• Record Against the Cougars : 2-3-0-1
• Record Against the Cougars at Home: 1-0-0-1
• Last 10: 8-1-0-1
• Streak: 8W (Outscoring their opponent 45-15 in that span)

Who’s Up Front

• ALEX FORSBERG – 25 goals and 55 assists for 80 points. Currently on an eight game point streak with two goals and nine assists for 11 points in that span. He is one of three Royals this season to have recorded six points against the Cougars this season.
• TYLER SOY – Eight goals and nine assists for 17 points over his last eight games. He’s got 40 goals on the season and is second on the team with 74 points.

Who’s on D:

• JOE HICKETTS – 55 points in 54 games played this season. He’s a +32 and is coming off a three assist performance back on March 5^th against Vancouver.
• RYAN GAGNON – A former Cariboo Cougar leads the team in plus-minus with a +47 rating. He’s got a goal and an assist this season against Prince George.

Who’s in Goal:

Pick your poison:

• GRIFFEN OUTHOUSE – The league’s lowest goals-against-average at 1.84 with a 16-3-3-1 record with a .937 save percentage and four shutouts. Oh yeah, he’s 17. He’s 2-2 against the Cougars this season.
• COLEMAN VOLLRATH – The 20-year-old veteran is 29-13-0-2 with a .914 save percentage, a 2.36 goals-against-average and one shutout. Vollrath is 1-0-0-1 against Prince George this season.

X-Factor(s):

• DEPTH – Six players with over 25 goals and 55 points scored this season.
• DESPERATION – They currently hold a three point lead on the Kelowna Rockets for first place in the B.C. Division. How important will it be for Dave Lowry’s club to finish with that top spot and home ice adavantage throughout the entire playoffs.

PRINCE GEORGE COUGARS

Overview:

Head Coach: Mark Holick

• Record: 36-27-3-2 (Tied for third in the B.C. Division with Kamloops, but have two more victories overall)
• Record Against the Royals:3-3
• Record Against the Royals on the road: 1-1
• Last 10: 4-5-1-0
• Streak: 1-0-0-1 (Points in four of their last five games overall)

Who’s Up Front:

• CHASE WITALA – Became the Cougars all-time leading scorer thanks to two points on Wednesday in Kelowna. Witala leads the Cougars this season with 40 goals and 77 points, a new career high for him.
• JANSEN HARKINS – Has quietly put together a seven game point streak. He has four goals and five assists for nine points in that span. He’s coming off a goal and an assist Wednesday in Kelowna.

Who’s on D:

• TATE OLSON –  Has a goal and four assists for five points in six games against the Royals this season.
• SAM RUOPP – Still leads the Cougars in plus-minus with a +22 rating.

Who’s in Goal:

• TY EDMONDS – Was named the game’s first star Wednesday after stopping 38 of the 40 shots he faced through 65 minutes of play. Edmonds is 1-2 for the season with a 2.74 goals-against-average and a .922 save percentage against the Royals and 21-14-2-1 on the season overall with four shutouts, a 2.69 goals-against-average and a .914 save percentage.
• NICK McBRIDE – Has a 2-1 record against the Royals this season with a .929 save percentage and a 2.53 goals-against-average. For the season he is 12-10-1-1 with one shutout, a save percentage of .905 and a goals-against-average of 2.95.

X-Factor(s):

• PHYSICALITY: The Cougars are no doubt at their best and most effective when they take the body and make life difficult for the opposition.
• DISCIPLINE: Don’t give this high powered Victoria offense too many opportunities to strike with the man advantage.
• TOP GUYS VS. TOP GUYS: The Cougars have gotten solid offensive production lately from their top players and that will have to continue in a big way this weekend if the Cougars want to maintain third place in the B.C. Division.