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Cougars Off to Slow

Start

Jesse Gabrielle: One of Few Bright Spots

Brady Stark
Team Member

he Prince George Cougars have high hopes for this season

as they look to build off of their playoff berth from last
season. Now that the first handful of games have come and
gone with the team on the losing side of the .500 mark, it
stands to reason that some fans might be wondering what
is happening. Many would argue that it is too early to press
any panic button or worry too much about the first batch of
results in the season, but there are those that are of the mind
that every game matters and the Cougars must right the ship
early before having to play the rest of the season behind the
eight-ball.

Over the first few games we see an alarming pattern of
veterans not playing up to their potential. Starting with
the star of the team, Jansen Harkins, as his play thus far
has been a little worrying. Despite this lack of production
early, Cougars fans are very optimistic that the two-way
forward can shake off the first few games and lead the team
the way management, fans, and the Winnipeg Jets know
that he can. Harkins just needs to find his groove and not
try to do everything himself. Even though he is the star

of the team, the Jets drafted him in the second round this
year because of his ability to make the players around him
better. Joseph Carvalho on the other hand is one that needs
to step up his game in a hurry. Being an overaged player,
there is an added pressure to perform because of the limited
spots that overage players can take in the roster. Carvalho
has consistently been one of the better defensemen for

the Cougars over the past four seasons, but that is still

no guarantee that Coach Mark Hollick won’t try and find
someone younger to fill his spot. Carvalho needs to use is
great positioning to keep the forwards to the outside and
swipe away any rebounds that might come from his goalie.

Brad Morrison is, in many people’s minds, the most skilled
player on the team. With lightning speed and hands that
reminds one of Ziggy Palffy, Morrison has the potential to
climb to the top of the scoring leaderboard by the end of
the season. Unfortunately for Morrison, he has no points in
his first few games and is a minus player, even both goalies
are higher on the stats sheet than him at the moment.

Even in the preseason, fans could see that Morrison
was trying to be way too fancy with the puck and
making cranial numbing mistakes that you learn not to
do when you are 7 years old. Morrison has to work on
utilizing his teammates to create better chances, as well
as, work on his overall vision of the ice. The invisible
man he cannot afford to be if the Cougars want to put
the puck in the back of the net with regularity.

Ty Edmonds could be one of the best goalies in the WHL if
he only had consistency. Having a stellar outing in his first
game against the Silvertips only to let in 4 goals the next
start. It must be said that the 4 goals against Seattle were
off of 37 shots, but when you are in a tight competition with
teams that you should be able to beat, your goalie needs to

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be able to make the key saves to give you a chance to win.

Cougars fans are used to this kind of play by the 18 year
old net minder as he battled with consistency all season
all last year, but when the team really needed the wins to
get into the playoffs, he was lights out amazing. Edmonds
needs to go back to the fundamentals of cutting of the
angle, covering or clearing any rebounds out of harm’s
way, and not focusing on any goals that he might have let
in earlier in the game. When Edmonds is on his game, the
Cougars will win the vast majority of the time, but if he is
not then it is a long night for fans and teammates alike.

Even though the Cougars are looking to respond from a
few sub-par games, there has been a bright spot for the
Cougars. Jesse Gabrielle has been a point per game player
thus far in the season. Coming over from the Regina
Pats, Gabrielle has proven why the big bad Bruins took
him in the fourth round of last year’s entry draft. With
size that can match most players in the WHL, Gabrielle
has shown that he can create room for his teammates

in the offensive zone. In addition to size, the native of
Moosomin, Saskatchewan has shown a proficiency for
scoring and creating plays with his great vision of the ice.

Look for Gabrielle to be a catalyst for the
Cougars to go on a winning streak soon.