It was a successful weekend voyage to Vancouver Island for the Cariboo Cougars.

The Cougars (10-2) earned a pair of wins over the North Island Silvertips (4-5-1) at the Nanaimo Ice Centre, vaulting them into first place in the B.C. Major Midget League. Cariboo earned a 4-2 win Saturday and followed it up with a 5-2 win before catching the ferry off the island Sunday.

Cougars coach Trevor Sprague said both games in Nanaimo gave his team good competition, against a hardworking team, after a pair of blowout wins the weekend before.

Kirk Hards had a three-point game Sunday, including two goals, while other Cougars goals were notched by captain Ryan Forbes, Tyler Povelofskie and Scott Cullen. Stephen Penner picked up two helpers. In Saturday's 4-2 win, the goal scorers for the Cougars were Liam Blackburn, Penner, Povelofskie and Riley Pettit. Brad Morrison picked up two assists.

Next weekend the Cougars head to Kelowna for a pair of games with the Okanagan Rockets (8-1-1) but will be without coach Sprague and Morrison. The headman for the Cougars and rookie 15-year-old will be in Calgary for the Western Canada under-16 Challenge Cup, Nov. 1-4. Sprague will be an assistant coach for Team B.C.