Pre-Game Report: Giants at Winterhawks

The Vancouver Giants (31-26-7-3) will visit the Moda Center to face the Portland Winterhawks (49-13-2-3) on Saturday night in the fourth and final regular season meeting between the two clubs. The G-Men are 0-2-0-1 against the 'Hawks this year. If the playoffs began today, the Giants and Winterhawks would face each other in the first round.

The G-Men will look for their second win in a row on Saturday after skating to a 2-1 victory over the Kamloops Blazers on Wednesday evening. Vancouver sits in seventh in the Western Conference, seven points behind the sixth place Everett Silvertips and eight points ahead of the eighth place Tri-City Americans. Giants forward Cain Franson has been playing well of late, tallying seven goals in his last seven games. The Sicamous native now has 29 goals on the season, equaling his total from last year.

The Winterhawks are coming off a 7-3 win over the Seattle Thunderbirds on Friday evening. The Portland club has won two straight and 23 of its last 24 games as the T-Birds ended the Hawks' 21 game winning streak with a 4-1 victory on March 1st. Winterhawks forwards Nic Petan and Oliver Bjorkstrand sit in 2nd and 3rd in league scoring respectively, trailing Spokane's Mitch Holmberg. The Portland pair have scored a combined 207 points.

Where: Moda Center; Portland, OR

When: 7:00pm (The Pre-Game Show starts at 6:30pm.)

Listen: Streamed online at teamradio.ca and joined in progress on TEAM 1410 following the Vancouver Whitecaps FC soccer match

First Round Playoff Dates Announced

With the post-season just around the corner, the Giants have released the dates for their home games in the first round of the playoffs. All the info, including a special "Toonie Tuesday" promotion on the night of Game 3, is in the official release from the Giants which can be found below. Playoff tickets go on sale this coming Wednesday at 10am.

Here's the release from the Giants:

Playoff Hockey returns to the Pacific Coliseum March 25.

After a one year absence, the Vancouver Giants are excited to be headed back to the post-season after recently clinching a spot in the 2014 WHL Playoffs. While our opponent is yet to be determined, we are able to announce today our First Round home playoff dates.

Game 3 of our Western Conference Quarterfinal series will take place at the Pacific Coliseum on Tuesday, March 25 at 7pm.

Game 4 will be the following night, Wednesday, March 26 at 7pm.

Game 6, if necessary, will be on Sunday, March 30 at a special 2pm start.

And to celebrate our return to the post-season, our first home game on Tuesday, March 25 will feature a number of "Toonie Tuesday" $2 food & beverage items including hot dogs, Oreo ice cream sandwiches, small popcorn and small sodas!

With less than 10 days remaining in the regular season the Giants can still finish anywhere from 5th through 8th place in the Western Conference standings. This will mark the 11th time the Giants have qualified for the post-season in their 13 years of existence, having captured a WHL Championship in 2006 and a Memorial Cup Championship in 2007.

Single Game Playoff Tickets will go on sale to the general public Wednesday, March 12 at 10am. Fans can secure their playoff seats by calling 604-4-GIANTS (604-444-2687) or online right HERE.

Alternatively, fans can gain advance access to Round 1 Playoff seats by purchasing a 6-Ticket Flex Pack.

Season Ticket Holders, Mini-Pack Holders & Flex Pack Holders can all enjoy an exclusive pre-sale opportunity from Monday, March 10 at 9am through Tuesday, March 11 at 5pm. During this period the fans listed above can secure their seats by contacting their Personal Account Representative directly or by calling 604-4-GIANTS (604-444-2687).

Vancouver Giants This Week: March 6, 2014

Click here to listen to this week's podcast.

Giants Get Past Blazers 2-1

Payton Lee stopped 17 of 18 shots as the Vancouver Giants defeated the Kamloops Blazers 2-0 at the Pacific Coliseum on Wednesday evening. Cain Franson and Joel Hamilton had the goals for Vancouver in the victory.

Tyler Benson had an early opportunity to put the home team in front but was stopped by Kamloops goalie Bolton Pouliot. Benson played the game with a half-visor rather than a full cage as he has now joined the G-Men for the remainder of the season. Cole Ully had the best opportunity of the opening period for the Blazers when he hit the post with a shot from the left circle, and Lee was called into action later in the period when he denied Matt Needham on a re-directed chance from the slot.

Lee came up with another gigantic stop in the second period when he kicked out the right pad to rob Eric Krienke from in close. Pouliot responded by making a big save on Carter Popoff at the other end of the ice, flashing the leather for a nice glove-hand stop. Franson finally put the Giants on the board a few minutes later when he knocked a puck home at the right post after a scramble in the crease. The goal was Franson's 29th of the year, equalling his total from last season.

Hamilton doubled the Vancouver lead in the first minute of the third period when he chipped a loose puck in the crease across the goal line for his 10th of the season. Lee kept his shutout bid alive later in the stanza with a solid stop on Jesse Shynkaruk from the top of the blue paint. However, the Blazers would find the net in the final minute after Matt Bellerive beat Lee with a one-timer from the slot. The Kamloops squad turned up the pressure with the goalie out, trying to tie the game, but the Giants held on for the win.

The Giants out shot the Blazers 37-18. Vancouver went 0-for-1 on the White Spot Power Play while Kamloops was 0-for-4.

The G-Men will now head south of the border to visit the Portland Winterhawks on Saturday. The face-off is set for 7:00pm. Catch the call on teamradio.ca. The game will also be joined in progress on TEAM 1410 following the Vancouver Whitecaps FC soccer match.

Game Summary

3 Stars:
1. Payton Lee - Vancouver
2. Joel Hamilton - Vancouver
3. Cain Franson - Vancouver

Pre-Game Report: Giants vs. Blazers

The Vancouver Giants (30-26-7-3) will host the Kamloops Blazers (13-48-2-3) in the eighth and final meeting between the two teams in their season series on Wednesday at the Pacific Coliseum. The Giants are 7-0 against the Blazers this year.

Heading into Wednesday's action, the Giants sit in seventh in the Western Conference, seven points behind the sixth place Everett Silvertips. Vancouver is coming off back-to-back losses to the Kelowna Rockets last weekend. However, the G-Men did officially clinch a playoff spot on Saturday by virtue of the fact that the Prince George Cougars lost to the Victoria Royals. The Giants have now qualified for the post-season in 11 of their 13 seasons in the WHL.

The Blazers are dead last in the Western Conference standings, sitting 29 points behind ninth place Prince George. The Kamloops squad has dropped four in a row and six of the last seven games. The Blazers have only picked up one point in the season series with the Giants after a 4-3 shootout loss back on November 2nd. Kamloops is in the midst of a 10 game road trip as their home rink, the Interior Savings Centre, is currently playing host to the Canadian men's curling championships.

Where: Pacific Coliseum

When: 7:00pm

Tickets: Visit vancouvergiants.com or call 604-4-GIANTS

Listen: TEAM 1410 and teamradio.ca (The Pre-Game Show starts at 6:30pm.)

Rockets Edge G-Men for Second Straight Night

Goaltender Jordon Cooke was the first star for the second night in a row as the Kelowna Rockets swept a home-and-home series with the Vancouver Giants after a 3-1 victory at the Pacific Coliseum on Saturday. Cain Franson had the lone Vancouver goal in the losing cause.

Jared Rathjen was called into action early in the game with a scramble around the Vancouver net, but he kept the puck out with both Myles Bell and Ryan Olsen whacking away at the puck, to keep the game scoreless. Cooke responded with a couple of big stops of his own at the other end of the ice, robbing Franson with the left pad before make a big right pad save on Dalton Sward. However, it was the Giants who struck first on a power play as Franson showed incredible patience as he held onto the puck and cut into the slot before beating Cooke on the backhand to put the Vancouver club ahead on the scoreboard.

Franson had a chance to extend the lead early in the middle frame when he accelerated past the defence and in cleanly on net, but Cooke stood tall again with a big save. The Rockets would tie the game a few minutes later when Rourke Chartier whacked a puck past Rathjen after a nice pass from behind the net off the stick of Nick Merkley. Former Giant Marek Tvrdon went on to gave Kelowna the lead when he scored on a nice shot from the right circle that found the top corner of the net. The Giants nearly evened the score with a number of good chances late in the stanza. Shaun Dosanjh and Ty Ronning both hit goal posts while Cooke had to make a number of big saves to preserve the Kelowna lead.

Rathjen was tested again in the third period when he came up with a tremendous stop on Merkley, sliding across to his right to kick the puck out. The Rockets extended the lead later in the frame when Cole Linaker scored from the slot to give the Kelowna club some necessary insurance. The Giants had a power play right after the goal, and Carter Popoff nearly scored on a frantic play in the crease that saw the puck bounce off the cross-bar and out. The Rockets would go on to kill off the penalty and close out the road win.

Both teams went 1-for-4 on their respective power plays while the Giants out shot the Rockets 33-28.

Vancouver will host Kamloops on Wednesday evening at the Rink on Renfrew. Face-off is set for 7:00pm. For tickets, call 604-4-GIANTS or visit vancouvergiants.com.

Game Summary

3 Stars:
1. Jordon Cooke - Kelowna
2. Ty Ronning - Vancouver
3. Rourke Chartier - Kelowna

Pre-Game Report: Giants vs. Rockets

The Vancouver Giants (30-25-7-3) will look to get back in the win column when they host the WHL-leading Kelowna Rockets (51-9-0-4) on Saturday at the Rink on Renfrew. The G-Men have a record of 1-3-1-0 in the season series against the Kelowna club.

Saturday's game marks the second of a home-and-home set between the two teams. The Giants dropped a 6-0 at Prospera Place in Kelowna on Friday evening. The Vancouver loss, coupled with an Everett Silvertips win over the Tri-City Americans, means that the Giants now sit three points back of the 'Tips for sixth in the Western Conference. Arvin Atwal will remain out of the Vancouver line-up on Saturday as he'll serve the final contest of a three-game suspension.

After the victory on Friday, the Rockets have now won eight of their last nine games. Jordon Cooke was strong in goal for the Kelowna club, picking up his third shutout and 35th win of the season between the pipes. The line of Nick Merkley, Marek Tvrdon and Rourke Chartier had a strong game for the Rockets as well. With the win, the Kelowna squad still sits seven points ahead of the Portland Winterhawks and needs 10 more points to clinch first place in the Western Conference.

Where: Pacific Coliseum

When: 7:00pm

Tickets: Visit vancouvergiants.com or call 604-4-GIANTS

Listen: TEAM 1040 and teamradio.ca (The Pre-Game Show starts at 6:30pm.)