The Prince George Cougars played with an open flame.
The result was predictable.
Tuesday night in Portland, the Cougars faced a Winterhawks team that entered the game with the top-ranked power-play in the Western Hockey League. In the second period, the Cats took five penalties and the Hawks punished them with four goals. By the time the final buzzer sounded, the Winterhawks had themselves an 8-1 victory.
Portland's Brendan Leipsic finished with three goals and two assists. Other Portland markers were courtesy of Ty Rattie (his 51st of the season), Brad Ross, Marcel Noebels, Joseph Morrow and Derrick Pouliot.
Troy Bourke, who now has 12 goals on the season, scored for Prince George.
The Winterhawks, who outshot the Cougars 40-27, led 2-0 after the first period and 7-1 after the second.
The win pushed the Winterhawks' record to 42-15-2-1. The Cougars, meanwhile, dropped to 19-38-0-2.
Combined with Monday's 7-2 loss to Portland, the Cougars failed to make up any ground in the Western Conference standings. They remained in 10th place, two points out of the playoff picture, and have now played the same number of games as the eighth-place Victoria Royals.
The Cougars and Royals will clash in a key weekend doubleheader at CN Centre. The Friday and Saturday games will start at 7 p.m.
