PG Hockey

Prince George hockey take home two wins last night

Nov 11, 2023 | 9:37 AM

PRINCE GEORGE – Prince George had an exciting night of hockey yesterday with both their WHL and BCHL teams slotting a game in the win column.

The Prince George Cougars made a comeback edging out the Red Deer Rebels in a nail-biting shootout. The Rebels started the game off hot, scoring two goals within a 28-second pan in the first period.

The Cougars were limited to three shots in the second period but managed to capitalize on a power-play opportunity. Zac Funk’s shot caught a lucky bounce off of a Rebel’s defender and found its way into the back of the net at 14:42, cutting the Rebels’ lead in half.

Ondrej Becher had an outstanding performance in the third period, scoring two goals, giving the Cougars their first lead of the game. But, Rebels defenseman, Hunter Mayo, evened it back up at three a piece after a one-timer, sending them to overtime.

The 3-on-3 action ended in a deadlock, which led to the shootout. Koehn Ziemmer and Ondrej Becher secured the victory for the Cougars giving the team back-to-back wins. They now sit 13-5, the top team in the Western Conference.

The Prince George Spruce Kings found themselves playing at home for the first time since October 21 last night, solidifying a win against the West Kelowna Warriors after a four-game losing streak. Three out of their four wins this season have been on home ice.

West Kelowna put a notch on the board first but waited until the end of the first period to do so. The Warriors forward went end-to-end untouched putting it past starting goalie Marcus Ouellet. That would be the only fault the Toronto, Ontario, native would have for the night, turning away the other 30 shots he saw. Over the last two games, Ouellet has made 70 saves, only allowing four goals in that time.

The Spruce Kings got their first point on the board in the second period, scoring in the dying minutes of their third power-play of the game. The Kings wasted no time, scoring again just 23 seconds later. Jared Langdon won a face-off cleanly setting up Alexis Cournoyer perfectly as he sent the puck past the glove of Warriors goalie, Justin Katz. Prince George took the lead 2-1.

The shot count was no friend to the Spruce Kings, as they were outshot 12-1 in the final frame, but that one shot extended their lead. On a broken play, Linden Makow found Jared Langdon and buried the puck in the net, making it the final dagger of the game. The final score was 3-1.