[{"id":88475,"date":"2026-04-27T10:30:29","date_gmt":"2026-04-27T17:30:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/?p=88475"},"modified":"2026-04-27T11:49:02","modified_gmt":"2026-04-27T18:49:02","slug":"u18-round-robin-preston-lin-shine-in-7-0-win-over-finland","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/article\/u18-round-robin-preston-lin-shine-in-7-0-win-over-finland","title":{"rendered":"U18 Round Robin: Preston &amp; Lin Shine for Canada In 7-0 Win Over Finland"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>Tren\u010d\u00edn, SVK \u2013\u00a0<\/strong>Vancouver Giants forward <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/players\/29463\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Mathis Preston<\/a><\/strong> and defenceman <a href=\"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/players\/29532\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong>Ryan Lin<\/strong><\/a><strong>\u00a0<\/strong>combined for five points in Canada&#8217;s convincing 7-0 win over Finland on Monday morning at the IIHF U18 World Championship.<\/p>\n<p>Preston notched a pair of goals on four shots on net and was +3, while Lin tallied a goal and two assists, was +2 and skated 20:39. Lin was named the Player of the Game for Canada.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_88479\" style=\"width: 2010px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-88479\" class=\"size-full wp-image-88479\" src=\"https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/27104701\/g18_163152_fin-can_01636_ct.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1404\" srcset=\"https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/27104701\/g18_163152_fin-can_01636_ct.jpg 2000w, https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/27104701\/g18_163152_fin-can_01636_ct-300x211.jpg 300w, https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/27104701\/g18_163152_fin-can_01636_ct-1024x719.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/27104701\/g18_163152_fin-can_01636_ct-768x539.jpg 768w, https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/27104701\/g18_163152_fin-can_01636_ct-1536x1078.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-88479\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Ryan Lin was named Players of the Game for Canada after his country&#8217;s 7-0 Preliminary Round win at the 2026 IIHF Ice Hockey U18 World Championship at Pavol Demitra Ice Hockey Stadium on April 27, 2026 (Photo by Chris Tanouye\/IIHF)<\/p><\/div>\n<p>Both Giants are now <a href=\"https:\/\/www.iihf.com\/en\/events\/2026\/wm18\/skaters\/scoringleaders\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">top-10 in tournament scoring<\/a>. Lin leads all defencemen in points with six (1G-5A) through four games and is also first in plus-minus (+7). Preston has three goals and two assists for five points, currently tied for seventh in tournament scoring.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.iihf.com\/en\/events\/2026\/wm18\/schedule\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/www.iihf.com\/en\/events\/2026\/wm18\/schedule&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1776974473818000&amp;usg=AOvVaw1_YftzfAxW-DYz74edn9hr\"><strong>CLICK FOR CANADA&#8217;S U18 SCHEDULE<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0<strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.iihf.com\/en\/events\/2026\/wm18\/standings\/group\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/www.iihf.com\/en\/events\/2026\/wm18\/standings\/group&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1776974473818000&amp;usg=AOvVaw07ulUt9O41TsD1Eh5WjwO8\">CLICK FOR TOURNAMENT STANDINGS<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Canada finished the round robin in second place in Group A with nine points (three regulation wins, one regulation loss) and will now face Sweden in the quarter-final, who finished in third place in Group B with two regulation wins and two regulation losses.<\/p>\n<p>The quarter-final <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/IIHFHockey\/status\/2048835595636486628\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">will be played<\/a> on Wednesday, April 29 at 5 a.m. PT.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Highlights: Finland vs Canada | 2026 U18 #WorldJuniors #IIHF\" width=\"1200\" height=\"675\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/XH4TmhX8_4I?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h3>GAME SUMMARY<\/h3>\n<p>Canada struck four times in the opening period and three times in the third to finish off their round robin on a high. All seven goals were scored at even strength.<\/p>\n<p>Adam Valentini got things started just over two minutes in, followed by Red Deer Rebels forward Beckett Hamilton just passed the 11 minute mark of the period. <a href=\"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/players\/29463\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/players\/29463\/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1776974473818000&amp;usg=AOvVaw1LJBEYCAMHtSuEdAfnfqQ2\"><strong>Preston<\/strong><\/a> made it a 3-0 game when he entered the Finland zone down the left wing and snapped a shot from the top of the circle that beat the Finnish goaltender over his left shoulder.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Pinpoint shot\ud83c\udfaf<\/p>\n<p>The <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/WHLGiants?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@WHLGiants<\/a>&#39; Mathis Preston has his second of the <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/U18MensWorlds?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#U18MensWorlds<\/a> and \ud83c\udde8\ud83c\udde6&#39;s third of the first period! <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/gPU7e4dUu4\">pic.twitter.com\/gPU7e4dUu4<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Canadian Hockey League (@CHLHockey) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/CHLHockey\/status\/2048744633346277632?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">April 27, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>Hamilton scored again off a great pass from Lin with under two minutes remaining in the opening frame.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Beckett Hamilton at the double! <\/p>\n<p>A <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/TheWHL?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@TheWHL<\/a> connection as the <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/WHLGiants?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@WHLGiants<\/a>&#39; Ryan Lin finds the <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/Rebelshockey?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@Rebelshockey<\/a> forward for \ud83c\udde8\ud83c\udde6&#39;s fourth of the first period! <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/U18MensWorlds?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#U18MensWorlds<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/f5o5vq0onJ\">pic.twitter.com\/f5o5vq0onJ<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Canadian Hockey League (@CHLHockey) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/CHLHockey\/status\/2048745751610552724?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">April 27, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>While no goals were scored in the second period, Preston made it a 5-0 game early in the third period when he one-timed a shot from the right circle off a pass from Keaton Verhoeff.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Five for \ud83c\udde8\ud83c\udde6! <\/p>\n<p>A second of the day for the <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/WHLGiants?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@WHLGiants<\/a>&#39; 2026 <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/NHLDraft?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#NHLDraft<\/a> prospect Mathis Preston! <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/U18MensWorlds?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#U18MensWorlds<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/r9NTJ3c1pz\">pic.twitter.com\/r9NTJ3c1pz<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Canadian Hockey League (@CHLHockey) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/CHLHockey\/status\/2048765377400754190?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">April 27, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>Dima Zhilkin extended Canada&#8217;s lead to 6-0 before Lin added one more tally off a wrap-around to make the final score 7-0.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">This is why Ryan Lin will be one of the first defencemen selected at the 2026 <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/NHDraft?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#NHDraft<\/a>! \ud83e\udd29<\/p>\n<p>The <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/WHLGiants?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@WHLGiants<\/a> star wraps home his first of the <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/U18MensWorlds?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#U18MensWorlds<\/a>! \ud83c\udde8\ud83c\udde6 <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/eq9XS8WEub\">pic.twitter.com\/eq9XS8WEub<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Canadian Hockey League (@CHLHockey) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/CHLHockey\/status\/2048767511760429397?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">April 27, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<h3><strong>CANADA UPCOMING SCHEDULE:<\/strong><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Quarter-Final, Wednesday, April 29 \u2013 5 a.m. PT \u2013 Canada vs. Sweden<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Both Mathis Preston and Ryan Lin\u00a0now sit top-10 in tournament scoring at the U18 Men&#8217;s Worlds.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":442,"featured_media":88476,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"article","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1488],"tags":[{"term_id":1820,"name":"Mathis Preston","slug":"mathis-preston","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":1820,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":14,"filter":"raw","term_order":"30"},{"term_id":1728,"name":"IIHF U18 World Championship","slug":"iihf-u18-world-championship","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":1728,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":11,"filter":"raw","term_order":"122"},{"term_id":1553,"name":"Ryan Lin","slug":"ryan-lin","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":1553,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":52,"filter":"raw","term_order":"295"},{"term_id":216,"name":"hockey canada","slug":"hockey-canada","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":217,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":38,"filter":"raw","term_order":"879"},{"term_id":333,"name":"vancouver giants","slug":"vancouver-giants","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":334,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":1434,"filter":"raw","term_order":"1782"}],"class_list":["post-88475","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-article","tag-mathis-preston","tag-iihf-u18-world-championship","tag-ryan-lin","tag-hockey-canada","tag-vancouver-giants","category-1488","description-off"],"acf":[],"featured_image":["https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/27102837\/Preston-Canada-U18s-4-scaled-e1777311198460.jpg",2560,1442,false],"hide_from_app_feed":false,"video":false,"gallery":null,"ht_game_id":0,"target_video":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/88475","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/442"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=88475"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/88475\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/88476"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=88475"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=88475"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=88475"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}},{"id":88465,"date":"2026-04-23T11:36:38","date_gmt":"2026-04-23T18:36:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/?p=88465"},"modified":"2026-04-23T11:36:38","modified_gmt":"2026-04-23T18:36:38","slug":"u18-round-robin-canada-shuts-out-latvia-to-grab-first-win","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/article\/u18-round-robin-canada-shuts-out-latvia-to-grab-first-win","title":{"rendered":"U18 Round Robin: Canada Shuts Out Latvia to Grab First Win"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>Tren\u010d\u00edn, SVK \u2013\u00a0<\/strong>Canada bounced back from Wednesday&#8217;s tournament opening 2-1 loss at the IIHF U18 World Championship, winning 6-0 against Latvia on Thursday morning.<\/p>\n<p>Two Vancouver Giants helped Canada grab their first win.<\/p>\n<p>Defenceman <a href=\"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/players\/29532\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong>Ryan Lin<\/strong><\/a> had one assist, three shots on goal and was +3, skating a total of 19:22. Forward\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/players\/29463\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong>Mathis Preston<\/strong><\/a> had six shots on goal and was +2.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.iihf.com\/en\/events\/2026\/wm18\/schedule\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/www.iihf.com\/en\/events\/2026\/wm18\/schedule&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1776974473818000&amp;usg=AOvVaw1_YftzfAxW-DYz74edn9hr\"><strong>CLICK FOR CANADA&#8217;S U18 SCHEDULE<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0<strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.iihf.com\/en\/events\/2026\/wm18\/standings\/group\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/www.iihf.com\/en\/events\/2026\/wm18\/standings\/group&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1776974473818000&amp;usg=AOvVaw07ulUt9O41TsD1Eh5WjwO8\">CLICK FOR TOURNAMENT STANDINGS<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<h3>GAME SUMMARY<\/h3>\n<p>Canada took an early lead just 52 seconds into the game after a misstep by Latvia&#8217;s Adrians Klavins, whose puck clearance went straight to <a href=\"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/players\/29463\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/players\/29463\/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1776974473818000&amp;usg=AOvVaw1LJBEYCAMHtSuEdAfnfqQ2\"><strong>Preston<\/strong><\/a> at centre ice. Preston then shot into Ilja Nikitins&#8217; pads, and Thomas Vanderberg was there to score on the rebound.<\/p>\n<p>Canada added a goal late in the first period and another in the second, entering the third period up 3-0.<\/p>\n<p>Then they pulled further ahead midway through the third on the power play. Adam Valentini, with help from <a href=\"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/players\/29532\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong>Lin,<\/strong><\/a> set up Dima Zhilkin in the slot, scoring similarly to his assist against Slovakia the day before.<\/p>\n<p>Latvia continued to compete, but began to wear down late in the game. Canada tacked on two additional goals to seal the win 6-0.<\/p>\n<p>Spokane Chiefs goaltender Carter Esler recorded the first shutout of the tournament, finishing with 19 saves.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;It was a good bounce-back game for us,&#8221; Preston said after the win. &#8220;Obviously, we were not satisfied with yesterday, so this was a bit of a revenge game for us. It was important to get that first win under our belt.&#8221;<\/p>\n<h3><strong>CANADA REMAINING ROUND ROBIN SCHEDULE:<\/strong><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Saturday, April 25 \u2013 5 a.m. PT \u2013 Canada vs. Norway<\/li>\n<li>Monday, April 27 \u2013 5 a.m. PT \u2013 Canada vs. Finland<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Canada rebounded on Thursday with a 6\u20130 win over Latvia at the IIHF U18 Men&#8217;s Worlds.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":632,"featured_media":88469,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"article","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1488],"tags":[{"term_id":1820,"name":"Mathis Preston","slug":"mathis-preston","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":1820,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":14,"filter":"raw","term_order":"30"},{"term_id":1728,"name":"IIHF U18 World Championship","slug":"iihf-u18-world-championship","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":1728,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":11,"filter":"raw","term_order":"122"},{"term_id":1553,"name":"Ryan Lin","slug":"ryan-lin","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":1553,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":52,"filter":"raw","term_order":"295"},{"term_id":216,"name":"hockey canada","slug":"hockey-canada","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":217,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":38,"filter":"raw","term_order":"879"},{"term_id":122,"name":"nhl draft","slug":"nhl-draft","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":123,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":54,"filter":"raw","term_order":"1300"},{"term_id":333,"name":"vancouver giants","slug":"vancouver-giants","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":334,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":1434,"filter":"raw","term_order":"1782"}],"class_list":["post-88465","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-article","tag-mathis-preston","tag-iihf-u18-world-championship","tag-ryan-lin","tag-hockey-canada","tag-nhl-draft","tag-vancouver-giants","category-1488","description-off"],"acf":[],"featured_image":["https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/23101927\/gm06_150148_can-lat_01685_ct-e1776969385832.jpg",2000,1127,false],"hide_from_app_feed":false,"video":false,"gallery":null,"ht_game_id":0,"target_video":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/88465","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/632"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=88465"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/88465\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/88469"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=88465"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=88465"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=88465"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}},{"id":88460,"date":"2026-04-22T12:59:36","date_gmt":"2026-04-22T19:59:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/?p=88460"},"modified":"2026-04-22T13:02:45","modified_gmt":"2026-04-22T20:02:45","slug":"u18-round-robin-preston-scores-in-canadas-tournament-opener","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/article\/u18-round-robin-preston-scores-in-canadas-tournament-opener","title":{"rendered":"U18 Round Robin: Preston Scores in Canada&#8217;s Tournament Opener"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>Tren\u010d\u00edn, SVK \u2013<\/strong> Vancouver Giants forward <a href=\"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/players\/29463\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong>Mathis Preston<\/strong><\/a> scored for Canada in a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.iihf.com\/en\/events\/2026\/wm18\/gamecenter\/playbyplay\/71348\/4-can-vs-svk\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">2-1 loss to Slovakia<\/a> in their first game of the 2026 IIHF U18 World Championship on Wednesday.<\/p>\n<p>Preston tied the game 1-1 with a powerplay goal late in the second period. The winger fired two shots on goal in 15:59 of ice-time.<\/p>\n<p>Giants defenceman <a href=\"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/players\/29532\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong>Ryan Lin<\/strong><\/a> logged 22:15 of ice-time, the second most of any Canadian player.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.iihf.com\/en\/events\/2026\/wm18\/schedule\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong>CLICK FOR CANADA&#8217;S U18 SCHEDULE<\/strong><\/a> |\u00a0<strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.iihf.com\/en\/events\/2026\/wm18\/standings\/group\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">CLICK FOR TOURNAMENT STANDINGS<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Giants forward Mathis Preston scores Canada\u2019s first of the tournament at the <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/U18MensWorlds?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#U18MensWorlds<\/a>!<a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/HockeyCanada?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@HockeyCanada<\/a> is tied 1-1 with Slovakia late in the 2nd period.<\/p>\n<p>Tune in now on <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/TSN_Sports?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@TSN_Sports<\/a> 4! <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/c29asrmpPb\">pic.twitter.com\/c29asrmpPb<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Vancouver Giants (@WHLGiants) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/WHLGiants\/status\/2047005188356186601?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">April 22, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Slovakia broke the 1-1 deadlock midway through the third period thanks to Timothy Kazda.<\/p>\n<p>Canada&#8217;s defenseman Lucas Ambrosio abruptly halted Slovakia&#8217;s Ivan Matta&#8217;s rush to the net, which resulted in a penalty shot. Kazda converted on the penalty shot to help the host nation defeat Canada, who are the two-time defending Gold medallists.<\/p>\n<h3><strong>CANADA REMAINING ROUND ROBIN SCHEDULE:<\/strong><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Thursday, April 23 \u2013 5 a.m. PT \u2013 Canada vs. Latvia<\/li>\n<li>Saturday, April 25 \u2013 5 a.m. PT \u2013 Canada vs. Norway<\/li>\n<li>Monday, April 27 \u2013 5 a.m. PT \u2013 Canada vs. Finland<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Preston scored the only goal for Canada in a loss to host Slovakia in their tournament opener of the IIHF U18 World Championship.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":632,"featured_media":88459,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"article","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1488],"tags":[{"term_id":1820,"name":"Mathis Preston","slug":"mathis-preston","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":1820,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":14,"filter":"raw","term_order":"30"},{"term_id":1728,"name":"IIHF U18 World Championship","slug":"iihf-u18-world-championship","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":1728,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":11,"filter":"raw","term_order":"122"},{"term_id":1553,"name":"Ryan Lin","slug":"ryan-lin","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":1553,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":52,"filter":"raw","term_order":"295"},{"term_id":216,"name":"hockey canada","slug":"hockey-canada","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":217,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":38,"filter":"raw","term_order":"879"},{"term_id":122,"name":"nhl draft","slug":"nhl-draft","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":123,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":54,"filter":"raw","term_order":"1300"},{"term_id":333,"name":"vancouver giants","slug":"vancouver-giants","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":334,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":1434,"filter":"raw","term_order":"1782"}],"class_list":["post-88460","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-article","tag-mathis-preston","tag-iihf-u18-world-championship","tag-ryan-lin","tag-hockey-canada","tag-nhl-draft","tag-vancouver-giants","category-1488","description-off"],"acf":[],"featured_image":["https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/22112711\/Preston-Canada-U18s-scaled-e1776888155976.jpg",2560,1442,false],"hide_from_app_feed":false,"video":false,"gallery":null,"ht_game_id":0,"target_video":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/88460","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/632"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=88460"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/88460\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/88459"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=88460"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=88460"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=88460"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}},{"id":88443,"date":"2026-04-17T11:37:19","date_gmt":"2026-04-17T18:37:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/?p=88443"},"modified":"2026-04-17T12:14:42","modified_gmt":"2026-04-17T19:14:42","slug":"4-giants-alumni-on-nhl-playoff-rosters","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/article\/4-giants-alumni-on-nhl-playoff-rosters","title":{"rendered":"4 Giants Alumni on NHL Playoff Rosters"},"content":{"rendered":"<div><strong>Langley, B.C. \u2013 <\/strong>Four former Vancouver Giants are listed on 2026 NHL playoff rosters: Bowen Byram (Buffalo), Brendan Gallagher (Montreal), Brett Kulak (Colorado) and Jordan Martinook (Carolina).<\/div>\n<div class=\"GRl5yb a8pxAe\">\n<p>The 2026 Playoffs begin on Saturday, April 18.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h4><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nhl.com\/sabres\/player\/bowen-byram-8481524\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Bowen Byram<\/a> \u2013 Buffalo Sabres<\/strong><\/h4>\n<p>Byram, 24, had a career year for the suddenly upstart Sabres, recording 11 goals and 31 assists for 42 points in 82 games. It represented a new career-high in points, goals and plus\/minus, at +15. He also played in all 82 games for the second consecutive season, helping the Sabres end a 14-year playoff drought while capturing the Atlantic Division for the time since 2009.<\/p>\n<p>To date, the Cranbrook, B.C. product has played in 328 career regular season games, during which he has produced 152 points (44G-108A). The left-shot defender was the 4th overall pick in the 2019 NHL Entry Draft and burst onto the NHL scene with a standout performance during the Colorado Avalanche&#8217; playoff run in 2022, when the then-rookie tallied nine points in 20 playoff games (9A), helping Colorado capture their third Stanley Cup.<\/p>\n<p>As a Giant, Byram played three full seasons (2017-20) and ranks third all-time for points by a defenceman with 150 (46G-104A). He also holds the second-most productive single season point total for Giants defencemen, thanks to a 71-point campaign in 2018-19. During Vancouver&#8217;s run to the 2019 WHL Championship Final, Byram also put up 26 points in 22 games (8G-18A).<\/p>\n<p>Buffalo will play the Boston Bruins in the first round of the playoffs.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nhl.com\/sabres\/roster\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong>CLICK FOR FULL SABRES ROSTER<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-88453\" src=\"https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/17121126\/Byram-BUF.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1296\" height=\"729\" srcset=\"https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/17121126\/Byram-BUF.jpg 1296w, https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/17121126\/Byram-BUF-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/17121126\/Byram-BUF-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/17121126\/Byram-BUF-768x432.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1296px) 100vw, 1296px\" \/><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h4><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nhl.com\/canadiens\/player\/brendan-gallagher-8475848\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Brendan Gallagher<\/a> \u2013 Montreal Canadiens<\/strong><\/h4>\n<p>Gallagher, 33, saw his ice-time reduced this season, but still chipped in with 23 points (7G-16A) in 77 games. The veteran forward is the longest-tenured player on the Canadiens roster and helped them to a 48-24-10 record this season.<\/p>\n<p>The 5-foot-9 winger is now closing in on both 1000 career games and 500 career points in the NHL: over 14 seasons and 911 regular season games, all with the Canadiens, he has produced 487 points (246G-241A), including two 30-goal seasons and two additional 20-goal seasons.<\/p>\n<p>Born in Edmonton, but raised in Tsawwassen, B.C., Gallagher has been an alternate captain for the Habs for the past 11 seasons.<\/p>\n<p>Gallagher is the Giants&#8217; all-time leader in points with 280 (136G-144A), which included three consecutive 40-goal seasons from 2009-12. He was selected by the Habs in the fifth round of the 2010 NHL Entry Draft. Gallagher ranks sixth in Giants playoff scoring all-time, with 36 points in 42 games (19G-17A).<\/p>\n<p>Montreal will play the Tampa Bay Lightning in the first round of the playoffs.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nhl.com\/canadiens\/roster\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong>CLICK HERE FOR FULL CANADIENS ROSTER<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-88451\" src=\"https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/17121119\/Gallagher-MTL.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1296\" height=\"729\" srcset=\"https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/17121119\/Gallagher-MTL.jpg 1296w, https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/17121119\/Gallagher-MTL-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/17121119\/Gallagher-MTL-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/17121119\/Gallagher-MTL-768x432.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1296px) 100vw, 1296px\" \/><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h4><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nhl.com\/avalanche\/player\/brett-kulak-8476967\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Brett Kulak<\/a> \u2013 Colorado Avalanche<\/strong><\/h4>\n<p>Kulak, 32, was traded twice this season, first to the Pittsburgh Penguins from the Edmonton Oilers on Dec. 12 and then <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nhl.com\/avalanche\/news\/avalanche-acquire-kulak\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">to the Avalanche for Samuel Girard<\/a> on Feb. 24, 2026.<\/p>\n<p>The left-shot blueliner played in 83 games this season because of the trades, registering 12 points (1G-11A). He averaged 19:08 of ice-time with the Avalanche in 27 games, helping them finish with the best record in the NHL (55-16-11). Kulak went to the Stanley Cup Final the past two seasons with the Oilers, losing each time to the Florida Panthers (seven games in 2024 and six in 2025).<\/p>\n<p>The Edmonton native has played in 663 career regular season NHL games, having recorded 137 points (29G-108A) with the Calgary Flames, Canadiens, Oilers, Penguins and Avalanche.<\/p>\n<p>As a Giant, Kulak played three full seasons (2011-14), culminating in a standout 60-point campaign in 2013-14, during which he was also an alternate captain. He was selected by the Flames in the fourth round of the 2012 NHL Entry Draft and was originally a ninth-round pick by the Giants in the 2009 WHL Bantam Draft.<\/p>\n<p>Colorado will play the Los Angeles Kings in the first round of the playoffs.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nhl.com\/avalanche\/roster\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong>CLICK HERE FOR FULL AVALANCHE ROSTER<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-88450\" src=\"https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/17121116\/Kulak-COL.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1199\" height=\"674\" srcset=\"https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/17121116\/Kulak-COL.jpg 1199w, https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/17121116\/Kulak-COL-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/17121116\/Kulak-COL-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/17121116\/Kulak-COL-768x432.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1199px) 100vw, 1199px\" \/><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h4><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.eliteprospects.com\/player\/44271\/jordan-martinook\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Jordan Martinook<\/a> \u2013 Carolina Hurricanes<\/strong><\/h4>\n<p>Martinook, 33, fell just one point shy of his fourth straight 30-point campaign, recording 29 points (12G-17A) in 77 games in 2025-26. He helped the Hurricanes claim the top spot in the Eastern Conference with a 53-22-7 record, giving them home-ice advantage for the first three rounds of the playoffs.<\/p>\n<p>It was the seventh season Martinook has served as an alternate captain for the Hurricanes.<\/p>\n<p>The Brandon, Man. native has now played in 797 career regular season games over 11 NHL seasons, during which he has produced 262 points (107G-155A). He also brings a ton of playoff experience: he has suited up in 76 postseason games, all with the Hurricanes, and has 33 points (8G-25A).<\/p>\n<p>As a Giant, Martinook scored 51 goals and 41 assists for 92 points during his two seasons with the club from 2010-12. Following his 40-goal campaign in 2011-12, the (then) Phoenix Coyotes made him a second-round selection in the 2012 NHL Entry Draft.<\/p>\n<p>Carolina will play the Ottawa Senators in the first round of the playoffs.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nhl.com\/hurricanes\/roster\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong>CLICK HERE FOR FULL HURRICANES ROSTER<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-88452\" src=\"https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/17121123\/Martinook-CAR.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1280\" height=\"720\" srcset=\"https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/17121123\/Martinook-CAR.jpg 1280w, https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/17121123\/Martinook-CAR-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/17121123\/Martinook-CAR-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/17121123\/Martinook-CAR-768x432.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1280px) 100vw, 1280px\" \/><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Langley, B.C. \u2013 Four former Vancouver Giants are listed on 2026 NHL playoff rosters: Bowen Byram (Buffalo), Brendan Gallagher (Montreal), Brett Kulak (Colorado) and Jordan Martinook (Carolina). The 2026 Playoffs begin on Saturday, April 18. Bowen Byram \u2013 Buffalo Sabres Byram, 24, had a career year for the suddenly upstart Sabres, recording 11 goals and&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":442,"featured_media":88448,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"article","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1488],"tags":[{"term_id":1847,"name":"Jordin Martinook","slug":"jordin-martinook","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":1847,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":1,"filter":"raw","term_order":"3"},{"term_id":1159,"name":"bowen byram","slug":"bowen-byram","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":1163,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":297,"filter":"raw","term_order":"444"},{"term_id":128,"name":"brendan gallagher","slug":"brendan-gallagher","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":129,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":48,"filter":"raw","term_order":"455"},{"term_id":72,"name":"brett kulak","slug":"brett-kulak","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":73,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":42,"filter":"raw","term_order":"467"},{"term_id":333,"name":"vancouver giants","slug":"vancouver-giants","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":334,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":1434,"filter":"raw","term_order":"1782"}],"class_list":["post-88443","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-article","tag-jordin-martinook","tag-bowen-byram","tag-brendan-gallagher","tag-brett-kulak","tag-vancouver-giants","category-1488","description-off"],"acf":[],"featured_image":["https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/17113422\/4-Alumni-on-NHL-Playoff-Rosters-Wide-Web.jpg",1920,1080,false],"hide_from_app_feed":false,"video":false,"gallery":null,"ht_game_id":0,"target_video":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/88443","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/442"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=88443"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/88443\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/88448"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=88443"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=88443"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=88443"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}},{"id":88438,"date":"2026-04-16T11:48:50","date_gmt":"2026-04-16T18:48:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/?p=88438"},"modified":"2026-04-16T12:17:12","modified_gmt":"2026-04-16T19:17:12","slug":"5-giants-listed-on-nhl-central-scouting-final-draft-rankings","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/article\/5-giants-listed-on-nhl-central-scouting-final-draft-rankings","title":{"rendered":"5 Giants Listed on NHL Central Scouting Final Draft Rankings"},"content":{"rendered":"<p style=\"font-weight: 400;text-align: justify\"><strong>Langley, B.C. \u2013<\/strong> The Vancouver Giants are excited to announce that five players have been listed by <strong>NHL Central Scouting<\/strong> on their <strong>Final<\/strong> rankings for the 2026 NHL Draft: defenceman <span style=\"color: #97002e\"><a style=\"color: #97002e\" href=\"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/players\/29532\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong>Ryan Lin<\/strong><\/a>, <span style=\"color: #000000\">along with forwards <\/span><\/span><span style=\"color: #97002e\"><a style=\"color: #97002e\" href=\"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/players\/29463\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong>Mathis Preston<\/strong><\/a><\/span>, <span style=\"color: #97002e\"><a style=\"color: #97002e\" href=\"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/players\/29393\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong>Joe Iginla<\/strong><\/a><\/span>, <span style=\"color: #97002e\"><a style=\"color: #97002e\" href=\"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/players\/29533\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong>Brett Olson<\/strong><\/a><\/span>, and <span style=\"color: #97002e\"><a style=\"color: #97002e\" href=\"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/players\/30134\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong>Tobias Tom\u00edk.<\/strong><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;text-align: justify\">NHL Central Scouting <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nhl.com\/news\/topic\/nhl-draft\/final-central-scouting-2026-north-american-draft-rankings-released\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">announced the final list<\/a> of the top North American skaters and goalies, along with the top International skaters and goalies, on Thursday morning.<\/p>\n<p>Below is where the Giants were ranked:<\/p>\n<table style=\"border-collapse: collapse;width: 72.971%;height: 110px\">\n<tbody>\n<tr style=\"height: 22px\">\n<td style=\"width: 14.4396%;height: 22px\"><strong>Rank (N.A. Skaters)<\/strong><\/td>\n<td style=\"width: 8.80096%;height: 22px\"><strong>Last Name<\/strong><\/td>\n<td style=\"width: 10.7917%;height: 22px\"><strong>First Name<\/strong><\/td>\n<td style=\"width: 15.5986%;height: 22px\"><strong>Hometown<\/strong><\/td>\n<td style=\"width: 3.93442%;height: 22px\"><strong>Ht<\/strong><\/td>\n<td style=\"width: 4.28883%;height: 22px\"><strong>Wt<\/strong><\/td>\n<td style=\"width: 5.60254%;height: 22px\"><strong>Pos<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr style=\"height: 22px\">\n<td style=\"width: 14.4396%;height: 22px;text-align: left\">16th<\/td>\n<td style=\"width: 8.80096%;height: 22px;text-align: left\"><span style=\"color: #97002e\"><strong><a style=\"color: #97002e\" href=\"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/players\/29532\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Lin<\/a><\/strong><\/span><\/td>\n<td style=\"width: 10.7917%;height: 22px;text-align: left\">Ryan<\/td>\n<td style=\"width: 15.5986%;height: 22px;text-align: left\">Richmond, B.C.<\/td>\n<td style=\"width: 3.93442%;height: 22px;text-align: left\">5&#8217;11&#8221;<\/td>\n<td style=\"width: 4.28883%;height: 22px;text-align: left\">178<\/td>\n<td style=\"width: 5.60254%;height: 22px;text-align: left\">D<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr style=\"height: 22px\">\n<td style=\"width: 14.4396%;height: 22px;text-align: left\">32nd<\/td>\n<td style=\"width: 8.80096%;height: 22px;text-align: left\"><span style=\"color: #97002e\"><a style=\"color: #97002e\" href=\"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/players\/29463\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong>Preston<\/strong><\/a><\/span><\/td>\n<td style=\"width: 10.7917%;height: 22px;text-align: left\">Mathis<\/td>\n<td style=\"width: 15.5986%;height: 22px;text-align: left\">Penticton, B.C.<\/td>\n<td style=\"width: 3.93442%;height: 22px;text-align: left\">5&#8217;11&#8221;<\/td>\n<td style=\"width: 4.28883%;height: 22px;text-align: left\">173<\/td>\n<td style=\"width: 5.60254%;height: 22px;text-align: left\">RW<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"width: 14.4396%;text-align: left\">173rd<\/td>\n<td style=\"width: 8.80096%;height: 22px;text-align: left\"><span style=\"color: #97002e\"><strong><a style=\"color: #97002e\" href=\"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/players\/29533\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Olson<\/a><\/strong><\/span><\/td>\n<td style=\"width: 10.7917%;height: 22px;text-align: left\">Brett<\/td>\n<td style=\"width: 15.5986%;height: 22px;text-align: left\">Spruce Grove, AB<\/td>\n<td style=\"width: 3.93442%;height: 22px;text-align: left\">6&#8217;2&#8243;<\/td>\n<td style=\"width: 4.28883%;height: 22px;text-align: left\">189<\/td>\n<td style=\"width: 5.60254%;height: 22px;text-align: left\">C<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr style=\"height: 22px\">\n<td style=\"width: 14.4396%;height: 22px;text-align: left\">193rd<\/td>\n<td style=\"width: 8.80096%;height: 22px;text-align: left\"><span style=\"color: #97002e\"><strong><a style=\"color: #97002e\" href=\"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/players\/30134\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Tom\u00edk<\/a><\/strong><\/span><\/td>\n<td style=\"width: 10.7917%;height: 22px;text-align: left\">Tobias<\/td>\n<td style=\"width: 15.5986%;height: 22px;text-align: left\">Ilava, SVK<\/td>\n<td style=\"width: 3.93442%;height: 22px;text-align: left\">6&#8217;0&#8243;<\/td>\n<td style=\"width: 4.28883%;height: 22px;text-align: left\">186<\/td>\n<td style=\"width: 5.60254%;height: 22px;text-align: left\">LW<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr style=\"height: 22px\">\n<td style=\"width: 14.4396%;height: 22px;text-align: left\">200th<\/td>\n<td style=\"width: 8.80096%;height: 22px;text-align: left\"><span style=\"color: #97002e\"><strong><a style=\"color: #97002e\" href=\"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/players\/29393\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Iginla<\/a><\/strong><\/span><\/td>\n<td style=\"width: 10.7917%;height: 22px;text-align: left\">Joe<\/td>\n<td style=\"width: 15.5986%;height: 22px;text-align: left\">Lake Country, B.C.<\/td>\n<td style=\"width: 3.93442%;height: 22px;text-align: left\">5&#8217;10&#8221;<\/td>\n<td style=\"width: 4.28883%;height: 22px;text-align: left\">170<\/td>\n<td style=\"width: 5.60254%;height: 22px;text-align: left\">RW<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/media.d3.nhle.com\/image\/private\/t_document\/prd\/iynnvgch2guzxrjyzggk.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong>CLICK FOR THE N.A. SKATERS LIST<\/strong><\/a> |\u00a0<strong><a href=\"https:\/\/media.d3.nhle.com\/image\/private\/t_document\/prd\/l6ernxevadatdxg4ro7a.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">CLICK FOR THE N.A. GOALIES LIST<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Lin (Richmond, B.C.) <\/strong>was the highest rated Giant on the list, holding the 16th spot, making him a projected first-round pick in the 2026 NHL Draft. The 5-foot-11, 178-pound right-shot defender led the Giants in scoring this season with 57 points in just 53 games (14G-43A). His 14 goals this season were nearly triple the five he scored in 2024-25.<\/p>\n<p>Lin\u2019s 1.08 points-per-game this season were the third-highest by a Giants defenceman in franchise history, trailing only Jonathon Blum (1.29 in 2008-09) and Mazden Leslie (1.09 in 2024-25). His 1.08 points-per-game this season ranked 7th amongst all defencemen in the WHL. Lin will have one last opportunity to play in front of scouts, when he suits up for Canada at the 2026 IIHF U18 Men\u2019s World Championship in Slovakia, which begins on April 22. He was drafted by the Giants with the sixth overall pick in the 2023 WHL Prospects Draft.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Preston (Penticton, B.C.)<\/strong> is the highest rated Giants forward, coming in at 32nd, which still projects as a first-round talent. The 5-foot-11, 173 lb. winger was acquired by the Giants ahead of the 2026 WHL trade deadline. He recorded 12 points (4G-8A) in 10 games with Vancouver, missing significant time due to a lower-body injury that he suffered on January 10. Preston started the 2025-26 campaign with 32 points in 36 games for the Spokane Chiefs (14G-18A). Preston will also play for Canada at the U18 Men&#8217;s Worlds later this month. He was drafted by Spokane with the third overall pick in the 2023 WHL Prospects Draft.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Olson (Spruce Grove, AB)<\/strong> is the highest Giants centre on the list coming in at 173rd. Olson doubled his point total from his 16-year-old rookie season, finishing 2025-26 with 30 points (11G-19A). He was the only Giant to suit up in all 68 games this season. The second-year forward was drafted by the Giants with the eighth overall pick in the 2023 WHL Prospects Draft. Olson rounded out his game this season, averaging 2:20 of penalty killing time per game. Twenty-four of his points came at even-strength, the second-most amongst Giants forwards.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Tom\u00edk (Ilava, SVK) <\/strong>is ranked 193rd on the final draft rankings. Tom\u00edk finished his first season in North America with 28 points (12G-16A) in 61 games. The forward represented Slovakia at the IIHF World Junior Championship for the second year in a row, this time producing two points (1G-1A) in five games. Tom\u00edk was drafted by the Giants with the 29th overall pick in the first round of the 2024 CHL Import Draft.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Iginla (Lake Country, B.C.) <\/strong>finished his second full WHL campaign with 31 points (15G-16A) in 59 games split between the Edmonton Oil Kings and Giants. He was recovering from an injury at the time of the midseason trade to Vancouver, but heated up at the end of the season, with seven points (3G-4A) in his final 10 games. Iginla was drafted by Edmonton with the 12th overall pick in the 2023 WHL Prospects Draft.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;text-align: justify\">A total of 69 Western Hockey League skaters and nine goaltenders were listed on the final rankings, including 10\u00a0in the first round of North American skaters.<\/p>\n<p>The 2026 NHL Draft will be held at KeyBank Center in Buffalo on June 26-27. The NHL Draft Lottery to determine the first 16 picks is May 5.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Langley, B.C. \u2013 The Vancouver Giants are excited to announce that five players have been listed by NHL Central Scouting on their Final rankings for the 2026 NHL Draft: defenceman Ryan Lin, along with forwards Mathis Preston, Joe Iginla, Brett Olson, and Tobias Tom\u00edk. NHL Central Scouting announced the final list of the top North&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":442,"featured_media":88440,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"article","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1488],"tags":[{"term_id":1820,"name":"Mathis Preston","slug":"mathis-preston","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":1820,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":14,"filter":"raw","term_order":"30"},{"term_id":1819,"name":"Joe Iginla","slug":"joe-iginla","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":1819,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":6,"filter":"raw","term_order":"31"},{"term_id":1648,"name":"Tobias Tomik","slug":"tobias-tomik","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":1648,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":8,"filter":"raw","term_order":"202"},{"term_id":1614,"name":"NHL Central Scouting","slug":"nhl-central-scouting","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":1614,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":7,"filter":"raw","term_order":"236"},{"term_id":1553,"name":"Ryan Lin","slug":"ryan-lin","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":1553,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":52,"filter":"raw","term_order":"295"},{"term_id":1554,"name":"Brett Olson","slug":"brett-olson","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":1554,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":16,"filter":"raw","term_order":"296"},{"term_id":122,"name":"nhl draft","slug":"nhl-draft","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":123,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":54,"filter":"raw","term_order":"1300"},{"term_id":333,"name":"vancouver giants","slug":"vancouver-giants","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":334,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":1434,"filter":"raw","term_order":"1782"}],"class_list":["post-88438","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-article","tag-mathis-preston","tag-joe-iginla","tag-tobias-tomik","tag-nhl-central-scouting","tag-ryan-lin","tag-brett-olson","tag-nhl-draft","tag-vancouver-giants","category-1488","description-off"],"acf":[],"featured_image":["https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/16114818\/NHL-Central-Scouting-Final-Rankings.jpg",1920,1080,false],"hide_from_app_feed":false,"video":false,"gallery":null,"ht_game_id":0,"target_video":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/88438","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/442"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=88438"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/88438\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/88440"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=88438"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=88438"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=88438"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}},{"id":88428,"date":"2026-04-14T13:58:52","date_gmt":"2026-04-14T20:58:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/?p=88428"},"modified":"2026-04-14T13:58:52","modified_gmt":"2026-04-14T20:58:52","slug":"vancouver-giants-part-ways-with-head-coach-parker-burgess","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/article\/vancouver-giants-part-ways-with-head-coach-parker-burgess","title":{"rendered":"Vancouver Giants Part Ways with Head Coach Parker Burgess"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><b>Langley, B.C. \u2013<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> The <\/span><b>Vancouver Giants<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> announced today that Head Coach Parker Burgess will not return next season.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u201cI want to thank Parker for his hard work and leadership during a difficult season,\u201d Giants Majority Owner Ron Toigo said. \u201cThe results fell short of our expectations, but we appreciate his efforts and contributions to the Giants, and we wish him all the best moving forward.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Burgess, 41, was hired as Head Coach last summer.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u201cI would like to thank Ron and Hnat Domenichelli for the opportunity this past season,\u201d Burgess said. \u201cI am grateful to have worked with a great group of players and staff. Our family enjoyed our time in Vancouver and had a positive experience coaching in such a great league.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Prior to joining the Giants, Burgess led the Muskegon Lumberjacks of the United States Hockey League to their first ever Clark Cup Championship in 2024\u201325\u2014his third season with the club. He has helped develop nine NHL Draft picks over the last two seasons. Burgess was also previously the Head Coach and Assistant General Manager of the Janesville Jets in the North American Hockey League for two seasons.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">The Vancouver Giants would like to thank Parker for everything he put into the organization during his tenure.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">The search for a new head coach begins immediately.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Head Coach Parker Burgess will not return next season.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":442,"featured_media":88435,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"article","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1488],"tags":[{"term_id":1752,"name":"Parker Burgess","slug":"parker-burgess","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":1752,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":8,"filter":"raw","term_order":"98"},{"term_id":1528,"name":"Head Coach","slug":"head-coach","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":1528,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":5,"filter":"raw","term_order":"323"},{"term_id":333,"name":"vancouver giants","slug":"vancouver-giants","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":334,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":1434,"filter":"raw","term_order":"1782"}],"class_list":["post-88428","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-article","tag-parker-burgess","tag-head-coach","tag-vancouver-giants","category-1488","description-off"],"acf":[],"featured_image":["https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/14124545\/26-02-13-pen-00053-scaled.jpg",2560,1707,false],"hide_from_app_feed":false,"video":false,"gallery":null,"ht_game_id":0,"target_video":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/88428","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/442"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=88428"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/88428\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/88435"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=88428"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=88428"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=88428"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}},{"id":88426,"date":"2026-04-13T12:59:56","date_gmt":"2026-04-13T19:59:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/?p=88426"},"modified":"2026-04-13T12:27:39","modified_gmt":"2026-04-13T19:27:39","slug":"hnat-domenichelli-steps-down-as-giants-gm-will-stay-on-in-player-personnel-role","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/article\/hnat-domenichelli-steps-down-as-giants-gm-will-stay-on-in-player-personnel-role","title":{"rendered":"Hnat Domenichelli Steps Down as Giants GM; Will Stay on in Player Personnel Role"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><b>Langley, B.C. \u2013<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> The <\/span><b>Vancouver Giants<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> announced today that Hnat Domenichelli will step down from his role as General Manager, but will remain with the organization in a player personnel capacity.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u201cI want to thank Hnat for managing a very difficult year for the Giants,\u201d Giants Majority Owner Ron Toigo said. \u201cI believe the moves he made over the past year have improved our team. We appreciate where things are at and I\u2019m thrilled he will be staying on to help the team get to its next level.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Domenichelli was hired as the Giants General Manager last summer.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">In his new role, he will assist with the upcoming 2026 WHL Prospects Draft, scheduled for May 6 and 7, as well as the 2026 CHL Import Draft, where the Giants hold three selections. Domenichelli brings several years of professional hockey experience in Europe and will leverage those connections to support the team\u2019s efforts in the Import Draft.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u201cAfter many discussions with Ron over the past few weeks, I feel this is the best path forward for both myself and the organization,\u201d Domenichelli said. \u201cI\u2019m excited to continue supporting the team in my new role. With the picks we hold in the upcoming WHL Prospects Draft, we are well positioned to build what I believe will become a championship-caliber team.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u201cI would also like to thank Ron for allowing me the freedom to explore other opportunities professionally.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Domenichelli will focus on player development and drafting.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":442,"featured_media":88427,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"article","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1488],"tags":[{"term_id":1751,"name":"Hnat Domenichelli","slug":"hnat-domenichelli","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":1751,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":5,"filter":"raw","term_order":"97"},{"term_id":333,"name":"vancouver giants","slug":"vancouver-giants","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":334,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":1434,"filter":"raw","term_order":"1782"}],"class_list":["post-88426","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-article","tag-hnat-domenichelli","tag-vancouver-giants","category-1488","description-off"],"acf":[],"featured_image":["https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/13121540\/R52_0089.jpg",8192,5464,false],"hide_from_app_feed":false,"video":false,"gallery":null,"ht_game_id":0,"target_video":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/88426","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/442"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=88426"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/88426\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/88427"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=88426"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=88426"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=88426"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}},{"id":88386,"date":"2026-04-13T07:48:51","date_gmt":"2026-04-13T14:48:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/?p=88386"},"modified":"2026-04-13T10:25:33","modified_gmt":"2026-04-13T17:25:33","slug":"giants-preston-lin-named-to-canadas-u18-preliminary-roster","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/article\/giants-preston-lin-named-to-canadas-u18-preliminary-roster","title":{"rendered":"Giants&#8217; Preston &amp; Lin Named to Canada&#8217;s U18 Pre-Tournament Camp Roster"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>Calgary, Alta. \u2013 <\/strong>Vancouver Giants forward <a href=\"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/players\/29463\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong>Mathis Preston<\/strong><\/a> and defenceman<strong>\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/players\/29532\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Ryan Lin<\/a><\/strong> have both been named to Hockey Canada\u2019s National Men\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/hockeycanada.ca\/en-ca\/team-canada\/men\/under-18\/2025-26\/world-championship\/camp-roster\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Under-18 Team pre-tournament camp roster<\/a> ahead of the 2026 IIHF U18 Men\u2019s World Championship in\u00a0Bratislava and Trencin, Slovakia.<\/p>\n<p>Hockey Canada announced the first 23 players (three goaltenders, seven defencemen and 13 forwards) on Monday morning, which were selected by general manager Alan Millar and head scout Byron Bonora, with support from Benoit Roy, director of hockey operations, Scott Salmond, senior vice-president of high performance and hockey operations, and coordinator of hockey operations Jared Power.<\/p>\n<p><b><a href=\"https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/13072537\/2026-U18WC-CAN-Preliminary-Camp-Roster.pdf\">CLICK FOR FULL U18 ROSTER<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.hockeycanada.ca\/en-ca\/news\/staff-named-for-2026-u18mwc\">CLICK FOR U18 STAFF<\/a><\/b><\/p>\n<p><strong>Preston<\/strong>, who was acquired by the Giants ahead of the 2026 WHL trade deadline, has represented Canada previously at the 2025 Hlinka Gretzky Cup (Bronze Medal), the 2024 U17 World Challenge (Gold Medal) and the 2023 Youth Olympic Games.<\/p>\n<p>The 5-foot-11, 177 lb. winger recorded 12 points (4G-8A) in 10 games with Vancouver this season, missing significant time due to a lower-body injury that he suffered on January 10. Preston started the 2025-26 campaign with 32 points in 36 games for the Spokane Chiefs (14G-18A).<\/p>\n<p>Many draft pundits have Preston as a first-round candidate for the 2026 NHL Draft, with <a href=\"https:\/\/thehockeynews.com\/news\/latest-news\/2026-nhl-draft-rankings-stenberg-stays-above-mckenna-in-ferrari-s-february-top-64\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">some mid-season rankings<\/a> having him in their top-10. The Penticton, B.C. product was ranked 24th among North American skaters on <a href=\"https:\/\/media.d3.nhle.com\/image\/private\/t_document\/prd\/jtxfibbadwrcurdcghh3.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">NHL Central Scouting&#8217;s mid-term rankings<\/a>, released in January.<\/p>\n<p>Preston also represented Team CHL at the 2025 CHL USA Prospects Challenge \u2013 recording three points (1G-2A) in three games \u2013 and was named to the roster for Team West for the 2026 WHL Prospects Game, but was unable to compete due to injury.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Lin\u00a0<\/strong>will be representing Canada for the fifth time. Like Preston, Lin won bronze at the 2025 Hlinka Gretzky Cup, won Gold at the 2024 U17 World Challenge (Canada White) and played for Canada at the 2023 Youth Olympic Games. He also helped Canada win Gold last spring at the U18s.<\/p>\n<p>The 6-foot, 177-pound right-shot defender led the Giants in scoring this season with 57 points in just 53 games (14G-43A). His 14 goals this season were nearly triple the five he scored in 2024-25. Lin\u2019s 1.08 points-per-game this season were the third-highest by a Giants defenceman in franchise history, trailing only Jonathon Blum (1.29 in 2008-09) and Mazden Leslie (1.09 in 2024-25). His 1.08 points-per-game this season ranked 7th amongst all defencemen in the WHL.<\/p>\n<p>The Richmond, B.C. native was ranked 13th among North American skaters on\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/media.d3.nhle.com\/image\/private\/t_document\/prd\/jtxfibbadwrcurdcghh3.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">NHL Central Scouting&#8217;s mid-term rankings<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Lin also represented Team CHL at the 2025 CHL USA Prospects Challenge and was named to the roster for Team West for the 2026 WHL Prospects Game, but was unable to compete due to injury.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;We are pleased to announce the roster that will participate in the pre-tournament camp in Slovakia,\u201d Millar said. \u201cOur group will continue to monitor the Canadian Hockey League playoffs, and we expect to add players prior to the start of the world championship. At this time, we are pleased with the level of talent and international experience we have on our projected roster and are excited to gather in Slovakia in preparation to defend our gold medal.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Roster additions will be announced in the coming weeks following the conclusion of the second round of the Canadian Hockey League (CHL) playoffs, while the final roster for the 2026 IIHF U18 Men\u2019s World Championship will be announced prior to the start of the tournament.<\/p>\n<p>The 2026 IIHF U18 Men\u2019s World Championship kicks off on April 22, with Canada taking on Slovakia, Latvia, Norway and Finland in the preliminary round before the tournament concludes with the medal games on May 2. TSN and RDS, the official broadcast partners of Hockey Canada, will broadcast 16 and 10 tournament games, respectively.<\/p>\n<p>TSN will broadcast all Team Canada preliminary-round games, as well as the quarterfinals, semifinals and medal games, while RDS will broadcast all Team Canada preliminary-round games, two quarterfinals, the semifinals and medal games.<\/p>\n<p>For more information on the 2026 IIHF U18 Men\u2019s World Championship, please visit the official tournament website at IIHF.com.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Draft-eligible skaters Mathis Preston and Ryan Lin will represent Canada at the 2026 IIHF U18 Men\u2019s World Championship.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":442,"featured_media":88423,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"article","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1488],"tags":[{"term_id":1820,"name":"Mathis Preston","slug":"mathis-preston","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":1820,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":14,"filter":"raw","term_order":"30"},{"term_id":1553,"name":"Ryan Lin","slug":"ryan-lin","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":1553,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":52,"filter":"raw","term_order":"295"},{"term_id":333,"name":"vancouver giants","slug":"vancouver-giants","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":334,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":1434,"filter":"raw","term_order":"1782"}],"class_list":["post-88386","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-article","tag-mathis-preston","tag-ryan-lin","tag-vancouver-giants","category-1488","description-off"],"acf":[],"featured_image":["https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/13071933\/Preston-and-Lin-Wide-Website.jpg",1920,1080,false],"hide_from_app_feed":false,"video":false,"gallery":null,"ht_game_id":0,"target_video":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/88386","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/442"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=88386"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/88386\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/88423"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=88386"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=88386"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=88386"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}},{"id":88397,"date":"2026-04-10T07:44:46","date_gmt":"2026-04-10T14:44:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/?p=88397"},"modified":"2026-04-10T07:51:04","modified_gmt":"2026-04-10T14:51:04","slug":"graduating-profile-volotovskii-the-swiss-army-knife","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/article\/graduating-profile-volotovskii-the-swiss-army-knife","title":{"rendered":"GRADUATING PROFILE: Volotovskii The Swiss Army Knife"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><em>This week, the Vancouver Giants will look back on the junior careers of their three overage players with a written profile on each one. On Wednesday, <a href=\"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/article\/profile-mittelsteadt-incredibly-thankful-for-all-stops-in-whl-career\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">we began with defenceman Ethan Mittelsteadt.<\/a> On Thursday, <a href=\"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/article\/profile-undrafted-pyne-looks-bad-fondly-on-whl-career\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">we continued with goaltender Kelton Pyne<\/a>. Today, we wrap up by looking back on the WHL career of forward Misha Volotovskii.<\/em><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p><strong>Langley, B.C. \u2013 <\/strong>At first glance, <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/players\/28895\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Misha Volotovskii\u2019s<\/a><\/strong> career stat line doesn\u2019t jump off the page.<\/p>\n<p>Eighty-one points across 285 Western Hockey League regular season games isn\u2019t the profile of a prototypical offensive star.<\/p>\n<p>But numbers alone don\u2019t tell the story of the 20-year-old forward from Calgary who quietly carved out a reputation as a trusted, detail-oriented player \u2014 someone coaches leaned on in every situation and teammates gravitated toward in the biggest moments.<\/p>\n<p>Volotovskii\u2019s WHL career began with the Saskatoon Blades in 2021, after being drafted in the fourth round in 2020 and later <a href=\"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/blades-sign-keller-volotovskii-to-standard-player-agreements\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">signing with the club as a 16-year-old<\/a>. Like many young players entering major junior, the early days were defined by adjustment.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI still remember like it was yesterday going to camp with my dad in Saskatoon when I was 16,\u201d he said. \u201cAt the time, I didn\u2019t really know anything about the league or the team\u2026 then just made the team out of camp. From there it all started.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Midway through his rookie season, Volotovskii chipped in in a unique way: he scored the 2021 Blades Teddy Bear Toss goal.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;It was the game right before Christmas break, so it was pretty cool,&#8221; he recalled. &#8220;It was awesome. I didn&#8217;t really expect it.&#8221;<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Misha Volotovskii send the Teddy Bears flying in Saskatoon!<a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/BladesHockey?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@BladesHockey<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/YFpZHpUjco\">pic.twitter.com\/YFpZHpUjco<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Western Hockey League (@TheWHL) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/TheWHL\/status\/1472403865253212160?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">December 19, 2021<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>What followed were three and a half seasons of steady development. The Blades emphasized structure and accountability, and Volotovskii embraced it. While some players chase offense early in their careers, he found his identity in the details\u2014defensive positioning, face-offs, penalty killing.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI think I\u2019ve always just hated getting scored on,\u201d he said. \u201cStarting in Saskatoon, just wanting to play, wanting to get ice-time, that was just something that I thought would help me achieve that.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>That mindset earned him trust. Coaches deployed him in key defensive situations, and over time, his game rounded out into something far more complete than the stat sheet suggested.<\/p>\n<p>Off the ice, Saskatoon shaped him just as much. His memories of high school and early WHL life remain among his most cherished.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt was so nice to go to school some days because it took your mind away from hockey,\u201d he said. \u201cMost days we wouldn\u2019t get much school work done, but rather watch highlights or make trades in our fantasy hockey league or just hangout and chat. And it was nice because we were all young, so most of us were going through the struggle of figuring out the league together. Best friends with all those guys to this day.&#8221;<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_88413\" style=\"width: 2570px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-88413\" class=\"wp-image-88413 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/09212009\/jsp_raiders_v_blades_2191-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1707\" srcset=\"https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/09212009\/jsp_raiders_v_blades_2191-scaled.jpg 2560w, https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/09212009\/jsp_raiders_v_blades_2191-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/09212009\/jsp_raiders_v_blades_2191-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/09212009\/jsp_raiders_v_blades_2191-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/09212009\/jsp_raiders_v_blades_2191-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/09212009\/jsp_raiders_v_blades_2191-2048x1365.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-88413\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Volotovskii (middle) poses with his blades teammates after scoring the TBT goal on Dec. 18, 2022 (Steve Hiscock).<\/p><\/div>\n<p>One of the defining chapters of his Blades tenure came during the 2024 WHL playoffs. Saskatoon advanced to the Eastern Conference final against the Moose Jaw Warriors in a series that became instant lore\u2014six of seven games went to overtime.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt was such an emotional series: so back and forth. Two great teams going at it,\u201d Volotovskii recalled. \u201cPacked arenas for both teams, especially the Sasktel Centre, which holds close to 15,000 people. Such high stakes, high pressure games.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>The Blades ultimately fell in Game 7 overtime, a crushing end to a remarkable run. But for Volotovskii, the experience was transformative.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOur group got so close,\u201d he said. \u201cEveryone was buddies with each other. You could go to lunch with five random guys and have a great time. So many life-long friendships made from that team.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>It was a lesson that would carry forward: success isn\u2019t just measured in wins, but in the bonds formed along the way.<\/p>\n<p>Midway through the 2024\u201325 season, Volotovskii\u2019s WHL journey took a dramatic turn. On January 6, 2025, <a href=\"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-tigers\/article\/tigers-acquire-molendyk-from-saskatoon-in-blockbuster\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">he was traded<\/a> to the Medicine Hat Tigers, along with teammate Tanner Molendyk.<\/p>\n<p>For many players, a midseason trade can be disruptive. For Volotovskii, it became the springboard to the pinnacle of junior hockey.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cGoing in at the trade deadline, they welcomed me in right away,\u201d he said. \u201cIt was an unbelievable group of guys.\u201d<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Misha Volotovskii with the snipe and Gavin McKenna with his 4th helper of the night \ud83e\udee2<a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/tigershockey?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@TigersHockey<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/WHLPlayoffs?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#WHLPlayoffs<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/FeedingTheFuture?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#FeedingTheFuture<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/oKKiG21ZNC\">pic.twitter.com\/oKKiG21ZNC<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Western Hockey League (@TheWHL) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/TheWHL\/status\/1916318842365874359?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">April 27, 2025<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>That group proved special. The Tigers surged through the second half and into the playoffs, where Volotovskii played 17 games, contributing six points while handling critical defensive assignments. Medicine Hat went on to capture the 2025 WHL Championship.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt felt like we were unstoppable,\u201d he said. \u201cWe were like a well-oiled machine. Everyone played their part and played it perfectly.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The run was fuelled not just by talent, but by a deep emotional connection within the team.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe just had unbelievable guys and we rallied around the passing of [goaltender Harrison] Meneghin\u2019s dad,\u201d Volotovskii shared. \u201cEveryone cared so deeply for each other\u2026 we knew all along it was going to be us.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-88417\" src=\"https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/10074238\/MH-Tigers-Championship-Team-Photo.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1080\" srcset=\"https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/10074238\/MH-Tigers-Championship-Team-Photo.jpg 1920w, https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/10074238\/MH-Tigers-Championship-Team-Photo-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/10074238\/MH-Tigers-Championship-Team-Photo-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/10074238\/MH-Tigers-Championship-Team-Photo-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/10074238\/MH-Tigers-Championship-Team-Photo-1536x864.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>That championship berth sent the Tigers to the 2025 Memorial Cup in Rimouski, where they faced the best teams in Canadian junior hockey, including the eventual champion London Knights.<\/p>\n<p>For Volotovskii, the tournament stood out as one of the defining experiences of his career.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cPlaying against the best teams across all the leagues\u2026 such emotional, high pace games,\u201d he said. \u201cBut also the off-ice aspect of it\u2026 you\u2019re there for 11 days but only play four games.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>It was a rare blend of elite competition and reflection\u2014a final chapter for a championship team that knew its time together was limited.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cJust enjoying the last few moments that team will ever have with each other,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-88414\" src=\"https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/09213523\/Volotovskii_1-scaled.jpeg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1707\" srcset=\"https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/09213523\/Volotovskii_1-scaled.jpeg 2560w, https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/09213523\/Volotovskii_1-300x200.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/09213523\/Volotovskii_1-1024x683.jpeg 1024w, https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/09213523\/Volotovskii_1-768x512.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/09213523\/Volotovskii_1-1536x1024.jpeg 1536w, https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/09213523\/Volotovskii_1-2048x1365.jpeg 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>After beginning the 2025\u201326 season in Medicine Hat, Volotovskii was traded again\u2014this time to the Vancouver Giants on January 8, 2026. Though his time in Vancouver was brief, it left a lasting impression.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019ve enjoyed the group of guys, the city,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s a terrific organization. They treat you so well.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Giants assistant coach Wacey Rabbit, who had worked with Volotovskii in both Saskatoon and Vancouver, saw firsthand how far he had come.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMisha is such a smart and competitive player,\u201d Rabbit said. \u201cHe\u2019s relied upon in the offensive zone and defensive zone, whether that&#8217;s taking a big draw or killing an important penalty. He\u2019s the definition of a Swiss Army Knife.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>That versatility defined Volotovskii\u2019s game. Whether killing penalties, taking key face-offs, or providing secondary scoring, he became the type of player every coach trusts\u2014and every team needs.<\/p>\n<p>Rabbit also emphasized the intangible qualities that set him apart.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe&#8217;s a very humble, hard-working and genuine young man,\u201d he said. \u201cHe&#8217;s a quiet leader who makes everyone around him feel important and treats everyone with respect.\u201d<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Volotovskii shot a missile of a goal to get the Giants back in it! Assists came from Blake Chorney and Colton Gerrior! \ud83c\udfd2\ud83c\udf2c\ufe0f <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/g1Ht5f0owf\">pic.twitter.com\/g1Ht5f0owf<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Vancouver Giants (@WHLGiants) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/WHLGiants\/status\/2019990475843780998?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">February 7, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>Teammates describe Volotovskii in simple but telling terms: hardworking, approachable, professional, a \u201cteam guy.\u201d It\u2019s a reputation built over years of consistency and humility.<\/p>\n<p>For Volotovskii, those relationships are the lasting takeaway from his WHL career.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat\u2019s the best part about hockey,\u201d he said. \u201cThe people you meet.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Across 285 regular-season games\u2014from Saskatoon to Medicine Hat to Vancouver\u2014he experienced the full spectrum of junior hockey: early struggles, playoff heartbreak, championship glory, and the bittersweet finality of aging out.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere\u2019s a lot of ups and downs,\u201d he reflected. \u201cEveryone says it\u2019s the best time of your life and I think that\u2019s really true. It flies by fast.\u201d<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_88415\" style=\"width: 2570px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-88415\" class=\"wp-image-88415 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/09214136\/26-02-13-pen-00047-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1708\" srcset=\"https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/09214136\/26-02-13-pen-00047-scaled.jpg 2560w, https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/09214136\/26-02-13-pen-00047-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/09214136\/26-02-13-pen-00047-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/09214136\/26-02-13-pen-00047-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/09214136\/26-02-13-pen-00047-1536x1025.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/09214136\/26-02-13-pen-00047-2048x1366.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-88415\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Volotovskii celebrates a goal against Penticton on Feb. 13, 2026 (Rob Wilton)<\/p><\/div>\n<p>Next, Volotovskii will continue his hockey career at the University of Massachusetts Lowell, joining the River Hawks for the 2026-27 season. The opportunity represents a new challenge and a chance to further develop his game.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe coaching staff really believes in me,\u201d he said. \u201cThey\u2019re really big on development, so I think it\u2019ll be a great spot.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s a natural next step for a player whose game has always been rooted in growth and adaptability.<\/p>\n<p>Plus, he&#8217;ll be reunited with former Blades teammate Austin Elliott, who just finished up his freshmen season with the River Hawks.<\/p>\n<p>In an era where junior hockey often celebrates highlight-reel goals and gaudy point totals, Volotovskii\u2019s career offers a different kind of blueprint. His impact wasn\u2019t always loud, but it was constant. He was the player trusted to protect a lead, to win a defensive-zone draw, to steady a bench in tense moments.<\/p>\n<p>He leaves a reputation: as a competitor, a teammate, and a player who understood that success in hockey, as in life, is often built on the little things done well, every single day.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>This week, the Giants look back on the junior careers of their three overage players, finishing today with Misha Volotovskii.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":442,"featured_media":88415,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"article","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1488],"tags":[{"term_id":1824,"name":"Misha Volotovskii","slug":"misha-volotovskii","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":1824,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":2,"filter":"raw","term_order":"26"},{"term_id":229,"name":"medicine hat tigers","slug":"medicine-hat-tigers","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":230,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":21,"filter":"raw","term_order":"1258"},{"term_id":245,"name":"saskatoon blades","slug":"saskatoon-blades","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":246,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":16,"filter":"raw","term_order":"1577"},{"term_id":333,"name":"vancouver giants","slug":"vancouver-giants","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":334,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":1434,"filter":"raw","term_order":"1782"},{"term_id":1155,"name":"WHL","slug":"whl","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":1158,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":167,"filter":"raw","term_order":"1805"}],"class_list":["post-88397","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-article","tag-misha-volotovskii","tag-medicine-hat-tigers","tag-saskatoon-blades","tag-vancouver-giants","tag-whl","category-1488","description-off"],"acf":[],"featured_image":["https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/09214136\/26-02-13-pen-00047-scaled.jpg",2560,1708,false],"hide_from_app_feed":false,"video":false,"gallery":null,"ht_game_id":0,"target_video":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/88397","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/442"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=88397"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/88397\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/88415"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=88397"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=88397"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=88397"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}},{"id":88396,"date":"2026-04-09T09:44:18","date_gmt":"2026-04-09T16:44:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/?p=88396"},"modified":"2026-04-09T12:00:49","modified_gmt":"2026-04-09T19:00:49","slug":"profile-undrafted-pyne-looks-bad-fondly-on-whl-career","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/article\/profile-undrafted-pyne-looks-bad-fondly-on-whl-career","title":{"rendered":"GRADUATING PROFILE: Undrafted Pyne Looks Back Fondly on WHL Career"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><em>This week, the Vancouver Giants will look back on the junior careers of their three overage players with a written profile on each one. On Wednesday, <a href=\"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/article\/profile-mittelsteadt-incredibly-thankful-for-all-stops-in-whl-career\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">we begun with defenceman Ethan Mittelsteadt.<\/a> Today, we look back on the WHL career of goaltender Kelton Pyne.<\/em><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p><strong>Langley, B.C. \u2013\u00a0<\/strong>When the 2020 WHL Draft came around, goaltender\u00a0<strong><a href=\"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/players\/28883\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Kelton Pyne<\/a>\u00a0<\/strong>figures he was about 5-foot-9 and &#8216;soaking wet, probably about 120 lbs.&#8217;<\/p>\n<p>Like it or not, that just wasn&#8217;t big enough.<\/p>\n<p>So the native of White City, Saskatchewan \u2013 which is just outside Regina \u2013 did not get selected.<\/p>\n<p>But getting passed over did do something else: it motivated the hell out of him.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;I think that kind of sparked a fire in my belly,&#8221; the now 20-year-old veteran of nearly 150 WHL appearances said. &#8220;I went into camp as a 16-year-old, just a listed kid. I don&#8217;t think anyone thought too much of me at the time, but I had a pretty good camp as I remember. The last couple days of camp, they said they were going to sign me. I was kind of in disbelief. Just a kid that went undrafted and came in and earned it.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>He didn&#8217;t just earn it with any team: he earned it with his hometown WHL club, the Regina Pats. From 2021-25, Pyne played in 104 career regular season games for the Pats.<\/p>\n<p>And that, the 6-foot-1 netminder now says, was the biggest honour of his WHL career.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;As a kid, it&#8217;s always a dream to play for your local WHL team when you&#8217;re older,&#8221; he said. &#8220;Lucky enough for me, I got to live out that dream for four years.&#8221;<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_88406\" style=\"width: 2110px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-88406\" class=\"wp-image-88406 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/08215752\/Pyne-02-23-22-scaled-e1775710704644.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2100\" height=\"1400\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-88406\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Pyne in his rookie season with his hometown Pats (Keith Hershmiller Photography)<\/p><\/div>\n<p>Pyne had an incredibly unique start to his WHL career, one that <a href=\"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-pats\/pyne-overcoming-the-odds\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">he described at the time<\/a> as &#8216;the greatest experience ever.&#8217;<\/p>\n<p>Injuries with the Pats during his 16-year-old season forced a call-up in February of 2022, and eventually, a start. It was the tail end of an Alberta road trip for Regina, who tapped Pyne on the shoulder for the very first time against the reigning WHL champions: the Edmonton Oil Kings.<\/p>\n<p>Easy peasy, right?<\/p>\n<p>Well, not really. The Pats allowed 42 shots on goal and lost the game 6-3.<\/p>\n<p>It was what came next that was so incredible for the young goaltender and his teammates, which included future NHL draft picks Connor Bedard, Ryker Evans, Tanner Howe and Stanislav Svozil.<\/p>\n<p>Pyne started the team&#8217;s next game in front of family and friends at the Brandt Centre, on February 11, 2022 against the Calgary Hitmen.<\/p>\n<p>He didn&#8217;t allow a single goal in a 5-0 win, becoming the youngest Pats goaltender (16 years, 5 months, 8 days) to record a shutout in nearly 20 years.<\/p>\n<p>His next start came at home 11 days later against the Medicine Hat Tigers.<\/p>\n<p>Yet again, he was flawless, picking up a 2-0 win this time to record\u00a0back-to-back shutouts on home ice as a 16-year-old rookie.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;That was probably the two coolest moments in my whole hockey career so far,&#8221; Pyne said. &#8220;The boys played in front of me for sure. It wasn&#8217;t much work those two nights. The shots were in the 20s. It was so cool having a bunch of family and a bunch of friends in attendance for those two games.&#8221;<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_88407\" style=\"width: 2058px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-88407\" class=\"wp-image-88407 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/08215903\/Pyne-1st-WHL-win-puck-e1775710768986.jpeg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2048\" height=\"1365\" srcset=\"https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/08215903\/Pyne-1st-WHL-win-puck-e1775710768986.jpeg 2048w, https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/08215903\/Pyne-1st-WHL-win-puck-e1775710768986-300x200.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/08215903\/Pyne-1st-WHL-win-puck-e1775710768986-1024x683.jpeg 1024w, https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/08215903\/Pyne-1st-WHL-win-puck-e1775710768986-768x512.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/08215903\/Pyne-1st-WHL-win-puck-e1775710768986-1536x1024.jpeg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2048px) 100vw, 2048px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-88407\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Pyne shows off his &#8216;1st WHL Win&#8217; puck on Feb. 11, 2022.<\/p><\/div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>After bursting onto the scene in the 2021-22 season, Pyne only played in 11 games the following year, but it&#8217;s still a season he&#8217;ll never forget because it was teammate Connor Bedard&#8217;s draft year.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Obviously there&#8217;s hype around him like no other,&#8221; Pyne recalled. &#8220;When I was 17, after Christmas, every game we were at, home or away, was sold out. We sold out the Saddledome. It was unreal. Incredible.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Pyne believes having a teammate who can shoot the puck like Bedard helped his game.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;I practiced a lot as a young guy \u2013 so taking those shots from the Bedards, the Suzdalevs, the Howes, the Svozils, those kind of guys, I think that helps you in practice,&#8221; he said. &#8220;Once I got older, I kind of settled down my game a bit. Kind of got more calm and comfortable in the net. Not kind of flopping around as much as I used to be. I think that&#8217;s probably one of the biggest things I&#8217;ve improved on.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Over the years with the Pats, he also improved his mobility and his conditioning, as he became the go-to guy in the 2023-24 season with 38 games played and then played 44 times in the 2024-25 season, when he was named the Pats Player of the Year.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Kelton Pyne shows us the best way to start a period!<a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/WHLPats?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@WHLPats<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/V80G6V7aQC\">pic.twitter.com\/V80G6V7aQC<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Western Hockey League (@TheWHL) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/TheWHL\/status\/1743453100365828174?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">January 6, 2024<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>That season, Regina allowed the third-most scoring chances against, yet Pyne&#8217;s save percentage was nearly .890. He also started every single game of the team&#8217;s B.C. Division road trip, which included a first star performance against the Vancouver Giants on Dec. 4: a 5-3 road win where he stole the game with 38 saves on 41 shots.<\/p>\n<p>The following season, with the Pats still in rebuild mode and Pyne now 20-years-old, it was time for a new opportunity. He <a href=\"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/article\/trade-giants-bolster-goaltending-depth-with-acquisition-of-pyne\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">was traded to the Giants<\/a> on October 16, 2025, leaving home for the first time.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Didn&#8217;t really know where to, but I was expecting it,&#8221; Pyne admitted. &#8220;I think it was a great experience for me. Obviously as an older guy, I think it was easier for me and my family for me to move away now than if I were 16. Living in a big city and getting to make a whole bunch of new relationships was great.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>From the minute Pyne walked into the Giants dressing room, it was clear there was a humorous side to him.<\/p>\n<p>Fellow 20-year-old Ethan Mittelsteadt described him in a few different ways: hilarious, loved, hard worker and leader.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Goofy guy off the ice, but so competitive on the ice,&#8221; added teammate Misha Volotovskii when asked to describe Pyne. &#8220;He wants to win so bad. Very well loved in the room. Knows how to keep it light. Awesome guy to play with.&#8221;<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_88410\" style=\"width: 1930px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-88410\" class=\"wp-image-88410 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/09093527\/26-01-31-isaac-00145-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1281\" srcset=\"https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/09093527\/26-01-31-isaac-00145-1.jpg 1920w, https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/09093527\/26-01-31-isaac-00145-1-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/09093527\/26-01-31-isaac-00145-1-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/09093527\/26-01-31-isaac-00145-1-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/09093527\/26-01-31-isaac-00145-1-1536x1025.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-88410\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Kelton Pyne (left) poses with former 20-year-old teammate Ty Halaburda (middle) and fellow 20-year-old Ethan Mittelsteadt (right).<\/p><\/div>\n<p>Head Coach Parker Burgess immediately recognized the passion that helped Pyne earn his place in the league.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;He was athletic and he was so competitive. And he was a great teammate. The guys loved him,&#8221; Burgess said. &#8220;I think he kept it light in the locker room. He and Burke [Hood] had a really good relationship. He was really good with all the younger guys. But also a level of competitiveness when it was game time or time to practice&#8230;[which] I think really rubbed off on a lot of guys. There were nights when he was our best player.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Pyne himself hopes his laidback demeanour has rubbed off on other Giants.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;I like to chop it up with the boys. Kind of a goofy guy,&#8221; Pyne said. &#8220;I hope [the younger guys] take that from me. On the leadership side, I feel like I&#8217;m a pretty nice older guy, so I hope them younger guys, when they&#8217;re in my shoes, they&#8217;re good to the younger guys like I&#8217;ve been to them.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>The next stop for Pyne in his hockey journey hasn&#8217;t yet been determined, but he&#8217;s keeping his options open, including potentially using his WHL Scholarship to attend a Canadian University.<\/p>\n<p>But for now, he&#8217;s back home in Saskatchewan, likely &#8216;chopping it up&#8217; with his friends as the off-season gets underway.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>This week, the Giants look back on the junior careers of their three overage players, continuing today with Kelton Pyne.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":442,"featured_media":88405,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"article","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1488],"tags":[{"term_id":1846,"name":"Profile","slug":"profile","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":1846,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":1,"filter":"raw","term_order":"4"},{"term_id":1795,"name":"Kelton Pyne","slug":"kelton-pyne","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":1795,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":3,"filter":"raw","term_order":"55"},{"term_id":215,"name":"regina pats","slug":"regina-pats","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":216,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":14,"filter":"raw","term_order":"1543"},{"term_id":333,"name":"vancouver giants","slug":"vancouver-giants","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":334,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":1434,"filter":"raw","term_order":"1782"}],"class_list":["post-88396","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-article","tag-profile","tag-kelton-pyne","tag-regina-pats","tag-vancouver-giants","category-1488","description-off"],"acf":[],"featured_image":["https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/62\/2026\/04\/08130950\/Pyne-1-Lathanuel-scaled-e1775679031394.jpg",2560,1707,false],"hide_from_app_feed":false,"video":false,"gallery":null,"ht_game_id":0,"target_video":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/88396","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/442"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=88396"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/88396\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/88405"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=88396"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=88396"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-giants\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=88396"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}]