Overview:
The Spokane Chiefs were in action yesterday in Portland and they lost 5-3. Overall the Chiefs are 4-4-1-1 in their last 10 games and are ranked third in the U.S. Division behind Tri City and Portland.
Who’s Up Front:
The Spokane Chiefs are led offensively by 19-year-old center Anthony Bardaro. Bardaro has tallied 13 times and has added 12 assists for 25 points this season. Bardaro has scored eight of his 13 goals on the power play and the Cougars will need to be mindful of that statistic.
Who’s on D:
19-year-old defenceman Brendan Kichton is a real game-breaker. He has 17 points through 20 games, and lots a lot of key minutes for the Spokane Chiefs. Kichton recently represented the WHL at the Subway Super Series, and could be a potential candidate for Canada at the upcoming World Junior Hockey Championship.
Who’s in Goal:
18-year-old Mac Engel was the starting goaltender for Spokane in yesterday’s matchup with the Portland Winterhawks. Engel has played in 17 games this season for Spokane and has a record of 9-6-0-1 in that span. His backup is Luke Lee-Knight. Lee-Knight has only played in four games this season, but is 2-0-0-1 with a goals-against average of under two and a save percentage of .911.
X-Factor:
20-year-old forward Darren Kramer can beat you in a lot of different ways. He can beat you offensively (nine goals) or he can let his fists do the talking.Kramer has 68 penalty-minutes this season, and has 306 last season, and 374 minutes the year before. The Cougars may have to answer the bell against Kramer, and they have several willing combatants who have not backed down yet from a challenge.
The Prince George Cougars snapped a six-game losing streak last night with a 3-2 shootout victory over the Seattle Thunderbirds. The Cougars head into tonight’s game with a record of 7-17-0-2 and they are five points back of both Seattle and Kelowna in the Western Conference standings.
Who’s Up Front:
Greg Fraser’s strong November continued last night with his seventh goal of the season. Fraser has four goals this month, and is thriving on a line with Charles Inglis and (recently) Shane Pilling. Fraser is starting to do more of the little things right and it’s leading to more production and success. He’ll have to have another strong game tonight for the Cats to find success.
Who’s on D:
Cody Carlson continues to put up points this season. Thanks to Carlson’s assist last night, he’s now got a five-game point streak going and is now tied for the team lead in scoring with Alex Forsberg (16 points). Carlson has also been a reliable soldier defensively for Dean Clark and I’d expect nothing different tonight against Spokane.
Who’s in Goal:
After 32 saves on 34 shots faced last night against Seattle Drew Owsley is likely the favourite to get the start tonight against Spokane. Owsley was brilliant last night against Seattle and he’ll likely need to put forth a similar performance to give the Cougars their best chance at victory.
X-Factor:
The X-Factor for tonight’s game is not an individual but rather a team concept. The Prince George Cougars are playing their third game in four nights and have a chance to really put themselves back into the thick of things with a win in Spokane. In order to do that the Cougars will need to avoid the little ‘mistakes’ that have crept up in recent games. They’ll need to stay disciplined, avoid bad pinches and make smart decisions with the puck. If they do that the Cougars could very well be driving back to Prince George having earned four of six points possible points this week.
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