For the second time in 17 days, the Red Deer Rebels figured out a way to knock off the Prince George Cougars.
Carson Sass batted in a loose puck that ricocheted off the end boards for the game-winning power-play goal, 9:44 into the third period, raising the Rebels to a 5-2 win Friday night on Red Deer. Sass's goal came with Colby McAuley serving a double minor for high-sticking.
Evan Polei followed up with an even-strength tip-in at 13:14 and iced it with an empty-netter, his 21st and 22nd goals of the season. Michael Spacek, the game's first star, had a three-point night with a goal and two assists. Cameron Hausinger also scored for the Rebels (22-20-4-3, third in Central Division), who outshot the Cougars 45-32.
Jared Bethune was in on both Prince George scoring plays with a goal and an assist. Tate Olson had the other goal for the Cougars (34-14-3-0), who are now tied with the Regina Pats for first overall in the WHL, each with 71 points. The Rebels, who will travel to Prince George to face the Cougars Feb. 21, took the first game of the season series 4-1, Jan. 10 in Red Deer.
"I thought we had some good pushes at times but just couldn't sustain it," said Cougars associate coach Steve O'Rourke. "They play hard and aggressive and they were in our face all night. They were in our crease and we just didn't have the same pushback for 60 minutes.
"We're just in a funk right now and we have to find a way out of this. We know it's been a long month with a lot of different (roster) changes and we just have to get on the same page."
Just before Sass scored, Bethune set up two 2-on-1 breaks while killing McAuley's four-minute penalty. The first one resulted in a glorious chance. He set up Jansen Harkins all alone in front but the shot whistled wide. Sass's goal came about a minute later.
The Rebels' power play went right to work seven seconds into the game when McAuley got sent off for slashing and Red Deer gained a 48-second two-man advantage when Sam Ruopp took a cross-checking penalty. The Cats' penalty-killers go through it unscathed, giving up a couple shots, which got goalie Ty Edmonds focused, and they needed him to be sharp.
The Rebels generated four quality chances on nine shots and hit the goal post and crossbar before they finally put in the net to open the scoring late in the first period. Olson had trouble corralling a pass off the boards from defence partner Shane Collins and ran into Bethune, who lost his balance just outside the Cougar line, setting up an odd-man rush for the Rebels deep in Cougar territory. Brandon Hegel fed the puck to Spacek and the Winnipeg Jets prospect buried in past Edmonds' stick side.
"We had 31 shots tonight and we probably should have had 50," said O'Rourke. "Especially in the first period, we got across that blue line and we're looking to be a fancy hockey club and that's not the way we're built. I know we went out and got some more skill but this skill needs to play in a way that's hard to play against and we just haven't had that."
The Cougars had more energy in their play to start the second period and were outshooting Red Deer 8-0 with nine minutes complete when the Rebels countered, scoring on their first shot of the period. Cougars winger Nikita Popugaev circled behind his own net with the puck and was moving up the right wing boards when he got tripped up from behind by a falling Dawson Martin. The puck landed on the stick of Hausinger and he put it into the net. That goal came right after Lasse Petersen made his best save of the night, doing the splits to rob Radovan Bondra with his glove near the end of a Cougar power play.
The Cougars got on the board with a power-play goal late in the second period. Brogan O'Brien dug the puck out to his defenceman Olson, who let go a slapshot that sailed in past Petersen, with McAuley screening in front.
The Rebels took advantage of three Cougar penalties in the middle period and fired 22 shots, the most the Cougars have allowed all season in a single period. One of those shots hit the pants of Cougar defenceman Joel Lakusta, who took away a sure-goal from Hegel 15 minutes into the period with Edmonds flat on the ice.
LOOSE PUCKS: Popugaev will miss the next two games while he travels to Quebec City to play in the Sherwin-Williams CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game on Monday. That game will broadcast live on Sportsnet, starting at 4 p.m. PT... The Cougars Fan Club brought a busload of more than 40 fans to the game in Red Deer and they will follow the Cats to Edmonton, where they play the Oil Kings tonight and Sunday.... This is the only time this season the Cougars will have to play three games in three consecutive days. Friday marked their eighth day on the road... Bondra celebrated his 20th birthday Friday.
