TwoBits
01-17-2008, 09:56 PM
http://www.princegeorgecitizen.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=113320&Itemid=564
Poulter back on target
(Sports) Thursday, 17 January 2008, 18:39 PST
JIM SWANSON, Citizen Sports Editor
Alex Poulter, a third-year WHL forward in his first season with the Prince George Cougars, broke out of a two-month goal slump on Tuesday. Even with the lengthy drought, the 18-year-old Colorado native is still among the team leaders in goals and points. (David Mah, Photographer) When you’re a forward, and one expected to produce, a prolonged slump can play tricks with your mind.
There are days when you come to practice and wonder if the line chart will show you on the fourth line. There are gamedays where you wonder if that power-play time will be cut back, or worse -- that ‘healthy scratch’ will describe your contribution that night.
Such was the case of Alex Poulter.
The 18-year-old Colorado native started the season like a Cougar on fire, scoring 11 times in his first 19 games in Prince George. Single-handedly, since the other player he was acquired with didn’t show up, Poulter was making a summer trade, viewed by some as an afterthought transaction, turn up roses for the Cats.
But then it came. The slump.
Two dozen games without a goal became a nightmare for Poulter, a pickup from Red Deer in a June 25 trade from Red Deer that also yielded the rights to Evan Pighin for the measly sum of a sixth-round draft choice.
Finally, in a game against Portland this past week, Poulter connected. For the rest of the night, he smiled.
“I think I was gripping the stick a little too tight, so it felt great to get that goal,” said Poulter, who calls Broomfield, Colo., his hometown.
“I’m not satisfied, and I have to remember how I was down for not scoring for awhile so I don’t let that feeling come back. Getting that first goal in a long time will certainly help. I got off to a quick start and I think people expected me to keep going.
“I still feel like the puck is going to go in the net when I shoot it. I credit the coaches a lot because they kept telling me they believed in me, and backed it up by keeping me on one of the top lines and giving me power-play time. They stuck with me through tough times, but I knew there’d be a time I had to start producing.”
While Poulter gladly reported to Prince George, Pighin didn’t show up for camp, and the Cougars released him when it appeared he was going to stick things out with his former BCHL team, the Salmon Arm Silverbacks. He has since been wooed back to the WHL by the Chilliwack Bruins.
The Cougars, meanwhile, would gladly give up another sixth-round bantam pick for a player of Poulter’s ability. The right-shooting centre didn’t ask for a trade out of Red Deer, where he played for two seasons, but didn’t protest being out of a dressing room that used to be ruled by the iron fist of Brent Sutter.
“I was struggling in Red Deer and I hinted that I wasn’t happy there,” said Poulter, who has 28 points in 45 games, third on the team behind Dana Tyrell and Greg Gardner.
“I was surprised when it happened, but I looked at it and saw an opportunity. Sutter was a demanding coach and I learned a lot. He told me that a lot of the team’s forwards had graduated and I’d have a chance to take on a bigger role.”
Poulter, who is in his draft year becaues his his birthday, Nov. 7, falls after the Sept. 15 cutoff date, stands as one of the key cogs for the Cougars’ rebuilding program. A year after reaching the WHL’s final four, the Cats have gone to a youth movement anchored by Tyrell, 18, Poulter, 17-year-olds Ian Curtis and Dale Hunt, and 16-year-olds Justin Maylan and Art Bidlevskii.
“This is exciting -- look at a guy like Maylan, he’s got three goals for us and he’s only going to get better,” said Poulter, who had four goals for the Rebels as a 16-year-old, then upped his total slightly to six goals as a sophomore.
“He’ll be a terrific player in the league, and we have the youngest team in the WHL so down the road we can be one of the best teams in the league. We have good leadership to help the young guys out.”
Injury update
The Cougars, who lost 3-2 in a shootout Wednesday against Portland, continue a busy week when they travel to Kamloops today. Stops in Kelowna on Saturday and Seattle on Sunday round out a jam-packed weekend.
The team bus will be lighter than usual, with three of the younger players not able to suit up. Defenceman Art Bidlevskii has a separated shoulder, fellow blueliner Trevor Bauer continues to deal with post-concussion syndrome, and winger Ryan Kowalski suffered a concussion in a fight Wednesday. Kowalski would’ve missed tonight’s game anyway because of a one-game suspension for his boarding major, a hit from behind on Winter Hawks defenceman Bo Montgomery, in the first period of Wednesday’s game. The hit led to Portland winger Luke Walker scrapping with Kowalski.
To help with the shortage, underaged defence prospect Bruin McDonald, who turned 16 on Jan. 4, is expected to be summoned for the Kamloops and Kelowna games.
Head coach Drew Schoneck, who missed Wednesday’s game with a nasty flu, will make the trip.
The Cats are home to Everett on Wednesday and Thursday.
Poulter back on target
(Sports) Thursday, 17 January 2008, 18:39 PST
JIM SWANSON, Citizen Sports Editor
Alex Poulter, a third-year WHL forward in his first season with the Prince George Cougars, broke out of a two-month goal slump on Tuesday. Even with the lengthy drought, the 18-year-old Colorado native is still among the team leaders in goals and points. (David Mah, Photographer) When you’re a forward, and one expected to produce, a prolonged slump can play tricks with your mind.
There are days when you come to practice and wonder if the line chart will show you on the fourth line. There are gamedays where you wonder if that power-play time will be cut back, or worse -- that ‘healthy scratch’ will describe your contribution that night.
Such was the case of Alex Poulter.
The 18-year-old Colorado native started the season like a Cougar on fire, scoring 11 times in his first 19 games in Prince George. Single-handedly, since the other player he was acquired with didn’t show up, Poulter was making a summer trade, viewed by some as an afterthought transaction, turn up roses for the Cats.
But then it came. The slump.
Two dozen games without a goal became a nightmare for Poulter, a pickup from Red Deer in a June 25 trade from Red Deer that also yielded the rights to Evan Pighin for the measly sum of a sixth-round draft choice.
Finally, in a game against Portland this past week, Poulter connected. For the rest of the night, he smiled.
“I think I was gripping the stick a little too tight, so it felt great to get that goal,” said Poulter, who calls Broomfield, Colo., his hometown.
“I’m not satisfied, and I have to remember how I was down for not scoring for awhile so I don’t let that feeling come back. Getting that first goal in a long time will certainly help. I got off to a quick start and I think people expected me to keep going.
“I still feel like the puck is going to go in the net when I shoot it. I credit the coaches a lot because they kept telling me they believed in me, and backed it up by keeping me on one of the top lines and giving me power-play time. They stuck with me through tough times, but I knew there’d be a time I had to start producing.”
While Poulter gladly reported to Prince George, Pighin didn’t show up for camp, and the Cougars released him when it appeared he was going to stick things out with his former BCHL team, the Salmon Arm Silverbacks. He has since been wooed back to the WHL by the Chilliwack Bruins.
The Cougars, meanwhile, would gladly give up another sixth-round bantam pick for a player of Poulter’s ability. The right-shooting centre didn’t ask for a trade out of Red Deer, where he played for two seasons, but didn’t protest being out of a dressing room that used to be ruled by the iron fist of Brent Sutter.
“I was struggling in Red Deer and I hinted that I wasn’t happy there,” said Poulter, who has 28 points in 45 games, third on the team behind Dana Tyrell and Greg Gardner.
“I was surprised when it happened, but I looked at it and saw an opportunity. Sutter was a demanding coach and I learned a lot. He told me that a lot of the team’s forwards had graduated and I’d have a chance to take on a bigger role.”
Poulter, who is in his draft year becaues his his birthday, Nov. 7, falls after the Sept. 15 cutoff date, stands as one of the key cogs for the Cougars’ rebuilding program. A year after reaching the WHL’s final four, the Cats have gone to a youth movement anchored by Tyrell, 18, Poulter, 17-year-olds Ian Curtis and Dale Hunt, and 16-year-olds Justin Maylan and Art Bidlevskii.
“This is exciting -- look at a guy like Maylan, he’s got three goals for us and he’s only going to get better,” said Poulter, who had four goals for the Rebels as a 16-year-old, then upped his total slightly to six goals as a sophomore.
“He’ll be a terrific player in the league, and we have the youngest team in the WHL so down the road we can be one of the best teams in the league. We have good leadership to help the young guys out.”
Injury update
The Cougars, who lost 3-2 in a shootout Wednesday against Portland, continue a busy week when they travel to Kamloops today. Stops in Kelowna on Saturday and Seattle on Sunday round out a jam-packed weekend.
The team bus will be lighter than usual, with three of the younger players not able to suit up. Defenceman Art Bidlevskii has a separated shoulder, fellow blueliner Trevor Bauer continues to deal with post-concussion syndrome, and winger Ryan Kowalski suffered a concussion in a fight Wednesday. Kowalski would’ve missed tonight’s game anyway because of a one-game suspension for his boarding major, a hit from behind on Winter Hawks defenceman Bo Montgomery, in the first period of Wednesday’s game. The hit led to Portland winger Luke Walker scrapping with Kowalski.
To help with the shortage, underaged defence prospect Bruin McDonald, who turned 16 on Jan. 4, is expected to be summoned for the Kamloops and Kelowna games.
Head coach Drew Schoneck, who missed Wednesday’s game with a nasty flu, will make the trip.
The Cats are home to Everett on Wednesday and Thursday.