CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization.
The U18 Cariboo Cougars saw their BC Elite Hockey League season come to an end on Saturday in Abbotsford at the hands of the Fraser Valley Thunderbirds.
In Game 2 of a best-of-three quarterfinal playoff series, the third-seeded Thunderbirds defeated the sixth-ranked Cougars 4-0. The T-birds also beat the Cats in the series opener on Friday, 7-3.
In the clincher, Ashton McDonaugh scored a pair of first-period goals, and Cale Colwell and Darius Bachler (power play) added to the Fraser Valley lead in the second. The third period was scoreless.
Brendan Ruskowski finished with two assists.
In the nets, Nicholas Cristiano picked up the shutout for the Thunderbirds and Tysen Smith took the loss for the Cougars.
In Game 1 on Friday, the Thunderbirds jumped on the Cougars with three goals in the first two minutes of the contest. Bachler, Tyler Pretty and Owen Barclay did the early damage, and the T-birds struck three more times before the period was done. Alyandro De Leon, Lincoln Edwards and Colwell scored those goals to put the home team firmly in control.
Barclay extended the Fraser Valley lead to 7-0 in the second period. The Cougars finally answered in the third with a goal by Max Sanford. Decker Mujcin then scored a pair – his second on a power play – but the Cats got no closer.
Trevor Agnew was the winning goaltender and Smith took the loss.
The Cougars finished the regular season with a 15-16-2-3 record, while the Thunderbirds went 22-9-3-2.
*****
The U17 Cariboo Cougars finished the BC Elite Hockey League regular season with a pair of losses against the Vancouver Northwest Hawks.
On the ice in North Vancouver, the Cats fell to the Hawks 5-1 both Saturday and Sunday.
The Cougars went 14-21-0-1 on the season, good for seventh place in the 10-team division. The fifth-place Hawks posted a record of 23-13-0-0.
Playoff details will be released this week.
*****
In the U18 female division of the BC Elite Hockey League, the Northern Capitals will start playoffs on Friday, March 18 with Game 1 of a best-of-three series against the Vancouver Island Seals.
The second-seeded Capitals (22-7-0-3) will host the third-ranked Seals (13-18-0-1).
Game times and locations will be announced this week.
