Giants go two-for-two on the weekend to extend streak

Since stumbling into the second half with a 2-4-0-0 road trip through the Central Division, the Vancouver Giants have done nothing but win.

The Giants (29-12-2-0) have now won six in a row after going on a four game skid through Alberta.

A big reason for the team’s recent success has been the offense, despite a fairly quiet deadline where the Giants were expected to possibly go after a big fish to boost the scoring.

#23 Jadon Joseph

Scoring has clearly not been a problem on this streak, with the Giants averaging just shy of five goals a game, outscoring opponents 29-15 in the six games, with newly acquired Jadon Joseph injecting some offense into the lineup. Since being brought in from Regina on January 4th, the 19-year-old has produced seven points in seven games, including a three point night in a 5-4 overtime win in Tri-City.

The Giants picked up all four points this weekend, starting on Friday in Spokane against a Chiefs team sitting just a handful of points behind Vancouver in the Western Conference standings. The club showed they can play with adversity after falling behind 3-1 after the first period.

Tristen Nielsen goal sparked their comeback effort, with the Giants scoring three to take the lead less than 10 minutes into the middle frame and they did not look back, leaving the Spokane Veterans Memorial Arena with the 6-4 win.

Players of note

  • Captain Jared Dmytriw scored twice in the win
  • 20-year-old Davis Koch had a goal and an assist
  • Dawson Holt had three assists to go with a +5

Jett Woo and the Warriors come to town

Saturday night saw the visiting Moose Jaw Warriors (24-11-6-2) come into the Langley Events Centre after steamrolling through the BC Division, outscoring opponents 14-3 in the three games against Kamloops, Kelowna and Victoria. As well, the Giants being 4-0-0-0 against Eastern Division teams this season.

The LEC saw its biggest crowd of the season with an attendance of 4364, likely helped by the Warriors having Vancouver Canucks 2018 second round pick Jett Woo in their lineup. Woo opened the scoring at the 7:08 mark of the first period off a Brayden Tracey feed that took a couple funny bounces before making it to the point to put the visiting team up 1-0, with a small cheer coming from the crowd, liking what they see from the future Canuck.

Moose Jaw’s lead only lasted for 2:32 when Milos Roman retrieved his own blocked shot and found a wide open Bowen Byram with a backdoor pass, extending his league lead in goals by a defenceman with his 16th of the campaign.

(photo-Gary Ahuja/Langley Times)

The matchup proved to be a goaltending dual with both Trent Miner (26 saves) and Brodan Salmond (25 saves) keeping their teams knotted at one, including a late man advantage for the Giants that produced multiple quality scoring chances with Salmond staying sharp and sending the game to overtime.

The first half of the extra frame saw the Warriors carry most of the possession but only one shot to show for it. The Giants finally got the puck back with Davis Koch entering the offensive zone and ripping one high and wide, resulting in Dylan Plouffe getting a Tristen Nielsen feed in the high slot and finding Koch backdoor to hang onto their winning streak and extending it to six games.

News and Notes

  • The Giants extend their BC Division lead to 15 points ahead of Victoria.
  • Vancouver is now 5-0-0-0 against the East Division this season.
  • Davis Koch extends his point streak to six games where he has 14 points (5G, 9A).
  • Tristen Nielsen extends his point streak to five games, putting up 11 points (3G, 8A).

 

What’s Next

  • Bowen Byram will be playing for Team Cherry in the CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game in Red Deer this upcoming Wednesday where Giants fans can watch on Sportsnet at 7pm PST.
  • The Giants next game is this Thursday when they host the CHL’s #1 team, the Prince Albert Raiders (39-5-0-2) for the teams’ first and only match up of the season.