(As of 12:01AM)
PRINCE GEORGE SPRUCE KINGS:
(BCHL)
Prince George Spruce Kings 2 Vernon Vipers 1
Great goaltending battle between former Spruce King Bradley Cooper (Vernon) and Logan Neaton (PG) as each made 31 saves.
The game, played before 745 fans at the Rolling Mix Cconcrete Arena (RMCA), was 0-0 until Dustin Manz scored 7:22 into the third period.
Ben Brar, with his 21st goal, added the winner into an empty net with 1:12 left.
Teddy Wooding tallied for the Vipers with just 33 seconds remaining.
It was the third consecutive Wednesday home victory for the Spruce Kings.
Prince George beat Trail (4-1) and Merritt (3-1) the previous two Wednesdays.
The 22-8-1-2 Spruce Kings lead the BCHL standings and the Mainland Division by a point over the (23-9) Chilliwack Chiefs.
The Chiefs outscored Langley 3-1 in a rare afternoon game.
The Spruce Kings host the (12-16) Nanaimo Clippers Friday.
They also entertain Surrey December 14th and 15th to conclude a seven-game homestand.
Prince George will close out the month at Langley on the 20th and Surrey the 21st.
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PG Spruce Kings defenceman Layton Ahac is one of 22 players selected to play for Team Canada West in the World Junior ‘A’ Challenge.
The five-team tournament begins Sunday and runs until December 16th in Bonnyville, Alberta.
The 17-year-old Ahac is one of seven defencemen and 14 BCHL players on the team.
The other participants are Canada East, Czech Republic, Russia, and the United States.
PRINCE GEORGE COUGARS:
(WHL)
The Prince George Cougars have dropped to the bottom of the BC Division after the Kamloops Blazers beat the Victoria Royals 3-2 Wednesday.
In other action, the Kelowna Rockets got by the Tri-City Americans 4-3 in a shootout.
The 11-14-1-2 Cougars are a point behind both (13-11) Victoria and (12-11-1-1) Kamloops.
They are also three back of the second place (13-15-2) Kelowna Rockets.
Prince George is ninth out of 10 in the Western Conference, four points in front of the (9-13-3) Seattle Thunderbirds.
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The Cougars are in Portland to play the (16-10-0-2) Winterhawks Friday and Saturday.
It is the start of 11 straight road games for the Cougars, with eight of them in the U.S. Division.
The Winterhawks are second in the US Division.
Portland has scored the most goals in the Western Conference and second most in the WHL (behind the Prince Albert Raiders).
The Cougars next home games are against Kelowna January 11th to 12th.
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PG Cougars associate coach Steve O’Rourke has been named Head Coach for the BC boys U-16 hockey team that will compete at the 2019 Canada Winter Games in Red Deer.
NHL: (Three Wednesday games)
Edmonton 3 St. Louis 2 (SO)
Anaheim 4 Chicago 2
San Jose 5 Carolina 1
The Western Conference-leading Nashville Predators visit the Vancouver Canucks tonight.
The Predators are 8-3-1 on the road and 19-8-1 overall.
The 11-16-3 Canucks are 0-3-1 on a five-game homestand.
Vancouver has lost 12 of its last 13.
The Canucks, who have the most penalty minutes in the league, have allowed 21 power-play goals in their last 18 games.
Winnipeg and Edmonton are the only Canadian teams idle this evening in the NHL.
Among the 11 games; Minnesota at Calgary, Montreal at Ottawa, and Detroit at Toronto.
William Nylander will make his season debut for the Maple Leafs against the Red Wings.
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The Forbes rankings have the Vancouver Canucks ninth on the NHL’s most valuable franchise list at $735 million.
The New York Rangers top the rankings for a fourth consecutive year at $1.55 billion (US), up three per cent over last year.
The Toronto Maple Leafs are second at $1.35 billion and Montreal Canadiens third at $1.3 billion.
CARIBOO COUGARS:
(BCMML)
The 13-4-3 Cariboo Cougars visit the (6-9-3-2) Valley West Giants Saturday night in Langley and Sunday morning in Delta.
The Major Midget Cougars are in the second place, four points behind the (16-3-1) Fraser Valley Thunderbirds.
Valley West holds down the eighth and final playoff spot.
CARIBOO COUGARS MINOR MIDGET:
The Cariboo Cougars minor midget team will host the (8-3-1) Fraser Valley Thunderbirds Friday night at 7:30, plus Saturday and Sunday morning at 11:15 at Kin 1.
The Cariboo 15-year-olds are 9-2-1 and in second place, two points behind the (10-1-1) Okanagan Rockets.
NBA:
Toronto Raptors 113 Philadelphia 76’ers 102
The 21-5 Raptors play their next game Friday in Brooklyn against the (8-18) Nets.
NFL:
A couple of AFC South teams meet tonight in the NFL.
Week 14 begins with the (4-8) Jacksonville Jaguars at the (6-6) Tennessee Titans.