The Prince George Cougars had a bit of payback in mind for the defending champions of the Western Hockey League.
When the Cougars last met the Brandon Wheat Kings, Feb. 5, 2016 in Brandon, it wasn't even close, an 8-3 laugher for the Wheaties.
The Cats remembered what happened that night and took out their revenge on the visitors on a cold Wednesday night, spanking the Wheat Kings 5-1.
Brad Morrison and Jesse Gabrielle each scored twice and Kody McDonald had two assists to heat up the home-team celebration after their 21st win of the season.
The Cougars needed it, coming on the heels of two rather disappointing games in their weekend split against Victoria.
"We weren't happy, I think we've set our bar so high this year that every time we do lose a game we think it's the end of the world," said Cougars head coach Richard Matvichuk.
"We took Sunday off and had a real fun day - I stayed off the ice Monday and the assistants had some 3-on-3 games and the guys enjoyed themselves and played 60 minutes of shinny hockey and had some fun."
That fun continued on the ice Wednesday for the Cougars.
After a bit of sluggish start complicated from some early pressure applied by the Wheat Kings, the Cougars started getting some quality cracks at the Brandon net defended by 19-year-old backup goalie Logan Thompson. The six-foot-three Calgary native got his long legs in the way of hard shots from close in, first denying Jared Bethune, then McDonald.
The Cougars finally found some light behind Thompson towards the end of the period. McDonald gained the puck behind the net, took two steps over the goal line and fired out a laser-beam pass to defenceman Joel Lakusta, who blasted the puck low for his first goal of the season.
Morrison added to the lead, 9:41 into the second period. He took a feed in the high slot from out of the corner from linemate Brogan O'Brien and let go a high wrister. Tenacious forechecking from McDonald forced a turnover and he drew the second assist.
Another steal in behind the Brandon net four minutes later led to Morrison's second of the game. Yan Khomenko was tough on the puck and dug it out into the crease area for Morrison, who used his quick hands to sweep the puck in past Thompson.
The teams nearly got through two periods before the first penalty of the game was called.
Cougars defenceman Sam Ruopp levelled Ty Lewis with a clean shoulder check along the boards. Garrett Armour took exception to the hit and dropped his gloves in front of Ruopp, who accepted the invitation to fight and won the takedown. Armour drew the extra penalty for unsportsmanlike conduct.
The Cougars' power play, which went a combined 0-15 in two games last weekend against Victoria and was limping along at a 4-for-41 clip in the 10 games prior to Wednesday, required just 41 seconds to make the Wheat Kings pay.
Pointman Tate Olson spotted Cougars' sniper Gabrielle in his favourite spot in the far face-off circle and sent the puck over to Gabrielle's wheelhouse and he let go a one-timed ripper low to the far side of the net for a 4-0 lead.
Gabrielle added to the count five minutes into the third period. Thompson made the save after Jansen Harkins sprung Gabrielle on a breakaway, but the Cougars winger got to the rebound behind the line and from a sharp angle shot the puck in off Thompson's equipment. The assist for Harkins was the 200th point of his four-season WHL career.
The Wheati Kings had just one power-play chance and made it count against the WHL's best penalty-killing team. Stellio Mattheos, the first-overall pick in the 2015 bantam draft, connected on a Lewis pass and fired it in past Ty Edmonds from close range, denying the 20-year-old goalie of his second shutout of the season.
Edmonds made 24 saves for his 17th win of the season as the Cats outshot Brandon 38-25.
LOOSE PUCKS: The game drew one of the smallest CN Centre crowds of the season, with only 2,432 in attendance... Brandon centre Nolan Patrick (shoulder injury), missed his 23rd game with an upper-body injury. He hasn't played since Oct. 11 and won't be ready in time to attend Canada's world junior team camp. The 18-year-old centre is projected as a potential first-overall pick in the 2017 NHL draft... Former Cougars winger Kolby Johnson, traded three weeks ago to the Prince Albert Raiders in the Brendan Guhle deal, was suspended four games for his check-to-the-head major and game misconduct penalty when he decked Regina Pats defenceman Chase Harrison in Saturday's game... Royals captain Ryan Gagnon was handed a four-game suspension for his charging major in Saturday's game in which he hurt Cougars forward Bartek Bison.
Game Summary
Wheat Kings 1 at Cougars 5
First Period
1. Prince George, Lakusta 1 (McDonald) 18:42
Penalties - None.
Second Period
2. Prince George, Morrison 11 (O'Brien, McDonald) 9:41
3. Prince George, Morrison 12 (Khomenko) 13:33
4. Prince George, Gabrielle 17 (Olson, Almeida) 18:34 (pp)
Penalties - Armour Bra (unsportsmanlike conduct, fighting), Ruopp PG (fighting) 17:33
Third Period
5. Prince George, Gabrielle 18 (Harkins) 5:09
6. Brandon, Mattheos 12 (Lewis, Coulter) 15:11 (pp)
Penalties - Olson PG (hooking) 14:33.
Shots on goal by
Brandon 5 5 15 -25
Prince George 14 12 12 -38
Goal - Brandon, Thompson (L,3-5-3-0); Prince George, Edmonds (W,17-4-1-0).
Power plays - Bra: 1-1; PG: 1-1.
Referees - Kevin Bennett, Mark Pearce; Linesmen - Nick Albinati, Alex Teichrob.
Attendance - 2,432.
Scratches - Brandon: C Tanner Kaspick (upper-body injury), C Nolan Patrick (upper-body), LW Zach Russell (upper-body), LW Linden McCorrister (upper-body), RW Baron Thompson (served second game of three-game suspension for head checking major and game misconduct Saturday on Kelowna forward Connor Brogan-Cade); Prince George: Brendan Guhle (on emergency recall to Buffalo, NHL), RW Josh Curtis (upper-body), LW Josh Maser (healthy), LW Bartek Bison (upper-body).
