Connor Bowie registers hat trick as Cougars seal first win over Royals

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Victoria got themselves on the board first just 1:31 into the first period. Brandon Cutler got the marker with assists coming from Brayden Tracey and Tarun Fizer.

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The Cats answered back after Connor Bowie got one past Adam Evanoff to draw even with Victoria.

Just after a power play, Prince George’s 2020 2nd overall selection, Riley Heidt, eyed up a pass before firing off a wrister past the Royals’ goalie, pushing the Cougars ahead 2-1. It marked his first goal in the Western Hockey League.

Less than a minute later, the Cats were back on the man-advantage and Connor Bowie found his second of the game to give PG some cushion.

A few ticks into the final five minutes, the Royals capitalized on a power play of their own. Keanu Derungs beat Tyler Brennan to get within one as the score would stand at 3-2 into the 1st intermission.

In the second period, Tarun Fizer came in streaking along the right side boards before ripping one of his quick wristers on net. The 20-year-old caught Brennan from a tough angle to draw the score even at 3’s.

In what looked like a very odd developing play, Ethan Browne got the Cougars ahead 4-3 with his second in as many games.

Koehn Ziemmer handled the puck past a Royals defender before connecting with Browne to the left of the net. As Evanoff slid across to make what would have been a right pad save, his leg curled into the net enough to let the puck slide past the goal line for the goal.

The seats may have been empty due to COVID-19 protocols, but if they did have fans in the stands, there likely still wouldn’t have been many hats thrown considering Victoria was considered the home team. Nonetheless, Connor Bowie likely wouldn’t have cared either way as the Fort St. John product ended up tallying his third goal of the game on the power play late in the 2nd period.

The goal went to review but was confirmed as the Cougars went ahead by two, taking a 5-3 lead to the dressing room ahead of the 3rd period.

Down by two in the third, the Royals began a flurry of putting shots on the net in hopes of biting into the Cats lead. Victoria had their most shots on net in the final frame, however, the Cougars were sure to get their bodies in front of shooting lanes.

Evanoff saw his night come to an end with just over two minutes remaining in the game in hopes of the Royals getting some pucks to squeak past Brennan, but the score would stand at 5-3.

Brennan finished the game having stopped 29 of the 32 shots he faced on Monday to come out with the victory.

The Cougars got their first win fo the season to improve their record to 1-1 while the Royals fall to 0-2 after their first pair of games.

Prince George will be back on the ice on Wednesday when they head back to the Sandman Centre in Kamloops. They’ll look to win their second game of the season when they face the Vancouver Giants at 7:00 p.m.