Cougar watch: into the

WHL season

Brady Stark
Team Member

he Prince George Cougars are coming up

on the quarter mark of the WHL season,
and are showing a four-point improvement
from their position at this time last year.
Despite an early stumble at the hands of the
league-leading Kelowna Rockets, the Cougars
have had a strong start to the season with an
ever-improving home record of 8-7-0. Not
only has the team improved, there have also
been a number of players taking the WHL by
storm.

Chase Witala:

A Prince George native, Chase Witala has
been one of the longest serving on this
year’s roster. Despite being passed over in
the NHL draft, Witala has been the model
of consistency for the Cougars over the last
four years. In an interview, Witala said the
New Ice Age has revitalized his energy for
the game, and that he is pleased that this
energy is being reflected in his gameplay.

Jari Erricson:

Another Prince George boy, Jari Erricson has
become one of the faces of the Cougars over
the last couple years. He started his WHL
career as a member of the Everett Silvertips,
before getting traded to the Cougars in 2012.
Looking like a young Ryan Kesler, Erricson
has been getting under the skin of the other
team; whenever there is a scrum or a scuffle,
you will see him right in the middle of it with
aloud mouth and tons of aggression. Erricson
has landed himself in the penalty box on
more occasions than coach Mark Hollick
would like to see, but that does not stop
Erricson from being presented as a leader.

Jansen Harkins:

The “star” of the team has lived up to his

billing, as Harkins has demonstrated a flare
for the dramatic with fancy dekes and tape-
to-tape passes that show that his hockey
sense is worlds above most that have come
through this fair town. These many abilities
have given Harkins confidence, which in
turn has transitioned to some showboating.
Harkins was projected by TSN and Hockey
Central Scouting as a late 1st round pick

to mid-2nd round pick, and has not done
anything to increase that perception. If the
pace keeps up for Harkins as a top 10 leader
in the WHL, fans of number 12 could see his
stock rise as a potential NHL player one day.

Marc McNulty:

Marc McNulty is a 6th round draft pick

of the Detroit Red Wings, which seemed
promising at the time given that the Red
Wings have been notorious in the past for
picking top tier talent in later rounds.

Having the safety net of a trustworthy
backup has given McNulty the confidence
to grow into a well-rounded player going
forward. A suggestion to the coaching
staff is to try and create the “next Brent
Burns”, and put him on the offense for

a few games to see if he is more of a
threat in a purely offensive position.

Tavin Grant:

With Edmonds taking the starting spot,
the second string goalie for most of the
games thus far has been 16-year-old Tavin
Grant. Note it takes goalies far longer to
develop than any other position in hockey;
in saying that, Grant has been thrust into
the spotlight of the WHL as a goaltender for
the Prince George Cougars, and has been
given a lot of responsibility very early on
in his career. The recommendation for the
betterment of Tavin Grant’s development
is that he gets sent down to the Cougars
minor affiliate to get more starts, and gain
a better understanding of the basics.

Sports 5

Kaitlyn Martin featured in
downtown mural

Hannah Rizun
Contributor

ourteen year old Kaitlyn Martin has just

become eligible to compete for a Team BC
spot in the Winter Games. Martin is a fierce
competitor in Super G, Giant Slalom, and Ski
Cross, and Integris recognizes the passion
and dedication in this young athlete. For this
reason, Integris Credit Union chose to feature
Martin in a mural on the side of their Town
Centre Branch. The mural features Martin,
intensely focused and highly intimidating,
howling her racing war cry.

Over The Edge caught up with Daniel
Wingham, Manager of Partnerships
at Integris, to find out more.

So, Dan, tell us a little bit about the mural
and the inspiration behind it? “Well, Integris
is an official community partner with

the Canada Winter Games. We wanted to
showcase our support for the Games, but
because we’re a local financial institution,
we wanted to showcase our support for
local athletes. There was something about
having a young, local, female athlete that
we were specifically looking for. So, we
started looking through photo archives and
Kaitlyn’s picture just jumped out at us.”

I can imagine; it’s a great shot. What
do you think this mural will add
to the downtown ambience?

“The eyes of the nation will be on
Prince George, and we feel that it
showcases our spirit when it comes to
the Games, and we think this just adds
to the downtown revitalization that has
been going on for years. It adds a real
charm to downtown, and there’s really
heart and spirit projected there.”

Wingham and the rest of the Integris
team wish Kaitlyn their best on
her journey to the podium.

After the unveiling, we caught up
with Kaitlyn Martin as well.

Kaitlyn, what would you tell younger people

who are trying to get to the place where you

are today? “Train hard, and do your best. Try
your hardest to get where you want to go.”

What is your long-term goal? “Well, for
me for a long time it was getting to the
Canada Games. So, now that it’s almost
a reality I’m just focusing on that.”

Over The Edge would like to wish Kaitlyn the
best of luck on her journey to the podium.