Daulton Siwak hung around Edmonton Oilers forward Ryan Nugent-Hopkins long enough to see firsthand some of the marvels a hockey magician can possess.
Siwak, the newest member of the Prince George Cougars, makes no claims he can be a gamebreaker like Nugent-Hopkins was in his brief but brilliant two-season Western Hockey League stint with the Red Deer Rebels. But the 18-year-old right winger does think his sleight of hand around the net will spice up the offensively-challenged Cougars enough to get them into the playoffs.
"I play my best when I play a hard-nosed game, going to the dirty areas of the rink, and hopefully I'll use my sped to my advantage to help out offensively," said Siwak, a native of Olds, Alta.
"Me and [Nugent-Hopkins] are pretty good buddies and he taught me a few tricks of the trade."
Siwak earned his first point as a Cougar in his first game with his new team, Dec. 30 in Vancouver, setting up linemate Spencer Asuchak for the only Cougar goal in a 5-1 loss to the Giants. Siwak also played in the Cats' 5-0 loss in Kamloops on Jan. 1.
"The systems were a little different but I really adjusted well and got that first point out of the way and that took a lot of weight off my shoulders," said Siwak, acquired along with a third-round bantam pick in 2012 in a Dec. 29 trade that sent centre Charles Inglis to Red Deer. "Coming in as the new guy you always want to prove yourself to the guys in the dressing room."
Now that Alex Forsberg is back from the Under-17 World Hockey Challenge, there's a good chance he'll form a line with Siwak and Troy Bourke tonight (7 p.m.) and Saturday at CN Centre, where the Cougars host the first-place Kamloops Blazers. After a 27-point rookie campaign, Siwak had five goals and two assists in 18 games this season with Red Deer.
Cougars head coach Dean Clark believes Siwak will eventually be able to replace the firepower of Inglis, who had 32 goals last season.
"He's a year younger, he's a great skater and has a nose for the net -- he's a very good instinctive player," said Clark. "He was injured for about five weeks prior to getting moved, so his game shape isn't there, and once he gets that full game shape into him he'll be a very important player for us."
The Cougars (13-23-0-2) are just two points out of Western Conference playoff spot, trailing eighth-place Victoria by two points, with two games in hand. The Blazers (26-10-1-2) are 25 points ahead of Prince George, just three victories shy of last season's 29-win total. Each team has won twice in head-to-head battles this season with four more meetings scheduled.
In addition to Forsberg, the Cougars will have several more reinforcements for the weekend set. Defenceman Martin Marincin, 19, is expected back after playing for Slovakia in the World Junior Hockey Championship. Rookie forwards Jordan Tkatch, Jarrett Fontaine played for Canada West with Forsberg at the U-17 tournament in Windsor, Ont., while Chase Witala suited up for Team Pacific. All four 16 year olds have played prominent roles in the Cats' offence.
"They've all been key guys for us throughout the first half, so we're very excited to get those guys back and have a chance for a full lineup," said Clark. "We don't have the natural goalscorer yet, but we have some kids who can turn into that and it's all about development."
LOOSE PUCKS: Goalie Drew Owsley is the Cougars' Hubbell Designer Goldsmiths player of the month for December. The 20 year old from Lethbridge went 5-4-0-0 in December, compiling a goals-against average of 2.66, despite facing more than 30 shots in six of those nine games. ...Ty Rimmer, the 19-year-old goalie the Cougars sent to the Tri-City Americans over the summer in exchange for Owsley, is the WHL's goaltender of the month for December. Rimmer posted a 6-0-0-0 record with one shutout, allowing just nine goals on 165 shots for a 1.50 goals-against average and .945 save percentage. After a 5-0 win over Moose Jaw 5-0 Wednesday, his fourth shutout, Rimmer leads all WHL goalies with a 1.94 average and .936 save percentage through 23 games.
