The Western Hockey League’s Prince George Cougars didn’t have any problems making friends last week when they took to the ice in Williams Lake to skate with players from the Williams Lake Minor Hockey Association.
The team, travelling south for a road trip last Tuesday, made a stop in Williams Lake for a three-on-three tournament at Total Ice Training Centre, before practicing with WLMHA teams, signing autographs, handing out team swag and chatting with fans later at the Cariboo Memorial Recreating Complex.
The team also stopped in Quesnel on Monday and in 100 Mile House on Wednesday for similar sessions.
Cougars’ head coach Mark Holick said the visit went above and beyond what they expected.
“We had a blast,” Holick said. “You look at the [autograph] table there, they’re engaging the kids, talking with the kids, having fun. The hockey players are real genuine kids and I think it kind of brings them back to the good old days.”
Cougars’ centre Zach Pochiro — a 2013 draft pick of the NHL’s St. Louis Blues — echoed Holick’s comments, noting he had a fun time on the ice.
“It’s great,” he said. “It means a lot to the kids and it’s always nice for us to get away and kind of like a vacation. You get to come out here and mess around with the kids and get back to the things that made you love hockey so it’s nice to be out here with the younger ones.”
Williams Lake atom Green Machines player Raiden Lainchbury said the chance to skate with future NHL stars and get a few hockey tips was his favourite part of the evening.
“I got some good pointers on the ice — a couple of different things,” Lainchbury said. “Too much to count. I liked how they were signing everything, our jerseys, and how they’d come ask you questions, things like that.”
Novice player Tyler Kitsul said playing scrimmages with the Cougars was the best.
“It felt good to play with them,” Kitsul said. “It was a lot of fun.”
At the conclusion of the meet and greet, the Cougars donated $1,500 to the WLMHA.
“We guarantee that this gift will be put to good use,” said Jennifer Loewen, atom division manager, noting the excitement of the players after the evening.
“Players who typically kept to themselves became alive with stories once they got home. Some players immediately loaded the PG Cougars’ website to study stats while one drafted a report to share with her class. We would welcome them [back] with open arms.”
