I'm not the only who sees it to quiet
Quiet times in Cougarville
by JIM SWANSON, Citizen Sports Editor
It's so quiet, you could hear a puck drop.
There has been little, if anything, to report on the Prince George Cougars since the club held its intrasquad game. Call it As The World Turns -- without the soap opera twists.
"I wish I had some interesting news to report, but I don't," said Dallas Thompson, the team's general manager, saying that the only change of note since training camp turned to straight practice sessions is that 15-year-old Matthew Cumming, who is ineligible to play full-time this season anyway, has returned to Kamloops for school. Cumming will be back later in camp.
"We're happy with where we're at right now, and things are going according to plan."
Thompson spent the weekend in Everett scouting an exhibition tournament there, and said even that was uneventful.
"You have to remember that, as far as the league goes, some teams have had three exhibition games, and some are just ending their training camps and having their intersquad games," said Thompson.
"Everyone's on their own timeline right now, and maybe after this weekend things might start to happen."
It's been nothing but practice and dryland heaving since the last cuts as the Cougars, 28 in all, prepare for their first action against a WHL foe. This weekend, with a Thursday morning exodus from Prince George, the Cats will play in the Saskatoon preseason tournament, facing the Regina Pats on Friday evening, the host Blades the next night, and the Prince Albert Raiders on Sunday afternoon.
The games will mark the first time coaches Mike Vandekamp and Stew Malgunas have had a chance to gauge rookies against other WHL hopefuls.
"We're in a holding pattern until we see our team play this weekend," said Thompson.
"Mike and Stew are working the guys hard, getting them in the best shape they can, and that's the focus now more than evaluating what's here. Obviously, by the middle of next week we hope to know how our guys are doing in pro camps and go from there."
Things are so quiet in Cougarville, in fact, that the club may not even make cuts following the weekend games. With six players heading off to pro camp this week -- Jesse Dudas (Columbus) left Tuesday, Eric Hunter (New York Rangers), Nick Drazenovic (St. Louis) and Vladimir Mihalik (Tampa Bay) head out today, while Ty Wishart (San Jose) and Evan Fuller (Vancouver) fly south Thursday -- the Cougars need to have enough people around to ice a team for exhibition games the following week. The Cats will welcome the Kamloops Blazers a week from today, a 7 p.m. start, then will visit Kamloops and Kelowna that weekend.
"There might not be any moves because we have to have enough bodies here to play the exhibition games," said Thompson.
All the players, minus the pro campers and plus second-round draft pick Trevor Bauer, a 16-year-old defenceman from Red Deer, will play in Saskatoon.
The regular season starts Sept. 22-23 at CN Centre, with the Seattle Thunderbirds in town for a scheduling-opening double-header. Thompson said the eventual goal is to be down to 23 or 24 players when the real games arrive.
"We're working on some of the new rules, what we can and can't do, and I think these 10 days of practice will help us most with that and with getting our conditioning in the right place," said Thompson.
"Hopefully we can adjust right away to the new standards -- which, by the way, I think will be good for our game and our league. You're going to have to be able to skate, and finishing checks will be a major part of it. You have to be able to skate to get there.
"I'm sure everyone is ready to play a game, finally, on Friday. Then things will start happening."
I understand this is a rebuilding year, but come on boys!!
Reply With Quote
