With assistance from the North Island Silvertips, the Cariboo Cougars could get some rest before playoffs.
The Cougars will wrap up their B.C. Hockey Major Midget League regular season this weekend with road games against the Vancouver Northeast Chiefs. The Cats, with a 26-11-1 record, are in third place in the 11-team loop, one point behind the second-place Valley West Hawks (23-7-8). If the Cats win both games against the Chiefs, and the Hawks lose one against the Silvertips (14-18-6), the Cougars would move into second and receive a first-round bye in playoffs.
"[North Island coach] Steve Parsons is a good friend of mine and if he can be a friend and have his team do something for us, that would be great," Cougars head coach Trevor Sprague said with a chuckle.
Sprague's club could use a bit of downtime to heal up from various injuries. The latest in a long line of medical mishaps happened last Sunday against the South Island Thunderbirds when first-line forward Levon Johnson twisted a knee. He has what Sprague described as a "loose kneecap" and won't play against the Chiefs. Today's game will unfold in Abbotsford and Sunday's rematch will take place in Langley.
Other Cariboo players on the injured list are forward Harjas Grewal (concussion) and defenceman Jared Crossan (knee). Last weekend, forward Nathan Craft returned to action but was still feeling the aftereffects of a broken arm.
"I'm a little concerned about Craft because we haven't been able to ease him back into the lineup," Sprague said. "I told him we would, but we've kind of thrown him to the wolves. His arm was a bit sore [last weekend]. I just told him he really needs to tell us what his limits are, and if it's bothering him we'll pull the reins back."
This weekend, Craft will take Johnson's spot on the top line with Luke Gordon and Seb Lloyd. In other lineup moves, defenceman Sam Brennan will skate at forward and affiliated player Darcy Flaherty -- a forward -- will be with the team. As well, local defenceman Curtis Bellamy has been added to the roster for the remainder of the year.
The Chiefs, at 16-15-7, own the sixth and final playoff spot. The last time they met the Cougars, Nov. 28 in Prince George, they skated to a wild 9-7 win.
"That was a case of [needing] better D and, at that point in time, we didn't get a few saves that we needed either," said Sprague, whose team beat the Chiefs 3-1 the previous day.
At the very least, the Cougars have clinched third place. If they stay there, they will host either the Chiefs or the Thunderbirds (17-15-8) in a first-round playoff series.
The ultimate goal is to get to the Telus Cup national midget championship tournament, April 18-24 in St. John's, Nfld.
