Until he blanked the Prince George Cougars 2-0 Saturday, the ice at CN Centre was like kryptonite to Superman for Dylan Ferguson.
In his previous three appearances in the home of the Cougars, the 17-year-old Kamloops Blazers goalie wilted. On Nov. 29, Ferguson came into to replace Connor Ingram in the second period, gave up four goals on 18 shots and lost 7-3. On Jan. 22, in another relief role, he allowed six goals on 17 shots in a 7-3 defeat. The following night, he played the whole game and lost 6-1.
Saturday was his chance for redemption and with a crowd of 4,463 watching, Ferguson pitched a 38-save gem.
“I hadn’t played in awhile (not since Feb. 20) and I had a rough spot there, especially in P.G., but I worked hard and I knew what I had to do coming in today,” said the 17-year-old Vancouver Island native from Lantzville.
“I’m just looking forward here and it feels great to get the last win in the last game for the guys here and I’m looking forward to the postseason.
The Blazers have been riding Ingram all season and understandably so. He set a team record for save percentage (.921) and is largely responsible for his team’s late-season surge – they’ve now won nine straight games. But with the standings already determined and the Blazers entrenched in third place in the B.C. Division, one notch ahead of the Cougars, there was no reason to play their starter on Saturday.
“He knows the situation he’s in, Connor Ingram has been outstanding for us, and Dylan has really out in the work in practice and (Saturday) it paid off for him,” said Blazers head coach Don Hay. “He was really solid for us and it got a little scrambly at the end but when we made a mistake he was there to help us.”
The Blazers got their first goal on Cougars goalie Nick McBride 15:15 into the game after an apparent icing call was waved off. Cougars defenceman Shaun Dosanjh didn’t touch Dallas Valentine’s long shoot-in after it caromed off the end boards, thinking there would be a whistle, and the puck ended up on the stick of Nick Chyzowski, who popped it in the net.
Then in the second period, Ondrej Vela took advantage of a fat rebound McBride kicked into the face-off circle and had nothing but net to shoot at for his fourth goal of the season.
The Cougars had numerous good chances of their own which kept Ferguson on his toes. One of his best saves was one he did not have to make right at the start of the third period. Jared Bethune got the puck in alone behind the Blazer defence and had Ferguson at his mercy. Bethune made a slick fake with the puck and had nothing by net showing but the goalie forced a stoppage of play when he kicked his right skate against the post and dislodged the net before Bethune could shoot.
It was just one of those nights for the Cougars, who couldn’t buy a goal.
Ferguson stopped Brad Morrison on a breakaway and the Cougars had all kinds of pressure and a handful of good shots on their lone power play but Ferguson was there to bail out his team
“We came out strong and had our chances but we couldn’t seem to get the puck bounce but we’re keeping it positive and saying we’re saving our goals for playoffs,” said Bethune. “We’re getting the chances and that’s what maters. We’re going to start clicking here soon.”
The loss was the fifth in a row for the Cougars (36-31-3-2), who lost 4-1 Friday in Kamloops. The Blazers ended up with a 38-25-5-4 record.
McBride made 34 saves and was named the game’s second star. His only mistake was allowing the rebound for Vela.
“I felt pretty good about the way I played, I definitely would like that rebound on the second goal back, but other than that I battled hard and tried to stay calm,” said McBride, who finished his first season with the Cougars with a 12-11-1-1 record with a 3.03 goals-against average and .904 save percentage.
“Sometimes the bounces don’t go your way. The boys have been working hard and we have a week to recoup and allow any injuries to heal before the game so we’ll have a lot of energy when we go to Seattle.”
LOOSE PUCKS: The Cougars face the Seattle Thunderbirds in the first round, with the first two games on the road Friday and Saturday. The teams meet again at CN Centre for Game 3 on Tuesday, March 29 and Game 4 on Wednesday, March 30. Tickets are available at the CN Centre box office. Game 5, if needed, will be played Friday, April 1 in Kent, Wash. The Cats would host Game 6 on Sunday, April 1 and the T-birds would host a seventh and deciding game on Tuesday, April 5…Knowing the game meant nothing in the standings. both teams rested some of their regulars. The Blazers scratched G Connor Ingram, D Luke Lazula, LW Gage Quinney, C Matt Needham and D Ryan Rehill, while the Cougars sat out D Luka Zorko, LW Chase Witala, RW Josh Curtis, RW Luke Harrison, D Tate Olson, F Kolby Johnson and D Josh Anderson. With the exception of Anderson, who is out with a season-ending back injury, all of aforementioned were healthy…
Saturday WHL summary
Blazers 2 at Cougars 0
First Period
1. Kamloops, Chyzowski 15 (Valentine, Davidson) 15:15
Penalties – Kneen Kam (fighting), McDonald PG (instigating, fighting, misconduct) 5:34.
Second Period
2. Kamloops, Vela 4 (Pilon) 2:51
Penalties – Boyd PG (boarding) 6:36.
Third Period
No scoring.
Penalties – Boyd PG (boarding) 4:08, Gabrielle PG (hooking) 11:31, Davidson Kam (delay of game) 17:57.
Shots on goal by
Kamloops 10 13 14 --37
Prince George12 7 19 --38
Goal – Kamloops, Ferguson (W,4-10-0-0); Prince George, McBride (L,12-11-1-1).
Powerplays – Kam: 0-4; PG 0-1.
Referees – Tyler Adair, Fraser Lawrence; Linesmen – Nick Albinati, Bevan Mills.
Attendance – 4,463
Scratches – Kamloops: G Connor Ingram (healthy), D Luke Lazula (healthy), LW Gage Quinney (healthy), C Matt Needham (healthy), D Ryan Rehill (healthy); Prince George: D Luka Zorko (healthy), LW Chase Witala (healthy), RW Josh Curtis (healthy), RW Luke Harrison (healthy), D Tate Olson (healthy), D Josh Anderson (back injury, out for season).
