Game seven.
Those are arguably the two best words in hockey and a big effort from Riley Heidt helped make that a reality for the Prince George Cougars.
His hat-trick performance in front of a raucous CN Centre Crowd of 6,016 uplifted PG to a blue-collar 4-1 victory over the Portland Winterhawks Sunday night.
“It was a tough game through 60 minutes. We ended up on top and Heidt with the hat-trick, big players in big games and big moments and I thought the guy in net was just as good, said Mark Lamb, Cougars head coach and general manager.
“With that said, we have to play a better game than we did tonight. Everything gets a little bit harder and that is what it is going to take from everybody.”
A Riley Heidt hat trick to send the series to seven. Does it get any better?
See you tomorrow, Prince George 😼@mnwild | @CarlsJrCA pic.twitter.com/OjhCJ2zDnB
— x – Prince George Cougars (@PGCougars) April 7, 2025
Heidt’s game-winner came at 6:55 of the third period as he let a sharp-angle shot go from the Portland corner that squeaked through Winterhawks goaltender Ondrej Stebetak.
RILEY HEIDT HAS DONE IT AGAIN!@mnwild | @CarlsJrCA https://t.co/x3Udn7p3Jj pic.twitter.com/nwzYvkuluf
— x – Prince George Cougars (@PGCougars) April 7, 2025
In a game that was filled with many twists and turns as well as momentum swings, the biggest call of the game was a disallowed Portland goal with 11:30 remaining.
A point shot by Portland blueliner Ryder Thompson got past a screened Josh Ravensbergen but after a lengthy discussion referee Nick Albanati waived it off due to goalie interference by Kyle Chyzowski.
“The call was made, and we have to go with whatever call was made. For us, we pride ourselves on going to the net but on the other hand for us, we are getting pushed toward their net, we are trying to get out of the crease and the shot was coming. To us, it was a good goal, but it is what it is, you have to accept the situation,” said Sven Bartschi, Portland assistant coach.
Like a jolt of lighting, the Cougars dug deep and found the added boost to give them some much-needed breathing room.
Following a defensive zone chip, Ben Riche created a 2-on-1 rush and blasted a shot over the shoulder of Stebetak for a 3-1 lead.
THE SPEED, THE SHOT! BEN RICHE HAS HIS FIRST PLAYOFF GOAL AS A COUGAR!!!#NHLDraft | @CarlsJrCA https://t.co/qr4Jk8SRKr pic.twitter.com/Bq14dVjfOJ
— x – Prince George Cougars (@PGCougars) April 7, 2025
Winterhawks head coach Kyle Gustafson pulled the 17-year-old Czechia goalie with 3:30 remaining but the move was all for not as Heidt completed his three-goal night by flipping the puck into a yawning cage.
Bauer Dumanski, led the way on the backhand with a hard-nosed two-way performance that was worthy of the third star.
After some early struggles, Ravensbergen put in another sterling performance in the PG net turning aside 26 of 27 Portland shots, two of which came in the second period after a shorthanded goal by Chyzowski.
Ravensbergen stopped a 2-on-1 rush as well as a breakaway on Kyle McDonaugh.
“For me, he does so many good things. He is so good back there and it’s a real tough position – there are things that happen we don’t understand but he is always there for us and that is what we expect out of him every night,” added Lamb.
Over his last three starts, Ravensbergen has posted a .911 save percentage or higher for the Cougars going into Monday’s winner-take-all matchup.
Both teams got off to an even start in Game Six battling to a scoreless draw after the first 20 minutes. The Cougars had two of the better chances as Heidt and Corbin Vaughan each rung shots off the cross bar.
Ravensbergen’s best stop in the first was on Alex Weiermaier whose quick shot was turned aside by the 18-year-old from North Vancouver.
In the second, Heidt brought the sold-out crowd to its feet letting go of a wrist shot that dipped on Stebetak.
THE CAPTAIN DELIVERS@mnwild | @CarlsJrCA https://t.co/arehlsu8Pk pic.twitter.com/GtpqCbYzo0
— x – Prince George Cougars (@PGCougars) April 7, 2025
The Winterhawks replied three minutes later as Weiermaier found Chyzowksi down the middle of the ice and outwaited Ravensbergen who attempted a poke check but to avail as the 20-year slipped the puck between the legs.
PG outshot Portland 28-27. Neither team was able to score on both of their power-play opportunities.
After scoring first in Games One through Four, PG has turned the tables getting the upper hand in the last two contests. Bartschi was asked if the Winterhawks are losing momentum heading into the biggest game of the season.
“The Cougars are opportunistic right now. They are getting their chances. For a big chunk of the game we played well and that is all we can do. We created chances and we had the puck a lot.”
“We can control that as they have some high-octane offensive players, and they were opportunistic tonight.”
“The big thing is we played well tonight. We have to come with the same demeanor tomorrow (Monday) and we have to play just like we did tonight and we have to make sure we bear down on our chances, keep hovering around the net. Game sevens are exciting.” added Bartschi.
For Portland to win the series, they will need offensive defenceman Tyson Jugnauth to return to his earlier form. After torching Prince George in the first four games with 12 points, the 20-year-old Seattle Kraken prospect has been held off the scoresheet in the last two outings.
While the core of this Cougars team is playing up to its capabilities with Heidt, Borya Valis, Koehn Ziemmer and Terik Parascak all at a point-per-game pace or better.
PG has benefitted from several unsung heroes such as Aiden Foster (six assists), Lee Shurgot (4 points in six games) and Jett Lajoie (5 points in six games) who are all pitching in at a similar pace.
In addition, Matteo Danis is tied for the team lead in playoff goals with Heidt at five each.
“Danis has five goals. They are playing against Chyzowski most of the time even though you don’t get your matchup on the road. We do have some unsung heroes on our team right now because we needed to bring it to Game Seven,” said Lamb.
Game Seven goes tomorrow night (Monday) at 7pm from CN Centre.
Limited tickets are on sale at TicketsNorth.ca.
Some tickets will be held back for those that want to purchase at CN Centre Monday at noon.
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