The Prince George Cougars threw everything but the kitchen sink at Dylan Garand and the 18-year old puckstopper wasn’t about to let his team’s efforts go down the drain.
He made 43 saves to preserve a 4-1 win over the Cougars Thursday night in the WHL pod in Kamloops.
Garand, an 18-year-old New York Rangers draft pick (fourth round, 2020) was at his best in the second period, turning aside all 21 shots as the Cats built a 21-6 advantage but were unable to add to their 1-0 lead.
Inaki Barragano tied the game 1-1 with 41 seconds left in the second period and the Blazers went on to score three unanswered goals in the third period to improve their record to 4-0 this season against the Cougars (4-6-1-1), who lost their third straight.
The win moved the Blazers (9-2-0-0) back into first place in the B.C. Division standings. Kamloops is tied in points with the Vancouver Giants (9-3-0-0), but the Blazers have played one fewer game.
Matthew Seminoff, Reese Belton, and Connor Zary, on a Blazers’ power play, were the other Kamloops goal scorers. Connor Bowie tipped in a Ethan Samson point shot to open the scoring.
Taylor Gauthier took the loss in the Cougar nets, making 27 saves.
The Cougars went 0-for-4 on the power play, while Kamloops was 1-for-2.
The Cougars are back on the ice tonight in Kelowna (7:05, 94.3 FM The Goat) to take on the Kelowna Rockets. The Rockets (3-2-0-0) are coming off a 6-2 loss to Kamloops on Tuesday.
