They stopped the streak.
The Prince George Cougars ended a seven-game losing skid in the Western Hockey League when they beat the Regina Pats 4-3 in a shootout Tuesday night at CN Centre.
The Cougars were deserving winners, as they outshot the Pats 40-16 in the contest. In the one-on-ones with the goaltenders, the Cats got goals from Daulton Siwak and Carson Bolduc, while only Lane Scheidl was able to respond for the Pats. Siwak scored after dropping the puck into his skates and kicking it back up to his stick, while Bolduc sent a wrist shot through Regina goalie Matt Hewitt. The Cats secured the victory when goalie Mac Engel poke-checked the puck away from Colby Williams on Regina's last chance.
The Pats led 2-0 after the first period and the score was tied 3-3 after the second. The third period was scoreless. In overtime, Jari Erricson nailed a post for the Cougars and Adam Rossignol of the Pats sent a hard shot off the mask of Engel.
Tuesday's game marked the first chance for Cougars fans to see 15-year-old forward Brad Morrison, a first-round pick (seventh overall) in the 2012 bantam draft. Morrison, a local product, skated on the top line with Alex Forsberg and Ryan Hanes and showed off his ample potential all night long and was named the game's first star. In the second period, he scored his first WHL goal when he deflected a wrist shot from the point by Dallas Ehrhardt. Morrison's tally pulled the Cougars into a 2-1 deficit and earned him a spirited cheer from the announced crowd of 1,454.
Shortly after Morrison's goal, Forsberg was pulled down by Regina defenceman Luke Fenske while on a breakaway and was awarded a penalty shot. Forsberg tried to deke to his forehand but Hewitt made a pad stop at the post and the score remained 2-1 for the visitors.
Just 11 seconds later, in what looked to be the turning point at the time, the Pats extended their lead to 3-1. The goal, by Morgan Klimchuk, was a tap-in at the left post after a perfect cross-ice feed from Emil Sylvegard.
The Cougars, however, battled back with hard-work goals by Bolduc -- his first of the season -- and Jarrett Fontaine. Bolduc powered to the net after a face-off win and beat Hewitt with a high backhander and Fontaine played much bigger than his five-foot-five frame when he muscled his way through traffic in front of the Regina cage and also converted on a backhand shot.
After two periods, the Cougars held a 25-8 advantage in shots.
The Cats outshot the Pats 12-5 in the first but trailed 2-0 after those 20 minutes. While the Cougars were failing to capitalize on their chances, the Pats were opportunistic indeed. Both their goals were courtesy of their leading scorer, Scheidl. On his first marker, he pounced on his own rebound after a face-off win by Regina and went high on Engel. Then, 41 seconds later, Scheidl broke down the left boards while the Pats were on a power play and sent a laser of a shot into the roof of the net. The goals were his 12th and 13th of the season.
With Tuesday's result, the Cougars improved to 8-11-1-3 and the Pats dropped to 10-12-1-2.
Next up for the Cougars are key games against division and conference rivals, the Victoria Royals. The Cats and Royals will meet Friday and Saturday in Victoria and will also see each other the following weekend in Prince George.
KITTY LITTER: Cougars defenceman Marc McNulty has been ranked 18th out of all eligible skaters in the WHL for the 2013 NHL draft. McNulty, a 17-year-old from Medicine Hat, has four goals and six points in 16 games.
