PREVIEW: Giants Close Out Weekend in Wenatchee with Rematch vs. Wild
WENATCHEE, WA – The Vancouver Giants (18-22-1-1) close out the weekend against the Wenatchee Wild (15-23-1-1) on the road at 4 p.m. today, coming off back-to-back wins on home ice.
The Giants went through a major shake up leading into Thursday’s WHL trade deadline, completing seven trades, with six new faces on the roster and seven players now departed. Vancouver beat Tri-City 4-3 in OT on Friday and held off the Wild 2-1 last night at home.
HOW TO TUNE IN
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NEW FACES
The new faces up front are two high-end 17-year-old talents and a 20-year-old: Mathis Preston is a projected first-round pick in the 2026 NHL Draft, Joe Iginla is the son of Hockey Hall of Famer Jarome and the younger brother of Kelowna Rockets forward Tij and Misha Volotovskii is a veteran two-way centre who won a WHL Championship last year with Medicine Hat.
On the blueline, the Giants acquired two d-men to solidify their top-4: Will Sharpe was acquired from Kelowna and Kaleb Hartmann was acquired from Seattle. Jaxson Pawlenchuk was also acquired for added depth, someone who can jump in on forward or defence.
TONIGHT’S MATCHUP
The Giants are four points out of the eighth and final playoff spot, but they are also just seven points back of fourth place.
The Wild pushed hard in the third period last night with 19 shots on the Vancouver net, but couldn’t find the equalizer.
Although Wenatchee sit in last place in the West, they are just six points back of the Giants and have never lost to them on home ice. The Wild have the WHL’s best PK, but they struggle to score goals: they are 2nd-last in average goals per game at 2.70.
Tonight is the fourth and final head-to-head meeting between Vancouver and Wenatchee this season. In the 2.5 year history of H2H play between the Giants and Wild, the home team has won every single game.
| LAST 5 H2H vs. WEN (3-2-0-0) | ||
| DATE | LOCATION | RESULT |
| Jan. 10, 2026 | LEC | 2-1 W |
| Nov. 26, 2025 | Town Toyota Center | 5-2 L |
| Oct. 17, 2025 | LEC | 5-2 W |
| Mar. 2, 2025 | LEC | 3-1 W |
| Feb. 23, 2025 | Town Toyota Center | 6-2 L |
LAST 5 GAMES (2-3-0-0) | 13 GF, 16 GA
| DATE | VAN RESULT | SCORE | VAN SCORERS | IN GOAL | GWG |
| Jan. 10 | WIN | VAN 2 vs. WEN 1 | Hartmann, Oreskovic | Hood (38/39) | Oreskovic (VAN) |
| Jan. 9 | WIN | VAN 4 vs. TC 3 (OT) | Lin (2), McCloskey, Preston (OTW) | Hood (30/33) | Preston (VAN) |
| Jan. 3 | LOSS | VAN 4 at POR 5 | Schmidt (2), Halaburda, Oreskovic | Pyne (34/39) | Brown (POR) |
| Jan. 2 | LOSS | VAN 2 at SPO 3 | Gerrior, Domenichelli | Hood (40/43) | Preston (SPO) |
| Dec. 30 | LOSS | VAN 1 vs. CGY 4 | Sparks | Pyne (32/36) | Amrhein (CGY) |
TALE OF THE TAPE (2025-26 REG SEASON)
| VANCOUVER | WENATCHEE | |
| 18-22-1-1 — 38 points | Team Record | 15-23-1-1 — 32 points |
| 0.452 | Points % | 0.400 |
| 10th/16th | Conf./WHL Ranking | 12th/19th |
| 5-5-0-0 | Past 10 Games | 4-6-0-0 |
| 2-0-0-0 | Streak | 0-2-0-0 |
| 2-1 W vs. WEN (Jan. 10) | Last Game | 2-1 L at VAN (Jan. 10) |
| 12-8-1-0 | Home Record | 11-8-1-0 |
| 6-13-0-1 | Away Record | 4-15-0-1 |
| 137 (3.36 – 16th) | GF | 108 (2.70 – 22nd) |
| 168 (4.12 – 19th) | GA | 138 (3.45 – 12th) |
| -31 (20th) | Goal Differential | -30 (T-18th) |
| (34/133) 25.2% | PP (Overall) | (29/169) 17.0% |
| (45/143) 69% | PK (Overall) | (29/175) 83.6% |
| (2/12) 16.7% | PP vs. Opp. | (2/10) 20% |
| (2/10) 80% | PK vs. Opp. | (2/12) 83.3% |
| Lin (11-39-50) | Top Scorer | Toll (3-27-30) |
WHAT ARE WE WEARING
The Giants will be wearing their white primary jerseys today.
UPCOMING
This is the final game of the weekend.
| Date | Opponent | Location | Time |
| Sunday, January 11 | Wenatchee | Town Toyota Center | 4:00 PM |
