The G-men earned their second win of the new year and first road victory of 2022 in a 4-2 victory over the Victoria Royals. It was Lysell who led the charge, scoring once and earning two helpers as the Swedish forward received a point on three of four Giants goals. It was the first game that the Giants played without Sourdif and Brown, but other players stepped up when needed and helped the team move six points ahead of Victoria for seventh place in the Western Conference playoff standings and bring the team closer to a .500 record at 16-17-2-0.
The Vancouver Giants now have a crucial week of hockey games as the team gets set to take on four B.C. Division teams in the span of five days. The Giants have been playing teams in the B.C. Division since the 27th of December when the Victoria Royals came to town and beat the Giants 3-1. American teams have only been able to face the Vancouver Giants a total of six times in the 35 games that Vancouver has played so far this season. The Giants are scheduled to host some American teams in Vancouver’s last five of six home games before the end of the regular season. This next week of hockey is no different for the Giants as they get set to battle the Blazers and Rockets twice, two of the other four B.C. Division teams.
Tomorrow night the Vancouver Giants head to Kamloops to take on the Blazers.
The Blazers are led in goal by Dylan Garand, a prospect of the New York Rangers and goaltender of the week in the WHL. Garand posted 1.50 GAA and a 0.946 SV% in two victories against the Prince George Cougars on Friday, January 21, and Saturday, January 22. Logan Stankoven leads his team in points in his fourth season with the Blazers as Stankoven has potted 18 goals and has grabbed 25 assists for 43 points in 27 games. Stankoven has five goals and five assists for ten points in six meetings against Vancouver.
The Blazers are the fifth-best team in the WHL and first-place team in the B.C. Division thanks to a 24-11-1-0 record. The Blazers have had the Giants number this season winning five of six contests so far. The seventh meeting is set for 7:00 p.m.
The Kelowna Rockets (18-10-1-3) remain hopeful that they will be able to pay a visit to the Giants as the team was unable to last week due to COVID-19 concerns and cases. Should the game go on as originally scheduled, the Giants will host the first game of a doubleheader against Kelowna at 7:30 p.m.
Following the game on Friday night, the G-men will jump on the bus and head to Kelowna to finish off the doubleheader and the team’s second game in three nights. The Giants have met the Rockets five times already, including three straight meetings dating back to Saturday, October 23rd, the Giants have four wins and a loss against Kelowna. The puck is set to drop for Saturday’s game at 7:05 p.m.
2002-born forward Pavel Novák (Tabor, Czech Republic) is in his second season with the Rockets. The 5’10″, 170-pound, right-shot forward leads his team with 40 points (16G, 24A) and has a goal and two assists in the five games that he has suited up for against Vancouver.
Kelowna sits in second place in the B.C. Division standings and have six more points than the Giants despite playing three fewer games.
The Vancouver Giants take to home ice to play their third game in three nights and the fourth game in five days when they host the Kamloops Blazers at 4:00 p.m.
Following the January 30th game against the Blazers, the Giants are not scheduled to play again until Friday, February 4th when they host the Kamloops Blazers once again. That will be another three games in three nights situation for Vancouver as they will take on the Rockets twice and Blazers once.
Wins against teams in your division are always important, but this next week of hockey will be a test for the Giants and a great way to show what this team is made of and what to expect from the team as the season progresses.