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WHL Wenatchee Wild

Funk Notches Hat Trick for Prince George as Wild Fall to Cougars Wednesday, 6-2

January 3, 2024 - Western Hockey League (WHL)
Wenatchee Wild News Release


Prince George Cougars' Josh Ravensbergen versus Wenatchee Wild's Briley Wood
Prince George Cougars' Josh Ravensbergen versus Wenatchee Wild's Briley Wood
(Wenatchee Wild, Credit: Russ Alman/Wenatchee Wild)

WENATCHEE, Wash. - A pair of Wenatchee goals helped the Wild get within striking distance Wednesday night in a matchup between the Western Hockey League's top two Western Conference teams, but the tying goal that they needed never came.

Zac Funk finished with a natural hat trick for Prince George, as the Cougars picked up a 6-2 win over the Wild to extend their lead in the Western Conference standings to five points. Wenatchee dropped to 23-13-3-0 for the season, while the Cougars climbed to 27-10-0-0 for the year.

Just as in their previous matchup on December 15, it was Prince George who got on the board first and gained the early momentum before the Wild made their comeback bid. Riley Heidt scored the opening goal 7:29 into the game on an odd-man rush into the Wild zone, while Oren Shtrom scored 25 seconds later to make it 2-0 on a feed from Borya Valis in his Prince George debut.

The Wild trimmed the lead to a goal for the first time with 9:05 left in the period, when Briley Wood sent a wrist shot to the top of the net on a 2-on-1 chance, and Wenatchee headed to the locker room within a goal. Heidt scored to make it 3-1 for Prince George just 45 seconds into the game, putting away a rebound on an initial chance from Terik Parascak.

Wenatchee crammed the lead back down to a goal at 3:51 of the second period, taking advantage of a power play on a roughing call against Aiden Foster. Graham Sward's one-timer from Wood on the left wing found its way through Josh Ravensbergen to make it 3-2.

Funk finished off the scoring from there, jousting in a backdoor one-timer just after the end of a Prince George power play with 1:41 left in the second to push the lead out to 4-2. His goal on a turnover in front of the net at 7:58 of the third, and off a Wenatchee shot block in front of the cage with 5:53 remaining, rounded out the scoring for the night.

"The first unit pushed the pace again tonight," said Wild assistant coach Andrew Sarauer. "I love Briley's game right now. Obviously, pucks are going in for him - he's got a heavy shot, and he found another one tonight off a breakdown. Evan was out tracking the puck, and then on a turnover, [Kenta] made a nice pass through the defensemen's triangle, and Woody put it under the bar like he's been doing lately. He's been finding ways to put goals in the net - we need that secondary scoring. [Luka Shcherbyna] and those guys went on a good run, and the last couple of games it's dried up a bit. You've just got to go to practice and keep working. That's all you can do."

Funk added an assist to his hat trick, while Heidt had two goals and Parascak posted three assists. Wood and Evan Friesen notched multi-point games for Wenatchee, with Wood earning a goal and an assist. Friesen picked up a pair of assists of his own. The Wild special teams contributed again, going 1-for-4 on the power play while killing off Prince George's only power play of the night.

Ravensbergen earned his 13th win, making 26 saves on 28 Wenatchee shots. The Wild goaltenders split time in Wednesday's game, with Daniel Hauser taking a no-decision in an eight-save performance. Brendan Gee was tagged for the loss in relief, stopping 22 shots and dropping to 9-4-1 on the year.

Wenatchee's seven-game homestand continues Saturday for Star Wars Night against the Kelowna Rockets, presented by Plumb Perfect, with the opening puck drop at Town Toyota Center scheduled for 6 p.m. Tickets for that game and all home regular-season contests are on sale now at 509-888-7825, or by visiting the team office at Town Toyota Center. Updated news and information on Wild hockey are always available through the team's website and on the team's social media platforms on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.

Check out the Wenatchee Wild Statistics




Images from this story

Prince George Cougars' Josh Ravensbergen versus Wenatchee Wild's Briley Wood
Prince George Cougars' Josh Ravensbergen versus Wenatchee Wild's Briley Wood
(Russ Alman/Wenatchee Wild)		   



Western Hockey League Stories from January 3, 2024


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