WHL Prince George Cougars

Cougars Look to Earn Third Consecutive Win on Road Trip in Saskatoon

Published on November 3, 2023 under Western Hockey League (WHL)
Prince George Cougars News Release


The Prince George Cougars will look to improve to 3-1-0-0 on the Eastern road trip when they take on the Saskatoon Blades at 6:00 pm PDT from the Sasktel Centre in Saskatoon, SK.

LAST GAME:

PG is coming off a thrilling 3-2 overtime victory over the Brandon Wheat Kings on Wednesday night at Westoba Place in Brandon. Bauer Dumanski scored the overtime winner, while Arjun Bawa and Riley Heidt also added singles. Ty Young made 24 saves in the win and was named the game's second star."He just does everything right (Dumanski) and to see him score the game-winner and the guys erupt, it was a pretty cool moment", said Carter Rigby following the win. The Cougars' penalty-kill had another fantastic night going 7/7, "Blocking shots and sacrificing for the team is what it takes to win, and our penalty killers have been doing a great job of it and keeping it simple," added Rigby.

THE BLADES:

The Saskatoon Blades enter tonight's game against the Cougars with a 9-5-0-0 record and hold the best winning percentage in the Eastern Conference (.643). The Blades are coming off a 7-2 victory last night on the road against the Prince Albert Raiders. Offensively, the Blades are led by their captain Trevor Wong who has compiled 19 points in 14 games (4-15-19). Earlier this week, Saskatoon acquired forward and now former Edmonton Oil Kings captain Rhett Melnyk who made his Blades debut last night against the Raiders.

ZAC ATTACK:

Earlier this week, Cougar forward Zac Funk was named the WHL's Player of the Month. Funk, 20, recorded 30 points (14G-16A) in 14 games to start the season atop the WHL scoring charts heading into November. Funk's 14 goals rank third in the WHL, while his 16 assists are good enough for to leave him tied for fourth in the League. "It's an honour to be named Player of the Month. This doesn't happen without my teammates," Funk humbly said. "We are gelling right now, and I think that has really helped with everything and hopefully we keep it going."

PERRY THE POINT PRODUCER:

Earlier this week, Cougar rookie sensation Terik Parascak was named the WHL's Rookie of the Month. Parascak, 17, recorded 29 points (17G-12A) in 14 games to start the season and sits second in WHL scoring behind his teammate Zac Funk, who was named WHL Player of the Month today. Parascak's 17 goals rank first among all WHL skaters. "It's an honour to win this award," commented Parascak. "It's something that keeps motivating me to get better and hopefully keep producing and most importantly, helping our team win." The product of Lethbirdge has been the most unstoppable rookie to start the 2023-24 WHL campaign, named WHL Rookie of the Week on three separate occasions. Parascak, a 5-foot-11, 179-pound right winger, started the season by securing 12 points (8G-4A) in four consecutive games from Friday, September 22 through Saturday, September 30, including a season-high six-point (4G-2A) outburst Friday, September 29 in an 11-2 win at Victoria.

3 ON THE TREE!

The Prince George Cougars were ranked 3rd in the CHL's Week 5 rankings that were released earlier this week. Of the CHL-best 74 goals that the Cougars have scored this season (at time time of the rankings being released), 26 of them have come on the power play as they have converted on 36.1% (26 of 72) of their man advantages - another mark that stands as the best in the CHL. 20-year-old Zac Funk, who netted his ninth power-play goal of the season this past week, now leads the CHL in that category. Meanwhile, 2024 NHL Draft prospect Terik Parascak added two goals and four points to his season totals over the last seven days. Parascak now leads all CHL skaters with 17 goals and he also sits atop the CHL's rookie scoring race with 29 points.

THE BERGER:

Cougars rookie goaltender Joshua Ravensbergen was named the WHL's goaltender of the week after pitching his second shutout of the season against the Regina Pats this past Sunday. Ravensbergen, 16, went 1-0-0-0 with a perfect 0.00 goals-against average, 1.000 save percentage and one shutout this past week. The 6-foot-4, 180-pound puck stopper took to the crease Sunday, October 29, turning aside all 23 shots faced as the Prince George Cougars collected a 4-0 victory over the Regina Pats at the Brandt Centre. The product of North Vancouver, B.C., has enjoyed a quality start to his WHL career, appearing in five games with a record of 3-1-0-0, a 2.48 GAA, .905 SV% and two shutouts.

HOW TO WATCH/LISTEN

WHEN: Friday, November 3rd at 6:00pm PDT

WHERE: Sasktel Centre - Saskatoon, SK

WATCH: WHL Live

LISTEN: 94.3 The Goat

Check out the Prince George Cougars Statistics

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Western Hockey League Stories from November 3, 2023


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