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Sput
03-28-2006, 01:35 AM
Tuesday, March 28, 2006


Cougars far from perfect, but gaining confidence


by JIM SWANSON Citizen Sports Editor

The Vancouver Giants are exhibiting dangerous playoff behaviour — they are allowing an underdog team, the Prince George Cougars, to stick around, gain confidence, and make noise.
Despite a lopsided season series against the Giants, the Cougars were clear underdogs coming into this first-round series, now knotted at a game apiece after the teams traded shutout wins in Vancouver on the weekend.

Game 3 goes tonight at CN Centre, and all of a sudden it's Prince George, and not the Western Conference's first seed, holding home-ice advantage.

"The Giants get a lot of coverage, a lot of press, as a big-city market, and that's a very good team," said Cougars head coach Mike Vandekamp.

"I think that, no matter what, these young guys didn't 100 per cent believe that they could win, and now we know that. That could create a really powerful team back in our rink. I hope we can build from that."

The Giants have the strength on the blueline to control the Cougars offence, and have done that so far, limiting Prince George to 39 shots on goal in 120 minutes of hockey. Vancouver also has tremendous depth and skill up front, but that has translated into just two goals (plus an empty-netter) on brick wall Scott Bowles.

What has to concern the Giants is that the Cougars are all-square, yet they haven't played all that well.

"We didn't play our perfect game (Saturday), and I think the shot total says that," said Vandekamp.

"I thought we kept them to the outside fairly well. They did get to the inside a few times and Scotty made some stops, but we can still play better."

The bonuses for the Cougars come from two issues — they stole home-ice advantage without scoring a power play goal, and without really doing anything to get under goaltender Dustin Slade's skin. Slade lost his composure on his own, with virtually no provocation, because the Cats have spent precious little time in Slade's vicinity.

"The frustration (Slade, Gilbert Brule and J.D. Watt) showed at the end of (Saturday's) game is a little notch to say we've managed to disrupt their focus, at least momentarily," said Vandekamp.

"But Don Hay is too good of a coach and that's too good of a team to not have that totally back together by Game 3. These are young athletes with lots of emotion. It will be a brand new game and you have to get over it. They'll be refocused and we will be, too. You have to get over it, that's part of what the playoffs is."

Neither team has been able to manage success on the power play, combining for 21 fruitless chances through two games. Part of the reason is solid penalty killing, but a good portion is also attributed to shoddy passing and a lack of effort on both sides.

"We have to create more offence than we did and have to get our power play going still," said Vandekamp. "We've got to control the play more than we have. We haven't contained them in their end of the rink nearly as much as we've wanted to, so there are still lots of things we can do better. We want to get better from one game to the next and we can still improve."

Sput
03-28-2006, 01:36 AM
Good thing I'm working nightshift right now. It's the only way I can keep ahead of the Cougars newest fan scamperdog. :D :thumb:

dondo
03-28-2006, 12:28 PM
I love how biased this writer is lol .. gimme that Hartley guy anyday

anyway.. while we talk about how the Cougars haven't played their best game, we are completely ignoring the fact that the Giants haven't put together their best game either (not by a long shot).

that's not to take anything away from PG's win on Saturday - just saying that the Vancouver squad had one of the best PPs in the league this season and that has been a non-factor so far. Brule has scored 23 goals in 27 games this season, and he has been a non-factor so far.

Is this because of the stifiling Cougar defense? Or is it because the Giants haven't put together a complete game. that's my question.

also Jim - maybe Slade slashed that guy was because they skated through his crease for the hundreth time and provoked him - stupid and craeless penalty to take, but to say that the Cougs did nothing to get that is just irresponsible "journalism"

Beaner
03-28-2006, 01:23 PM
also Jim - maybe Slade slashed that guy was because they skated through his crease for the hundreth time and provoked him - stupid and craeless penalty to take, but to say that the Cougs did nothing to get that is just irresponsible "journalism"

Pfft. The Cougars had been nowehere near the Giants net all night, in either game. Slade saw an oppurtunity to slash a guy and took it. A stupid and selfish act. Gained nothing for our team, and just showed to the Cougars that they can get under his skin.

Hardly irresponsible journalism. Irresponsible play is more like it.

Sput
03-28-2006, 05:59 PM
I agree Beaner. I watched both games on tv, and in neither game was there really any Cougars in the crease getting to Slade. He saw a chance and took a stupid penalty because of it. Zimmer wasn't IN the crease, just infront of Slade, outside the paint. That was almost as dumb a play as the choke hold drag down on Zimmer by Brule. The linesman were sure quick to break that one up before Brule got beat up to badly.

In my opinion these are the two guys the Cats have to get to in order to keep things going in their favor. Take Gilbert and Slade out of the game, mentaly of course, and keep the defense from getting the good point shots through. Doing this will frusterate the Giants and allow the Cougars to play their game.

KBF
03-28-2006, 11:12 PM
A very ugly way to welcome back the fans of PG with a horrid effort. Which proves my point that the despite what some PG fans think, they aren't far and above better than Kamloops was and just like the Blazers are a average hockey team who doesn't have what it takes to make it to the next level.


Its really sad seeing an arrogant Brule make his stupid little gestures and taking runs at the opposition all the time, that kid needs a severe beating and if he doesn't get one in the WHL rest assured he'll get it in the NHL.

rinkrat
03-29-2006, 09:27 AM
Its really sad seeing Brule make his stupid little gestures and taking runs at the opposition all the time, that kid needs a severe beating and if he doesn't get one in the WHL rest assured he'll get it in the NHL.

In case you have forgot,Brule can fight too! That being said,he is showing alot more discipline,since coming back to junior. :groovy: