PREVIEW: Giants Host Royals to Kick Off Home-and-Home
PHOTO BY: ROB WILTON
Langley, B.C. – The Vancouver Giants (3-5-1-0) welcome the Victoria Royals (6-6-0-0) to the Langley Events Centre tonight at 7:00 p.m. PT to kick off a home-and-home.
The Giants began their 2023-24 campaign with a 4-1 win over the Royals back on September 22, but this Victoria team is different from the one on opening night, as they have won six of their last eight games.
Vancouver, meanwhile, will be looking to make it two wins in a row after a big 5-3 win last Sunday over Spokane.
The two clubs will go at it again tomorrow night in Victoria at 6:05 p.m. PT, which will be the second of three weekend games for the Giants, as they also host Kamloops on Sunday afternoon.
TODAY’S MATCHUP
Tonight is the second of eight meetings between Vancouver and Victoria this season.
The G-Men are 3-1-1 on home ice this season, outscoring their opponents 20-15 in those games. They have also scored 10 goals in their last two games, so will look to keep that offence going against a team that has also scored a lot. Victoria ranks fifth in the WHL in goals for per game (3.83) and has scored 23 goals in their last five games (4.6/game).
Including their loss to the Giants on opening night, Victoria suffered four straight defeats to begin the season, but things seemed to change after trading Kalem Parker and Brayden Schuurman to Moose Jaw for multiple picks and Ben Riche, while also acquiring 20-year-old forward Dawson Pasternak from Brandon. Both Riche and Pasternak have been a big part of the Royals going 6-2 in their last eight games.
Victoria is 2-3 on the road. Their most recent result is a 6-3 loss to the Rockets in Kelowna on Wednesday.
One thing to monitor will be special teams. Victoria has recorded the most penalty minutes in the WHL (296) and has been shorthanded more times than anyone this season (72 TSH). Their penalty kill ranks 16th in WHL at 75%. They have also allowed the most shorthanded goals in the league (6).
During the 2022-23 season, the Giants went 8-2 against the Royals.
ONES TO WATCH
TALE OF THE TAPE
|
VANCOUVER |
STAT | VICTORIA |
| 3-5-1-0 (7 Pts) | RECORD | 6-6-0-0 (12 Pts) |
| 4th | DIV. RANK | 3rd |
| 10th | CONF. RANK | 8th |
| 3-5-1-0 | PAST 10 | 6-4-0-0 |
| 1W | STREAK | 1L |
| 3-1-1-0 | HOME | 4-3-0-0 |
| 0-4-0-0 | AWAY | 2-3-0-0 |
| 28 (3.11 – 16th) | GF (/G) | 46 (3.83 – 5th) |
| 36 (4.00 – 16th) | GA (/G) | 57 (4.75 – 21st) |
| 5-for-40 (12.5%) | PP% | 11-for-56 (19.6%) |
| 38-for-48 (79.2%) | PK% | 54-for-72 (75%) |
| Thorpe (8-1-9)
5 tied at 6 Pts |
LEADERS |
Scott (5-12-17) Misskey (3-13-16) Sapousek (8-5-13) |
LAST TIME OUT
The Giants earned a 5-3 victory over the Spokane Chiefs on Sunday afternoon at the Langley Events Centre in their first ever Referee Appreciation Night.
For the second straight game, five different G-Men found the back of the net. This time, the goal scorers were Colton Roberts, Cameron Schmidt, Ty Halaburda, Patrik Kral and Tyler Thorpe.
Brett Mirwald made 34 saves to pick up his third win of the season.
SEASON SERIES VS. VICTORIA (1-0-0)
| DATE | LOCATION | RESULT/TIME |
| Sept. 22, 2023 | LEC | 4-1 Win |
| Oct. 27, 2023 | LEC | 7:00 PT |
| Oct. 28, 2023 | SOF Memorial Arena | 6:05 PT |
| Dec. 27, 2023 | LEC | 7:00 PT |
| Jan. 26, 2024 | LEC | 7:00 PT |
| Jan. 27, 2024 | SOF Memorial Arena | 6:05 PT |
| Jan. 28, 2024 | SOF Memorial Arena | 3:05 PT |
| Feb. 14, 2024 | SOF Memorial Arena | 7:05 PT |
NEXT 5 GAMES
| DATE | OPPONENT | LOCATION | TIME |
| Oct. 28, 2023 | at Victoria | Save on Foods Memorial Arena | 6:05 pm PST |
| Oct. 29, 2023 | vs. Kamloops | LEC | 4:00 pm PST |
| Nov. 1, 2023 | at Tri-City | Toyota Center | 7:05 pm PST |
| Nov. 3, 2023 | at Wenatchee | Town Toyota Center | 7:00 pm PST |
| Nov. 4, 2023 | vs. Kamloops | LEC | 7:00 pm PST |
HOW TO TUNE IN
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