The Prince George Cougars out together a tremendous first period and scored the first goal of the game, however, were unable to sustain the pressure and dropped a 5-3 decision to the Victoria Royals, Friday if front of a crowd of 3,696 at Save-on-Foods Memorial Centre.
The loss dropped the Cougars (31-18-4-2) seven points behind Victoria (33-15-3-6). The Royals, as division leaders, are seeded second in the Western Conference.
The Royals got goals from Caleb Matthews, Justin Kipke, Hayden Moore, Brandon Lisowsky and Cosmo Wilson.
The Cougars came out flying in the opening 10 minutes, applying relentless pressure and physicality. Their effort paid off at 8:33 when Terik Parascak capitalized on a crisp feed from Riley Heidt to open the scoring. However, the Royals responded late in the period, netting the equalizer at 17:18. The teams remained deadlocked at 1-1 after twenty minutes.
Victoria took control in the second, generating sustained pressure and striking twice in under two minutes (4:27 and 6:07) to grab a 3-1 lead. Despite some pushback from the Cougars, the Royals held firm, carrying their two-goal advantage into the final frame.
The Royals extended their lead early in the third, adding goals at 1:08 and 7:02 to make it 5-1.
Refusing to go quietly, the Cougars found life midway through the period. Aiden Foster buried his seventh of the season at 11:21, followed by Viliam Kmec, whose shot deflected off a Royals player and in at 14:45, cutting the deficit to 5-3. The late surge forced Victoria to take a timeout, but despite sustained pressure, the Cougars couldn’t close the gap and ultimately fell 5-3.
Parascak also drew two assists to lead the Cougars with three points. His 24th goal raised another $200 to the Honor House Society.
The same teams meet again Saturday (6:05 p.m.).
- with files from The Citizen
