PREVIEW: Giants Look to Keeping Winning Ways Going in Saskatoon
PHOTO BY: ROB WILTON
Saskatoon, Sask. – Tonight the Vancouver Giants (16-21-2-0) look to keep the good times rolling against a difficult opponent, as they put their three-game win streak to the test against the Eastern Conference-leading Saskatoon Blades (26-8-2-2) at 5 p.m. PT.
Vancouver has beaten Brandon (4-0 W) and Prince Albert (6-5 SOW) to start their East Division road trip, while also beating Calgary (5-4 OTW) before the trip began.
The Blades are coming off a shootout loss to the Prince Albert Raiders on Saturday, but have picked up a point in 15 straight (11-0-2-2 since Nov. 24).
Vancouver is 7-3-0 in their last 10 road games and currently sits in 7th place in the Western Conference.
Saskatoon is 13-1-1 on home ice this season and currently sits in 1st place in the Eastern Conference.
HOW TO TUNE IN
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LAST TIME OUT
The Giants grabbed a 6-5 shootout victory on the road over the Prince Albert Raiders on Tuesday night, where newcomer Tyson Zimmer – acquired by the Giants on Monday – had the only goal from either side in the shootout.
In net, Matthew Hutchison picked up his third win of the season for Vancouver by stopping all six Raiders he faced in the shootout. The Giants power play went 2-or-5 in the win.
Vancouver got goals from five different players: Mazden Leslie (8th), Tomis Marinkovic (1st), Sam Honzek (4th), Jaden Lipinski (12th) and Tyler Thorpe (19th).
TONIGHT’S MATCHUP
This is the first and only head-to-head meeting of the season.
The Giants haven’t played a WHL game in Saskatoon since October 9, 2019, which was a 2-1 loss.
Vancouver did host the Blades once last season, falling 2-1 at the LEC on February 18, 2023.
The Blades have allowed the fewest goals per game in the WHL, so generating scoring chances will be a tall task. They also have one of the league’s best power plays and are incredibly disciplined.
That being said, Vancouver seems to have found it’s mojo and they have one of the hottest goalies in the league in between the pipes in Brett Mirwald.
TALE OF THE TAPE
| VANCOUVER | STAT | SASKATOON |
|
16-21-2-0 (34 Pts) |
RECORD | 26-8-2-2 (56 Pts) |
| 4th | DIV. RANK | 1st |
| 8th | CONF. RANK | 1st |
| 5-5-0-0 | PAST 10 | 7-0-1-2 |
| 3W | STREAK | 1L |
| 8-10-2-0 | HOME | 13-1-1-0 |
| 8-11-0-0 | AWAY | 13-7-1-2 |
| 112 (2.87 – 19th) | GF (/G) | 138 (3.63 – 11th) |
| 147 (3.77 – 15th) | GA (/G) | 97 (2.55 – 1st) |
| 28-for-134 (20.9%) | PP% | 34-for-141 (24.1%) |
| 137-for-173 (79.2%) | PK% | 103-for-119 (86.6%) |
| Lipinski (12-25-37)
Halaburda (14-19-33) Thorpe (19-13-32) |
LEADERS | Wong (11-54-65)
Sidorov (34-18-52) Lisowsky (20-24-44) |
WHAT ARE WE WEARING
The Giants will be wearing their white primary jerseys.
SEASON SERIES VS. SASKATOON (0-0-0; 1 H2H)
| DATE | LOCATION | RESULT/TIME |
| Jan. 10, 2024 | Sasktel Centre | 5:00 pm PST |
NEXT 5 GAMES
| DATE | OPPONENT | LOCATION | TIME |
| Jan. 10, 2024 | at Saskatoon | Sasktel Centre | 5:00 pm PST |
| Jan. 12, 2024 | at Regina | Brandt Centre | 5:00 pm PST |
| Jan. 13, 2024 | at Moose Jaw | Moose Jaw Events Centre | 5:00 pm PST |
| Jan. 19, 2024 | at Kelowna | Prospera Place | 7:05 pm PST |
| Jan. 21, 2024 | vs. Kelowna | LEC | 2:00 pm PST |
