The Prince George Cougars are looking for a spark, something to snap them out of the doldrums of a seven-game losing streak.
They've already proven this season they can beat the top teams in the Western Hockey League in their own barns and that's the challenge the Cougars have on their hands tonight in Medicine Hat where they begin a three-game roadtrip against the Tigers.
For the Cougars to end their slump, which stretches to nine losses in 10 games this month, they'll have to find a way to defuse the Tigers' potent offence. With 182 goals in 45 games, Medicine Hat (31-12-1-1) is the fourth-highest scoring team in the league. The Tigers' attack is bolstered by Trevor Cox and Cole Sanford, the top two scorers in the WHL. Cox is cooking at a 1.67-point per-game-pace, with 18 goals and 57 assists for 75 points and Sanford isn't far behind (37-30-67), while Dryden Hunt (320-37-57) is also lighting it up.
"Confidence is at an all-time low and the only way we're going to get out of it is by ourselves, but we need someone in that room to take charge and be counted," said Cougars head coach Mark Holick. "Right now there are a lot of long faces and guys feeling sorry for themselves and we have to find a way to move forward. Right now we're struggling, and when a team is struggling it seems every little mistake is magnified. I still believe in our group and we'll find a way to get out of it."
On Wednesday night, while the Cougars were on their way to a second-consecutive loss to the Everett Silvertips at CN Centre, the Tigers were hammering the Vancouver Giants 8-4. That was a good thing from a Cougars' perspective. The third-place Cougars (20-26-1-1) are just two points ahead of the Giants and Kamloops Blazers. If they lose their grip on third place, the Cougars would have to lock up one of two wild-card berths in the Western Conference to make the playoffs. Right now both the spots are occupied by U.S. Division teams (Seattle and Tri-City).
The Cougars looked better in the second game (a 4-1 loss to Everett) than they did in a 6-1 loss to the Silvertips on Tuesday. But the Cats generated far too few scoring chances in either game and made critical mistakes that resulted in goals the other way.
"Our effort was better but our execution wasn't very good," said Holick. "You fail to block a shot on a goal, you miss coverage on the first goal of the third period, 32 seconds in. The night before that, a guy comes out of the penalty box and scores on a breakaway. We shouldn't be making mental mistakes like that, not in Game 48. Now, to me, the teaching part of it should be making adjustments and trusting that our players can execute the adjustments and right now they're having difficulty with that."
With just 24 games left in the season, that makes this weekend's games critical. The Cougars will be in Lethbridge on Saturday (6 p.m. PST start) to play the Hurricanes (10-27-3-3), then travel to Cranbrook for a Sunday encounter (5 p.m. PST) with the Kootenay Ice (24-22-0-1).
"We know we can beat any team in this league," said Cougars right winger Tyler Mrkonjic. "We can't take any team lightly. We just have to work hard for the full 60 and focus on that."
The bad news is the Cougars won't have the services of their captain, defenceman Sam Ruopp. He was suspended for Wednesday's game and will have to serve four more games before he's available as a result of a knee-on-knee hit with Silvertips defenceman Jordan Wharrie. The league, in handing out its sentence, considered the severity of Wharrie's injury (sprained knee) and the fact it was Ruopp's second major penalty for kneeing (the first resulted in a two-game banishment in December).
The Cougars will also be without centre Zach Pochiro (upper-body injury, two weeks), who went back to St. Louis for an MRI. But they should have centre Jansen Harkins back from the BMO CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game in time for the Medicine Hat game. They also hope to have gritty 19-year-old defenceman Tomas Andrlik in uniform tonight to play his first game for the Cougars since arriving in a trade from Prince Albert. He's missed eight games with a sprained ankle.
"We just have to come together more as a group and just focus on being positive and not getting down on each other and hold each other accountable and just be better," said left winger Aaron Macklin.
"I've heard Andrlik is a big physical body out there and he's not afraid to get his nose dirty so hopefully that will get some energy going and get us back on our feet again."
Tonight's game starts at 6:30 p.m. PST (99.3 FM, The Goat).
