The Victoria Royals and Prince George Cougars are both trending, but in opposite directions, and toward the fates predicted for them in the pre-season.
After a slow start, the Cougars (20-10-2) are rounding into everything many Western Hockey League observers thought they would be 鈥� a bright and balanced team on the ascent and led by the Winnipeg Jets鈥� 2015 second-round draft pick Jansen Harkins. The Cougars are 8-1-1 in their last 10 games and have risen to surpass the second-place Royals (20-11-2) in terms of winning percentage in the sa国际传媒 Division behind the league-leading Kelowna Rockets.
The Royals confounded those same experts by getting off to the best start in franchise history, but were 1-3 in their recent four-consecutive game set against the Western Conference last-place Vancouver Giants.
As a result, the Royals fell out of the Canadian Hockey League top-10 poll this week while the Cougars earned an honourable mention, their first sniff of the national top-10 in several seasons.
The Royals and Cougars meet for four consecutive games, beginning tonight and Saturday night in Prince George and concluding Dec. 27-28 at Save-on-Foods Memorial Centre, in a set that could go a long way toward deciding second place in the sa国际传媒 Division and home-ice advantage in a potential first-round playoff matchup between these clubs.
Prince George, which missed the playoffs seven times in 11 seasons, ended a three-year consecutive playoff drought last spring in a 4-1 games opening-round loss to the Royals. But the Cougars franchise is suddenly surging as it looks to turn the tables on Victoria this season. There is little doubt the Cougars view this as a statement weekend.
鈥淭hese will be two tough games against Prince George and the points are big,鈥� said Royals forward Matthew Phillips, who leads the Royals and is tied among all WHL rookies in goals with 18, and is second in league points by a rookie with 35.
It must have felt like a longer bus trip than usual up Highway 97 for the Royals after they squandered a 3-2 lead with less than six minutes remaining in regulation time in a deflating 4-3 loss to the Giants on Wednesday night in Vancouver.
鈥淲e鈥檙e licking our wounds a bit because we gave the game away in Vancouver and the players know it,鈥� said Royals assistant coach Enio Sacilotto.
鈥淧rince George is going to be a challenge, especially the way they have been playing,鈥� said Sacilotto, heading into his fifth and sixth games this weekend, of the 13 for which he will be bench boss while Royals head coach Dave Lowry reprises that role with the Canadian team at the 2016 world junior championship.
鈥淏ut we鈥檙e up for the challenge and we鈥檙e ready for it.鈥�
Both Lowry and Victoria captain Joe Hicketts are away over Christmas with sa国际传媒 at the world juniors for the second consecutive season. Sacilotto and the Royals got off to a 0-4-1 start last season when Lowry and Hicketts were away but turned it around to win the last three games of that stretch. They are 1-3 in a similar scenario this season and are banking on another turnabout before Lowry and Hicketts are due back for the Royals games Jan. 8-9 in, perhaps fittingly, Prince George.
鈥淣ow that we鈥檝e gone through this twice, it鈥檚 a lot easier than last year,鈥� said veteran Royals forward Jack Walker, who had four goals in the four games against the Giants.
Veteran forward Logan Fisher is acting captain in Hicketts鈥� absence.
鈥淲e鈥檝e been through this before, with Dave and Joe not here, and know what to expect,鈥� he said.
It鈥檚 a different voice with Sacilotto but the same Lowry message coming out, said Fisher: 鈥淲e keep the same systems.鈥�
The games in Prince George are the final two before the Christmas break.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a tough time of year for the players to stay focused,鈥� admitted Fisher.
As a 20-year-old over-ager, and acting captain of a youthful team that has perhaps overachieved so far this season, he knows he must stay on beam during this crucial stretch.
鈥淚 try to lead by example,鈥� said Fisher.
鈥淭hese eight straight games we鈥檙e having with Vancouver and Prince George are all divisional games, so they are all big points for us.鈥�
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