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WHL Prince George Cougars

Four Cougars Named to NHL Central Scouting's Updated Players to Watch List

November 19, 2021 - Western Hockey League (WHL)
Prince George Cougars News Release


PRINCE GEORGE, BC- The Prince George Cougars are proud to announce four players have been named to NHL Central Scouting's most recent 'Players to Watch' List ahead of the 2022 NHL Draft.

Goaltender Tyler Brennan is ranked a 'B' prospect, while defencemen Keaton Dowhaniuk, Viliam Kmec, and forward Kyren Gronick are listed as 'C' prospects. All four held the same ranking in last month's preliminary list.

NHL Central Scouting ranks 'A' level prospects as potential first-round picks, 'B' prospects as potential second or third-round picks and 'C' prospects as potential fourth, fifth, or sixth-round selections.

Brennan, 18, has played in nine games this season, and has a 4-5-0-0 record to go along with a 2.64 goals-against average (GAA) and .919 save percentage (SV%). He has two shutouts which is tied for first in the Western Hockey League. During the 2020-21 B.C. Division Hub season, the Winnipeg, MB product was 2-0-1-1 in four games and owned a 2.16 GAA and .933 SV%. He also had one shutout. Brennan won a gold medal with Team Canada at the 2021 IIHF World Under-18 Hockey Championship in April.

Dowhaniuk, 17, has one assist, 10 penalty-minutes, and 16 shots on goal through 15 games. The defenceman has logged important minutes on the Cougars' blueline this season. As a 16-year-old, Dowhaniuk had eight points (3g-5a) in 22 games during the 2020-21 B.C. Division Hub season. The Sherwood Park, AB product tied for the team lead in short-handed goals a season go.

Kmec, 17, has had an impressive start to his rookie campaign. The native of Košice, Slovakia has nine points (1g-8a) in his first 15 games and is fourth in team scoring. Kmec was drafted by the Cougars in the second-round, 104th overall, in the 2021 Canadian Hockey League Import Draft. The blueliner won a silver medal with Slovakia at the 2021 Hlinka Gretzky Cup in August. Last season, Kmec had four points (0g-4a) in 27 games for Slovakia's Under-18 squad, which played in the Slovak Second League.

Gronick has had a solid start to the 2021-22 season, as the 17-year-old is seventh in team scoring with seven points (2g-5a) in 11 games. The Regina, SK product recorded a point in four of the Cougars' first five games. He has the third-best points per-game average on the team (0.64). As a 16-year-old rookie last season, Gronick tallied 11 points (5g-6a) in 17 games.

The Cougars continue their six-game home stand tonight against the Tri-City Americans; puck drop is 7:00 pm. Tickets start at just $16 and are available at the TicketsNorth box office at the CN Centre, by phone (1-888-293-6613), or online at www.ticketsnorth.ca.

Check out the Prince George Cougars Statistics



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