The Cariboo Cougars would like to extend a big congratulations to the WHL's Portland Winterhawks on their WHL Championship over the weekend. Portland defeated Edmonton in 6 games, and earn the right to play in this year's Memorial Cup.

The 2013 Memorial Cup is in Saskatoon and will put the Saskatoon Blades against the Winterhawks from the WHL, the Halifax Mooseheads from the QMJHL and either the Barrie Colts or London Knights from the OHL. That series is going into a 7th and deciding game on Monday night. 

Cougars Head Coach Trevor Sprague is a scout for the Winterhawks.

The Cariboo Cougars would like to congratulate Tyler Povelofskie in his commitment to the Vernon Vipers for the 2013/2014 season.

Here is the release from Vernon:

The Vernon Vipers hockey club is pleased to announce that they have received two commitments for the 2013/2014 season.  Mark Hamilton and Tyler Povelofskie have both decided to come to Vernon and help in our efforts of winning the RBC on home ice.
 
Mark Hamilton, who hails from Winthrop Massachusetts, is a 6’3” 225 lb defenseman. Hamilton is committed to the University of Massachusetts-Amherst following his year in Vernon. He has had a very successful season, winning both a U18 National Championship and captaining Salisbury to a New England Prep School championship. Mark is a physical Dman who has an offensive upside. “I had the chance to watch Mark play at Nationals in Pittsburgh and I am very excited to have him as a part of our team. He will add a physical presence to our blue-line and has the ability to chip in offensively” says Head Coach Jason Williamson.
 
Tyler Povelofskie played last season for the Prince George Cougars of the BC Major Midget League. In 36 games he had 18 goals and 14 assists to go along with 87 penalty minutes. “Tyler is a player that plays in all 3 zones and competes very hard. He also has tremendous character and will fit very well into our dressing room” adds Coach Williamson.
 
The Vernon Vipers would like to welcome both players to the team and look forward to seeing them in action next season!

"He's a very coachable player, a guy you really want to have on your team" said Cougars Head Coach Trevor Sprague. "We're really happy that he's going to Vernon, and will get an opportunity to play in a National Championship this season."

Vernon are hosting the Royal Bank Cup at the end of the season.

The Cariboo Cougars would like to announce that the team and broadcaster Jeff Sargeant have parted ways.

Jeff has been an integral part of this team for the past two seasons, coming on board initially in a Broadcasting and Media Relations role with the team, but expanding to Team Manager for the start of the 2012/2013 season.

"We are a Northern BC team, not just a Prince George team...Jeff emphasized that in his work" according to Cougars Head Coach Trevor Sprague. "He connected the team with a lot of media outlets in places like Dawson Creek, Williams Lake, 100 Mile House and others, to let them know how their home town players were doing."

Brett Cullen, who served as the team's photographer last season will take over the social media and media relations aspects of Jeff's role with the team, and the search is on for a new broadcaster in time for the 2013/2014 season. "We want to thank Jeff for all the work he has put into this organization over the last couple of years. He has a great relationship with the players, and ensured the team's broadcast and relationships with the media were the best in the league" said Sprague. "I'm happy to see Brett take on a bigger role with the team for the next season."

The Cougars, who were eliminated from the BC Major Midget League playoffs by the Okanagan Rockets are beginning early preparations for their first camp in August, before main camp in September. The team would also like to extend its congratulations to the Vancouver North West Giants for their BC Major Midget League title, and wish the Red Deer Chiefs all the best as the Pacific representatives in the Telus Cup.

The Cariboo Cougars season ended in heartbreaking fashion Saturday with a 3-2 overtime loss to the Okanagan Rockets who swept the BC Major Midget best-of-three semi-final series to advance to the championship.

The loss ends the Cougars streak of final appearances at three, the first time the Cats have not advanced beyond the semi-finals since 2008-09.

Tyler Povelofskie scored his first of the post-season midway through the first to give the Cougars their first lead of the series, but it was shortlived as less than four minutes later Justin Marreck banked a shot off Stephen Penner's skate and into the open Cougar net. 

The close-knit affair remained tied at one until the 12:46 mark of the third when Brett Mennear gave the Rockets their first lead of the game.  But just 26 seconds later, Liam Blackburn made a nice play to put the puck on his forehand before snapping it past Rocket goaltender Brenden Mills to tie the game at two.

Still tied after 60 minutes, the Cougars entered their first overtime game of the playoffs where Spencer Hewson got the series winning goal at the 6:04 mark.

The Rockets advance to their first championship series since 2007-08 when they were swept by the Cougars.  The game was the last in major midget for several Cariboo Cougars including captain Ryan Forbes, assistant captains Eli Jarvis and Stephen Penner, as well as goaltender Nathan Warren and forwards Kirk Hards, Tre Potskin, and defenceman Nick Headrick.

Two goals against in the opening four minutes had the Cariboo Cougars playing catchup the entire game as the Okanagan Rockets held on for a 4-3 win to take a 1-0 lead in the best-of-three BC Major Midget League semi-final.

The Rockets opened scoring just 2:51 into the opening period as Graham Millar put a rebound past Nathan Warren.  Then just over a minute later Josh Blanchard made it a 2-0 Okanagan lead.  The quick start for the visitors seemed to wake up the Cougars who then dominated play for the remainder of the period yet remained in a two goal deficit despite outshooting the Rockets 12-9 through 20 minutes.

The second period was a complete reversal as Braiden Epp got the Cougars on the board 2:47 into the frame while Logan Styler got the equalizer just 29 seconds later from Liam Blackburn and Stephen Penner. 

The Rockets re-took the lead early in the third before Blackburn slid one five-hole past Rockets goaltender Brenden Mills to tie the game at three.  But with just under five minutes on the clock Spencer Hewson was credited with the eventual game winner which went into the Cougar net on a strange bounce.

The Cougars finished the game 0/3 on the power play while killing off all four penalties.  Nathan Warren took his first playoff loss in net.

The Cougars face their first do-or-die scenario of the post-season heading into game 2 Saturday at 1 o'clock at CN Centre.

The Cariboo Cougars are set to host one of their biggest rivals in a rare playoff meeting between the two clubs for the BC Major Midget League semi-final this weekend in Prince George.

The Cougars are coming off a sweep of the South Island Royals while the Rockets took three games to dispatch the Valley West Hawks.  The Cats look to advance to their fourth straight BCMML championship series while the Rockets are seeking their first final berth since 2008 when the Cougars swept them for the Cats lone league title.

While the Cougars first round opponent pitted them against a very different looking Royals squad the semi-final features two very similar teams.  The Cougars finished the regular season as the highest scoring team with 211 goals in 40 games while the Rockets weren't far behind at 190.  Both teams posted 103 goals against.  The Cats finished the season with a team-best record of 31-8-1 while the Rockets finished five points back in third at 26-8-6.

The Cougars won the season series between the two clubs 3-1, including an 8-0 win in Kelowna and a pair of wins in Prince George (5-3 and 8-4).  But Cats head coach Trevor Sprague knows those numbers mean absolutely nothing.

"It's playoff hockey, it's a new season, so what happened in pre-season isn't really going to matter," said Sprague.  "We saw that in the first series against South Island, they're going to bring their best game, we're going to bring our best game and we'll see who's going to win at the end of the day."

Just as in the regular season, offence was not a problem for the Cats in the first round of the playoffs scoring a combined 9 goals through the two game sweep while posting close to 100 shots on goal.  But Sprague and the Cougars coaching staff are looking for improved defensive zone play heading into this weekend's semi-final.

"Make sure that we're picking our third and fourth guys up, we're being a unit in the d zone, our first pass is good and we capitalize on our opportunities right off the bat and we get up early.  If those things happen then there should be a lot of success for the Cariboo Cougars."

Game 1 of the best-of-three semi-final is set for 5:00pm Friday with game 2 Saturday at 1:00pm.  If a third and deciding game is needed, it will go Sunday at 10:15am.  All games will be played at CN Centre with admission by donation, and all will be available live at cariboocougars.ca.

The Cariboo Cougars will host the Okanagan Rockets in the BC Major Midget League semi-final starting Friday, March 15th.

The best-of-three series pits the second and third seeds against each other for a berth in the league final with the Cats looking for a fourth straight appearance in the championship series.

The semi-finals schedule is as follows:

Game 1 - Friday, March 15th 5:00pm
Game 2 - Saturday, March 16th 1:00pm
Game 3 (if necessary) - Sunday, March 17th, 10:15am

All games will be played at CN Centre.

The Cougars won their first-round series against the South Island Royals winning 4-3 and 5-1 for the sweep.

The Rockets advanced to the second round with a game three win over the Valley West Hawks.  The Canadians and NW Giants will meet in the other semi-final.

The Cariboo Cougars earned a 5-1 win Saturday to sweep the South Island Royals in the BC Major Midget best-of-three quarterfinal series and advance to the second round.

Just as was the case in game one Friday, the Cougars opened scoring in the first as Liam Blackburn scored his second of the playoffs from Logan Styler and Braiden Epp with just over three minutes to go taking the 1-0 lead into the second.

And again mirroring game one, the Royals tied it up early in the middle frame as Nick Guiney beat Nathan Warren.  The Cats re-took the lead just over three minutes later as Brad Morrison scored his first Major Midget playoff goal off a Ryan Forbes rebound.  Bryan Allbee then added his first of the post-season with a knucklepuck that fooled Royals goaltender Jesse Jenks to give the Cougars their first two goal lead of the series.

Epp scored his third of the playoffs 4:48 into the third to put the Cats up by three while Styler added one late on a power play.

Blackburn and Epp each had a four point game while Styler had a goal and two assists. 

The Cougars outshot the Royals 34-31 as Warren earned his second straight playoff win.  The Cats advance to host the BCMML semi-finals which will begin Friday, March 15th at CN Centre at 5:00pm.  The Cougars opponent for the best-of-three semi-final has yet to be determined but the Okanagan Rockets will be heading north to Prince George with a win Saturday night against the Valley West Hawks.

The Cariboo Cougars gave their hometown fans a scare but a pair of goals in the final four minutes of the third period earned a 4-3 come from behind win to take a 1-0 series lead over the South Island Royals in the best-of-three quarterfinal series.

Goaltending was the story Friday with Royals starter Jesse Jenks playing spectacular stopping 50 shots as the Cats outshot South Island 53-19 in front of a noisy crowd of 450 fans at the Prince George Coliseum.

Special teams was also key for both clubs with five of the game's seven goals scored on the power play.

Braiden Epp opened scoring midway through the first on the man advantage from Liam Blackburn and Logan Styler to take a 1-0 lead into the first intermission in a period that saw the Cougars outshoot the visitors 21-5.

The Royals responded early in the second with a power play goal of their own from Nick Kean to tie the game at one.  The Cats re-took the lead 2-1 with Epp's second of the game, also on the power play at the 6:51 mark.  The Royals replied once again just three and a half minutes later to tie the game at two with another power play goal before taking their first lead of the game just 23 seconds later with Kean's second.

Despite peppering Jenks with shots, the Cougars could not find the back of the net until Stephen Penner stepped into one from near the top of the faceoff circle to tie the game at three with just under four minutes on the clock.  Then just over a minute later Blackburn got the game winner from Penner and Styler.

The Cougars went 3/7 on the power play while allowing three power play goals against on five opportunities for the Royals.

Nathan Warren earnd his first Major Midget League playoff win as the Cats look for the series sweep of the Royals Saturday afternoon at 1:00pm at the Coliseum.

The Cariboo Cougars begin their quest for the Telus Cup Friday as their BCMML quarterfinal series begins against the seventh seed South Island Royals.

Finishing the regular season with an all-time team best record of 31-8-1, the Cats have earned the right to home ice advantage through the first two rounds of the post-season as the Royals make their second trip to Prince George in the last three weeks.

To say the Cougars dominated their first-round opponent in the regular season would be an understatement.  In four meetings, the Cats outscored South Island by a combined 29-3, easily sweeping the season series.  In three games against the Royals, Cougars goaltender Nathan Warren posted two shutouts letting in just one goal.  Finishing the regular season with a record of 11-22-7, the Royals franchise is making their first playoff appearance since 2010-2011.

The tale of the tape shows two very different teams with the Cougars finishing the regular season as the league's most potent offence scoring more goals than any other with 211.  Allowing just 103 against, the Cats are tied with the Okanagan Rockets for the second best goals against.  The Royals mustered about half the number of goals the Cats did with 108 while allowing 179, the highest total of any of the eight playoff clubs.  Another stark difference is the number of penalty minutes taken by each team.  The Royals finished middle of the pack with 657 through 40 games while the Cougars finished with the second highest at 915, an average of nearly 23 per game.

But all these numbers now mean nothing as the new season begins.  Game one of the best-of-three quarterfinal goes at 2:15pm Friday at the Prince George Coliseum with game two Saturday at 1:00pm, also at the Coliseum.  If necessary, a third and deciding game will be played Sunday at 9:15am.  Admission is by donation.  All games will be available live at cariboocougars.ca.

He wasn't planning to be back for a third Major Midget season, but Cariboo Cougar forward Eli Jarvis is now hoping he has one final crack at that elusive championship.

After leading the team in scoring as a 16-year old last season with 55 points, Jarvis began the year with the BCHL's Cowichan Valley Capitals.  But after a month, his former junior coach decided it was best for him to season himself for another year as a Cougar and made his return back in October meeting the team for their first weekend series with the Vancouver NW Giants.

After missing the first six games of the season, Jarvis put up steady numbers finishing the year with 18 goals and 29 assists for 47 points, setting new Cariboo Cougar career marks in all three categories along the way completing his major midget regular season career with 55 goals and 81 assists for 136 points in 111 games.

"I'm just trying to work as hard as I can for the team but also for myself, so it's a good accomplishment," said the now 18-year old Quesnel native.

While Jarvis is used to being an offensive leader, he has plenty of company this season finishing fifth in team scoring behind Liam Blackburn, Braiden Epp, Logan Styler, and Brad Morrison.  As such, he has been counted on by head coach Trevor Sprague to be a denfensive leader and a guide for the team's younger forwards.

"Whatever I have to do, whatever the coaching staff wants.  We got a lot of guys getting a lot of points this year, it's a well rounded team and we're looking to win here."

Prior to the Cougars final regular season road trip to Coquitlam, Jarvis had an "A" added to the front of his jersey as Sprague is looking for his experience to help lead the Cats to their second-ever BCMML title.

"I worked hard for it and that's what I want to do, lead by example on and off the ice, and lead our team to a win this year and get a championship ring.  The last couple years penalties really killed us in the finals, we got to overcome that and just play our game.  This year I think we have the best opportunity."

Whether or not the Cougars end up facing the Giants for a fourth consecutive time in the league final series, Jarvis knows the hard work needed to get that ring.

The Cariboo Cougars bounced back Sunday with a 5-3 win over the Vancouver NE Chiefs to earn the weekend split and enter the playoffs on a winning note.

The Cats got off to a blazing start as Brad Morrison scored just 31 seconds into the first from Ryan Forbes and Eli Jarvis. But just under a minute later the Chiefs got one back to tie the game at one. Morrison got his second at the 2:44 mark to re-take the lead but the Chiefs once again responded with Brandon Volpe's second of the game just over seven minutes in. 46 seconds later Liam Blackburn scored his 34th of the season from Logan Styler and Braiden Epp.

The back and forth goal filled first continued as the Chiefs tied the game once again with 8:33 on the clock. Blackburn re-took the lead just over a minute later with his second of the game on the power play. Captain Ryan Forbes gave the Cats their first and only two goal lead of the game in the final minute of the first. With an assist, Morrison earned his 50th point of the season.

Following a barn burner of an opening frame neither team could put another puck in the net as the Cougars outshot the Chiefs 45-40 with Jeremy Matte earning the win in net.

The Cougars finish the regular season with a club best record of 31-8-1. Blackburn ended the season with 35 goals and 50 assists for 85 points, all team records. The Cougars host the South Island Royals in the BCMML quarterfinals starting Friday at the Prince George Coliseum.

The Cariboo Cougars had their eight game win streak snapped with a 6-3 loss to the Vancouver NE Chiefs Saturday in Coquitlam.

It was the first loss for the Cats since early January and also breaks a 12-game unbeaten streak.

As has often been the case, the Cougars came out of the gate strong and opened scoring thanks to Liam Blackburn's 32nd of the year.  He got a nice stretch feed from Stephen Penner and sped past the Chiefs defenders for a breakaway beating Nick McBride.

The Chiefs tied the game at one later in the opening frame before taking a 2-1 lead with just 14 seconds on the clock.

The score remained the same until the Chiefs went up 3-1 with seven and a half minutes to go in the middle frame.  Blackburn got his second of the game, on the power play two minutes later to cut the lead to one.  But once again the home squad got one in the final minute of the period to re-take the two goal lead heading into the third.

The Cats started the third much like the first as Braiden Epp scored on a nice feed from Logan Styler just 47 seconds in to make it a one-goal game.  But that's as close as the Cougars would get as the Chiefs scored twice within a minute late in the third to pull away for their first win over the Cougars since November 2010.

Nathan Warren took the loss in net, just his seventh of the season as the Cats record stands at 30-8-1 heading into Sunday's final regular season game.  Puckdrop against the Chiefs at Planet Ice is set for 11:45am.

Cariboo Cougars goaltender Nathan Warren has committed to play for the BCHL's Nanaimo Clippers next season.

The 17-year old Prince George native becomes the third Cougar to commit to the Clippers following captain Ryan Forbes and defenceman Stephen Penner.

"It's pretty exciting to commit to a great franchise like Nanaimo," said Warren.

"It's a bonus to go there with great players and friends like Forbes and Penner.  I'm looking forward to next season with the Clippers and I feel ready and excited to make the next step to the BCHL."

Warren is having a stellar season as the Cougars number one netminder having just tied alumnus Jared Rathjen for the most wins in a single season with 20.  In 26 games this year, Warren has a 20-5-1 record with a 2.38 GAA and six shutouts.

"We are extremely excited to have Nathan on board for next season," said Clippers Head Coach and General Manager Mike Vandekamp. 

"Our scouting staff has had the opportunity to watch him extensively this season including at the Mac’s Tournament. They were very impressed with his size, athleticism and compete level.  We would like to welcome Nathan and his Family to the Clipper Family."

The 6'3" 190 pound goalie is in his second year as a Cariboo Cougar having led the team to last year's championship series alongside David Readman.

Warren is also a two-time BC Major Midget Allstar and was named the BCMML player of the month for November.

Congratulations Nathan!

The Cariboo Cougars are in Coquitlam this weekend for their final weekend series of the regular season taking on the Vancouver NE Chiefs.

The Cats are riding a season high eight game win streak and are unbeaten in their last 12 games having outscored their opposition 59-19 during the current win streak.

The Cougars have already secured second place in the BCMML and will face the South Island Royals in the quarterfinals starting next Friday in Prince George.

But before the playoffs begin the Cougars have some unfinished business to attend to.  The team has already hit a club record high number of wins in a single season with 30 and will be looking to build on that to gain further momentum heading into the post-season.  Nathan Warren currently sits tied with Jared Rathjen for the most wins in a single season by a Cariboo Cougar goaltender with 20 and will look to break that against the Chiefs.

The hometown Chiefs are coming off their final bye weekend of the season having been swept by the Valley West Hawks the weekend prior.  The Chiefs are 2-5-1 in their last eight and have not recorded a win against the Cougars since November, 2010.  The Cougars swept the Chiefs in Prince George back in October.  The Chiefs are secure in fourth place with a 22-12-4 record and will face either the Greater Vancouver Canadians or the Valley West Hawks in the first round of the playoffs.

Saturday's game is set for a 4:15pm start with Sunday's final regular season meeting between the Cats and Chiefs at 11:45am, both at Coquitlam's Planet Ice.