Carels Completes OT Thriller as Cougars Edge Rockets in Kelowna
Published on January 17, 2026 under Western Hockey League (WHL)
Prince George Cougars News Release
KELOWNA, BC - Carson Carels' overtime heroics, a 49-shot performance, and 29 saves from Josh Ravensbergen powered the Prince George Cougars to their second consecutive overtime victory, defeating the Kelowna Rockets 3-2 on Saturday night at Prospera Place. Terik Parascak and Riley Ashe also scored for the Cougars in the win.
The opening frame was scoreless, but the Cougars controlled play, outshooting the Rockets 21-6. Prince George also rang a shot off the post in the period. The first period featured a fight between Corbin Vaughan and Nate Corbet.
Kelowna opened the scoring in the second period with a power-play goal at 13:24, as Ty Halaburda found the back of the net to make it 1-0. The Cougars responded just over a minute later when Terik Parascak buried a rebound at 14:36 to tie the game 1-1, marking his first goal since November 28. The Rockets restored their lead later in the period, as Tij Iginla scored on the power play at 17:28 to give Kelowna a 2-1 advantage heading into the third.
Prince George again controlled the play in the final frame, outshooting Kelowna 16-6. The Cougars tied the game at 11:10 when Riley Ashe jammed home his fifth goal of the season. Prince George hit another post later in the period and came close to taking the lead, but the game remained tied through regulation.
Overtime saw the Cougars come through once more. Carson Carels finished a breakaway with a highlight-reel goal at 3:10 of the extra frame, off a great feed from Kooper Gizowski, to seal the 3-2 victory and give Prince George back-to-back wins.
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