Koehn Ziemmer is the confirmed pizza king of the Prince George Cougars.
He made 4,025 fans at CN Centre Saturday that much happier when, for the sixth time this season, he scored his team’s fifth goal of the game, giving everybody in the building a coupon for a free pizza courtesy of Domino’s.
“He’s Mr. Pizza Man, that’s funny, I think that’s his sixth now, it seems any time we need that fifth goal he gets it,” said Cougars captain Riley Heidt. “It’s cool we can set something like that up for the fans.”
Cougar fans were already in celebratory mood knowing their team was well on its way to another win over the Tri-City Americans when Ziemmer cut against the grain and fired a bullet into the net to help put the wraps on a 5-2 victory and compete a two-game weekend sweep.
That was the 119th goal of Ziemmer’s WHL career and he’s now just one goal away from Chase Witala’s all-time Prince George Cougars’ record for most goals in a career.
The Cougars got two goals an assist from Borya Valis and it was four-point night for Heidt, who had a goal and three assists to tie Prince George native Mark Morrison’s all-time franchise record with 235 career assists, dating back to the Cougars’ WHL origins in Victoria.
“It’s pretty cool and I didn’t know that until a little while ago,” said the 19-year-old Heidt. “I’ve been saying it all along I’ve been fortunate to play with a lot of good guys throughout my career here and it’s been exciting,”
“When the years go by all of a sudden they just start racking up and I’m just trying to get better every day.”
Dating back to his minor hockey days in Saskatoon, Hedit has always been a setup guy first, but he can also snipe and has 108 career goals, 12 off Witala’s record
“I’m very passionate about seeing a smile on a guys’ face (after setting up a goal), I think that why I play the game, for my teammates, and any time I can see that happen and we’re getting success as a team I don’t care who puts it in,” said Heidt. “That’s always been my mentality and I just stick to my strengths.”
Matteo Danis had the other goal for the Cougars, who improved to 28-15-32. The Cats are still one point behind the BC Division-leading Victoria Royals, who won 2-1 Saturday in Portland, and Prince George remains fourth overall in the Western Conference.
Max Curran and Jaxen Adam were the goalscorers for Tri-City (23-20-4-1, seventh in the West).
On the heels of a four-game losing streak on the road, the Cougars went 4-1 on their homestand and appear to be gaining some momentum. They allowed 30 or fewer shots in each of the past five games.
“The combinations are finally starting to click for our group and it’s showing so that’s exciting,” said Heidt. “We’re starting to figure out what it takes to win every night. After Christmas it always gets tighter and we’re figuring out how to win those games.”
Down 1-0, the Cougars came out with pants-on-fire urgency for the second period and were rewarded with two quick goals to grab a lead they would not relinquish.
Valis got it going as the pointman on the power play, scoring his 24th of the season with a hard wrister from right circle. Less than a minute later Heidt was in the ideal spot standing in front of the net when Aiden Foster’s sharp-angle shot ricocheted off both goalposts and bounced to Heidt, who slapped it in for his 23rd goal.
The Cougars kept pouring the pressure on and had 10 shots on the board in the period before the Americans managed to get one on Josh Ravensbergen and they went into the second intermission leading 2-1.
Valis struck again in the third period, taking advantage of a turnover when Americans defenceman Jackson Smith’s clearing attempt was intercepted by Koehn Zimmer. Heidt was in the centre of that action and got the first shot away.
Danis delivered the dagger, 8:37 into the third, after linemate Jett Lajoie started a play up the right side. Lajoie got crunched into the boards and Danis took the puck across the blueline and let go a high snapper that found the far-side corner of the net. The goal came seconds after Ravensbergen made a nifty pokecheck to break up a dangerous looking scoring chance when Gavin Garland got the puck behind enemy lines.
Special teams were a factor. The Americans took five minor penalties and even though they allowed just one goal the Cougars gained all kinds of traction with the extra skater that helped them retain their swagger. The Americans scored on their second of only two power plays.
A marathon first period marred by penalties, one fights, and a few goal-line uncertainties that needed video replay to decide took 50 minutes to complete.
The Cougars caught a break 4:33 into the game when an apparent goal from Americans captain Jake Sloan was disallowed. Jake Gudelj centred the puck into the deep slot and it kicked up high for Sloan, who batted it down off Ravensbergen’s shoulder and Sloan got his stick on the loose puck and knocked it in. After seeing the replay the officials determined Sloan’s original contact was above the height of the crossbar.
The Americans got on the scoreboard not long after when Max Curren slipped a shot in just inside the goalpost to the short side behind Ravensbergen.
Another review was needed 11:52 into the opening period when Cougars defenceman Bauer Dumanski turned on the jets to split the defence and lost his balance while pushing the puck forward. The goal was dislodged as the puck slid into the Tri-City net but it was ruled no goal when Danis made contact with goalie Ryan Grout.
The first period ended badly for the Cougars when their scoring leader Ben Riche and Americans defenceman Terrell Goldsmith collided in an open-ice hit and Riche landed hard on his shoulder. He stayed down for a couple seconds and skated to the dressing room and did not return.
The Cats’ bus leaves early Sunday for Kennewick, Wash., where they’ll take on the Americans for the third time this week to start a three game trip that also stops Friday in Kelowna and Saturday in Kamloops.
LOOSE PUCKS: The Cougars learned Saturday D Corbin Vaughan drew a 10-game suspension for his hit on Swift Current Broncos forward Braden Birnie in Tuesday’s game at CN Centre., Vaughan, who missed both weekend games, won’t be eligible to return from the seventh suspension of his WHL career until Tuesday, Feb. 25, when the Cougars host the Kelowna Rockets…. Linesman Caden Fanshaw suffered a cut on his left hand late in the first period breaking up the fight between Sloan and Cougars D Alexsey Chichkin late in the first period and had to leave the game for repairs. The Prince George native got stitched up during the intermission and came back with his hand wrapped in tape…. The Cougars were wearing special jerseys designed by Mariah Speers, the President’s Choice Children’s Charity CHL jersey contest winner.. Those game-worn jerseys are available for auction online.
