On Wednesday, The Vancouver Giants held their first in-person media event of the season. During the event, the team revealed the new alternate jerseys, the leadership team for the season, and the themed games for the upcoming season. Here is a rundown of the event, along with some quotes from players.
Theme Nights
One thing WHL teams do better than almost anyone else is theme nights. This season, the Giants will be hosting 14 themed games throughout the season. This includes a special initiative called BCLC Community Heroes Nights.
Sponsored by BCLC (British Columbia Lottery Corporation), The Giants will host six BCLC Community Heroes Nights. These nights are designed to recognize those who may not have received recognition throughout the pandemic. This could include grocery store workers, fast food employees, teachers, and so many more. The Giants will also be wearing special jerseys to commemorate every night, as seen below.
Our @BCLC Community Heroes jerseys to be worn for special nights honouring heroes from around our community.
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📸: @Rjmediadottech pic.twitter.com/HKtZ6sV8rN— Vancouver Giants (@WHLGiants) October 20, 2021
Here is the list of the Giants themed nights:
- Friday, October 29th vs Kelowna- Trick or Treat Night
- Saturday, November 6th vs Portland- BCLC Community Heroes Night
- Saturday, November 13th versus Kamloops- JRFM Country Night
- Friday, November 19th versus Everett- BCLC Community Heroes Night
- Saturday, November 20th versus Victoria- White Spot Legends Night
- Friday, December 10th versus Victoria- Chevrolet Teddy Bear Toss
- Saturday, December 18th versus Prince George- C& D Logistics Food Drive
- Friday, January 14th versus Prince George- BCLC Community Heroes Night
- Friday, February 4th versus Kamloops- BCLC Community Heroes Night
- Monday, February 12th versus Victoria- C&D Logistics Family Night
- Friday, February 25th versus Victoria- BCLC Community Heroes Night
- Friday, March 18th versus Everett- B.C. Wildlife Federation Outdoors Night
- Sunday, March 27th versus Prince George- Save-On-Foods Billet Appreciation Night
- Sunday, April 3rd versus Spokane- Chevrolet Fan Appreciation Night
Jersey Patch
The Giants will be wearing a patch on all their jerseys in honour of Elizabeth Toigo this season. Mrs. Toigo was a vital member of the Giants family ever since their inception. Every season, she would invite the team to her house for the annual Christmas party. In honour of her dedication to the team and community, the Giants will be wearing a patch with her signature on it throughout the season.
The entire Vancouver Giants organization is sending their heartfelt condolences to the Toigo family after the passing of Mrs. Elizabeth Toigo earlier this morning.
Read More 📎: https://t.co/XWEgHD0uIM pic.twitter.com/utNvYKf8cO
— Vancouver Giants (@WHLGiants) September 25, 2021
Leadership Group
The following players have been named to the leadership group this season
- Captain- Justin Sourdif
- Alternate Captain- Tanner Brown
- Alternate Captain- Zack Ostapchuck
- Connor Horning
- Adam Hall
- Cade McNelly
- Payton Mount
- Ty Thorpe
Quotes from Players
Jesper Vikman
“The Transition to the WHL has been easy so far, but there is still a lot to learn. Paul (Fricker) has helped a lot and is helping me every day.
Vegas training camp was good. The city is unbelievable. I have all the opportunities to develop, and they have given me a good overview of the next step I need to take.
This season has been fun. It’s a bit different than European ice as you don’t have to wait too long for the puck to come to you. It has been great to get to adapt to the smaller ice.
It is great to have Lyysell here. It is great to have a fellow Swede to talk Swedish with.”
Payton Mount
” It’s been awesome here. We have a great group of guys, and it has been a great transition to the B.C. Divison. We have played well so far. There are some learning curves, but we gotta buy into the process.
There is a lot of talent here, but we need to continue with the hard work. We will compete every night regardless of the score or result. We want to fight to the end.”
Next Game
The Giants hit the ice for back-to-back games on Friday and Saturday Night. Friday, October 22nd, they will be in Kamloops for a rematch versus the Blazers. Then Saturday, they return to Lander to face Colton Dach, Pavel Novak and Jake Less of the Kelowna Rockets at 7:00 pm PST.
