PREVIEW: Giants Look to Bounce Back vs. Wild
PHOTO BY ROB WILTON
Vancouver, B.C. – The Vancouver Giants (1-1-0-0) look to bounce back this afternoon when they host the Western Hockey League’s newest franchise: the Wenatchee Wild (1-2-1-0), at 4 p.m. at the Langley Events Centre.
The Wild moved from Winnipeg this summer, and went all-in last season, making the WHL Championship Final before falling to Seattle in five games. Many of their top players have now graduated, including former Giants captain Zack Ostapchuk, or are still at NHL camps, including Zach Benson, Conor Geekie and Matthew Savoie.
For the Giants, reinforcements arrived earlier this week in the form of NHL draft pick Jaden Lipinski, as well as defenceman Mazden Leslie, however, even with them in the lineup, Vancouver was on the wrong end of a 5-1 score on Friday in Kamloops.
Today, the G-Men look to rebound against a team that is playing their third game in three days.
TODAY’S MATCHUP
Today is the first of four meetings this season between Vancouver and Wenatchee.
They faced off once last season when the Wild were still the ICE, with the game being closely contested, but ending in a 4-3 Winnipeg win on Oct. 19 at the LEC.
Before that, the two franchises hadn’t gone head to head since 2019, a 4-0 win for Vancouver at Wayne Fleming Arena in Winnipeg.
So far this season, both teams have had trouble on their power play, with the Giants 1-for-12 and the Wild 2-for-17.
The Wild are playing a three-in-three, after an overtime loss on Friday in Everett and a 5-3 setback last night in Kelowna. That means a quick start will be key for the Giants.
TALE OF THE TAPE
| VAN | STAT | WEN |
| 2 | GP | 4 |
| 1 | W | 1 |
| 1 | L | 2 |
| 0 | OT | 1 |
| 2 | PTS | 3 |
| 5 | GF | 13 |
| 6 | GA | 16 |
| 8.3 | PP% | 11.8 |
| 100 | PK% | 78.6 |
LAST TIME OUT
A key start will also be key because of how last game ended: not well.
The Giants fell to the Kamloops Blazers 5-1 on Friday night at the Sandman Centre in their first road game of the young season. Emmitt Finnie, Connor Levis and Shea Van Olm combined for seven points in the win, leading the way for the Blazers, who outshot Vancouver 32-23. Tyler Thorpe was the lone Giant to find the back of the net, scoring his second of the season in the third period.
Goaltender Brett Mirwald made 27 saves on 32 shots.
SEASON SERIES VS. WENATCHEE (4 H2H)
| DATE | LOCATION | RESULT/TIME |
| Oct. 1, 2023 | LEC | 4:00 PT |
| Oct. 20, 2023 | Town Toyota Center | 7:00 PT |
| Nov. 3, 2023 | Town Toyota Center | 7:00 PT |
| Feb. 10, 2023 | LEC | 7:00 PT |
NEXT 5 GAMES
| DATE | OPPONENT | LOCATION | TIME |
| Oct. 7, 2023 | at Portland | Veterans Memorial Coliseum | 6:00 PT |
| Oct. 13, 2023 | vs. Swift Current | LEC | 7:00 PT |
| Oct. 18, 2023 | vs. Medicine Hat | LEC | 7:00 PT |
| Oct. 20, 2023 | at Wenatchee | Town Toyota Center | 7:00 PT |
| Oct. 21, 2023 | at Kelowna | Prospera Place | 7:05 PT |
HOW TO TUNE IN
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