RECAP: Giants Storm Back From 3-0 Deficit to Defeat Royals

Category: ArticleJanuary 26, 2024

PHOTO BY: ROB WILTON

Langley, B.C. – The Vancouver Giants erased a 3-0 deficit on Friday night at the Langley Events Centre, scoring five consecutive times to come from behind and top the Victoria Royals 5-3.

The Giants are now 6-3 since the calendar switched to 2024, while their overall record improves to 19-24-2-0. Victoria falls to 24-16-3-3 this season.

The Giants got a pair of goals from Jaden Lipinski (13th, 14th), plus single tallies from Wyatt Wilson (1st), Cameron Schmidt (14th) and Tyson Zimmer (14th).

Victoria got goals from Tyson Laventure, Ben Riche and Justin Kipkie.

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GAME SUMMARY:

The Royals had the only goal of the opening period, as Laventure redirected one in off his skate on the power play at the 14:37 mark.

Thirty-three seconds into the second period, Victoria doubled their lead after Riche’s shot just squeaked through Mirwald and into the back of the net.

Kipkie extended the visitors’ lead to 3-0 at the 12:37 mark of the middle frame after the defenceman arrived first to a loose puck in the slot and quickly fired it home for his 13th goal of the season.

Vancouver got two key goals before the second period was done to claw back into the game.

First, Lipinski made it 3-1 on a 4-on-3 power play after Sam Honzek’s low shot created a perfect rebound off the pad of Braden Holt.

Then with just 1:04 left in the second, Halaburda gained the zone on the left side off the rush and fanned on the shot, but the puck ended up rolling into the blue paint, where Wilson was right there to deposit the puck into the back of the net for his first goal in a Giants uniform.

The Giants killed off two crucial penalties in the first seven minutes of the third period to keep the score at 3-2.

Then, at the 8:33 mark, Schmidt hopped on a loose puck at the right circle and released an incredibly deadly snap shot that beat Holt cleanly on the glove side to tie the game 3-3.

With under four minutes to go, new acquisition Zimmer would deliver the go-ahead goal, as he quickly fired a shot from the right circle after receiving a pass from Adam Titlbach on a 3-on-2 rush.

Lipinski would score his second of the night into an empty net to deliver the final blow and make it a 5-3 final score.

THEY SAID IT

“I thought we started off real good in the first period. We got away from our game in the second period a little bit. We played a little bit loose. We were a little bit loose in the neutral zone. We weren’t getting pucks in deep, but I liked the way we responded coming back in that third period. We just hung around, got one, chipped away at it. By the third period I thought that was one of the best periods we’ve played all year.” – Giants Head Coach Manny Viveiros on the game as a whole

“The depth that we have in our group right now allows us to get back into that type of game. We talked about it on the bench in between periods, that we’re still in this game. We just need to continue playing the right now and just eliminate some of the stuff that at times was self-inflicted and we’ll be fine. The kids believed, if they stick with it, that they’re going to get back in it. They got some timely goals and that third period momentum, it was really good.” – Giants Head Coach Manny Viveiros on depth

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STATISTICS

SOG: VAN — 6/11/12 = 29 | VIC – 11/13/9 = 33
PP: VAN — 1/3 | VIC — 1/5
Face-Offs: VAN — 38 | VIC — 21

3 STARS

1st: VAN – Tyson Zimmer – GWG, +1
2nd: VAN – Jaden Lipinski – 2G, 1A, 4 SOG, +2
3rd: VAN – Cameron Schmidt – 1G, 5 SOG, +1

GOALTENDING BATTLE

Vancouver: WIN – Brett Mirwald (30 saves / 33 shots)
Victoria: Loss – Braden Holt (24 saves / 28 shots)

NEXT GAME:

The Giants travel to the Island tomorrow morning to play two more against Victoria: Saturday night at 6:05 p.m. and Sunday afternoon at 3:05 p.m.. CLICK FOR TICKETS