LETHBRIDGE - Three goals in the first 10 minutes of the game lifted the Vancouver Giants to a 5-2 win over the Hurricanes last night at the ENMAX Centre.
The Vancouver Giants would score first in this one and score often in the opening period. Neil Manning would send a point shot through the legs of Dylan Tait to give the Giants a 1-0 lead on a power play. A couple of minutes later the Giants would get another one. Michael Burns burst into the Hurricanes zone and put a wrap-around shot passed Tait to give Vancouver a 2-0. The Giants kept it coming. They would go up 3-0 when Greg Lamoureux would put the puck passed Tait to give the Giants a commanding lead before the half-way point of the first period. That would be it for Dylan Tait. Tanner Kovacs would get the tap on the shoulder at the 9:52 mark of the opening frame and replaced Tait who surrendered 3 goals on just 7 shots. Not a good start to the game for the Hurricanes. That's the way the period would end. The Giants out shot Lethbridge 14-10.
In the second period, the Hurricanes finally broke the goose egg when Alex Kuvaev scored his third of the season to put the Canes' on the board and cut the Vancouver lead to 3-1. The Giants though would get that goal back literally seconds later when Dalton Sward, right off the draw at centre ice, moved into the Lethbridge zone and banked a shot off a player in front and passed Kovacs to give the Giants their three goal lead back. That's the way the period would end and Vancouver would head to the dressing room with a 4-1 lead. Vancouver out shot Lethbridge 13-9 in the period. They held the edge in shots 27-19 through 40 minutes.
In the third, the Giants iced the game with a goal about 8 minutes in. Nathan Burns scored his first of the season to give Vancouver a 5-1 lead. The Hurricanes got one more before the game ended. Alex Kuvaev scored his second of the night late in the period to cut the lead to 5-2, but that's as close as Lethbridge would get. Vancouver out shot Lethbridge 36-27. The power play chances: Vancouver 1/6 and Lethbridge 0/6. The loss drops the Hurricanes record to 5-5-0-3 on the season.
Overall, the slow start cost the Canes' in this game. Giving up three quick goals to Vancouver in the early part of the game was a tough pill for the Hurricanes to swallow. Hurricanes forward Cam Braes told CJOC's Fred Jack on the post-game show that "we really shot ourselves in the foot with the start". That was clearly the difference for Lethbridge in this one. Hurricanes goalie Brandon Anderson missed last night's game. He was scratched because of the flu. The Canes' called up Tanner Kovacs again. He backed up Dylan Tait and ended up seeing game action when Tait was pulled in the first period. Head Coach/GM Rich Preston was hopeful that Anderson would be back at practice today. He's been battling the flu bug for the passed few days. I thought Kovacs played very well for the Canes' in his first-ever WHL game. He allowed a couple of goals against, but played a decent game. Associate Coach Mat Kabayama said on the CJOC post-game show last night that Kovacs "battled hard and had he not made a number of key stops, the score could've been worse."
As for Vancouver, this is a pretty good hockey team. They were able to get off to a quick start and really never looked back from that point on. The Canes' had some scoring chances, but Brenden Jensen had a solid game in goal for the Giants. No question how important Brenden Gallagher and Craig Cunningham are to the success of the Vancouver Giants. Those two players combined for five points last night and were the game's first two stars. Alex Kuvaev was star number three.
Next Up
The Hurricanes will have the next few days off and won't play again until Saturday night when they host the Brandon Wheat Kings. The Wheaties have been struggling after starting the season off 4-0. They finally ended what was a long nine game losing streak the other night with a victory in Kelowna. Brandon has been away from home for a long time. The Wheaties have been on the road since October 15th and the game Saturday in Lethbridge will end 8 straight away from home for that team. The Wheat Kings have been playing teams in the B.C Division the last few weeks. Following the Saturday game at the ENMAX Centre, the Wheaties return home where they will play seven of their next nine at Westman Place. Saturday will be the first of four meetings this season between the Canes' and Wheat Kings. The two clubs will meet again in a few weeks in Brandon on November 12th.
Thanks,
Pat
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Still shows a need for scoring, this team is not going to beat the good teams
ReplyDeleteThese games are painful to watch. The attendance shows that. I think that Anderson has carried this team on his back all by himself which has gotten us more points than the team deserves. The record seems OK given expectations but this is a really boring team to watch. It's starting to feel like we are the Cleveland Indian fans in Major League. There is no hope in sight (until our draft picks come into the league)as Rich has no fire under his butt as he still has another decade or two left on his 2paycheque contract. I know Rich is methodical and patient blah blah blah but seriously do something here. What happened to "we will be the hardest working team every night". This team looked frustrated and defeated last night 10 minutes into the game. The energy is just not there. I can make a guarantee Rich. If the team continues to look like this every home game attendance will be in the 1500 range the rest of the season. I do not feel like I am getting value for my money. This is a 1 player team right now. It was a 2 player team but Fyten got hurt.
ReplyDeleteMy best wishes go out to Twister and the Shaw polar bear last night. It was sadly hilarious watching them try to get the crowd into the game. Good effort my animal friends. Random point, down with fat cat. How stupid is it to have a mascot of your biggest rival walking around with twister. Let's just hope we don't get the highway service hitman as our next mascot.
I agree with Anon 2 I am allready getting tired of watching the boys , there is no effort by a lot of them and watching Rich coach, he does not seem methodical he seems lost he has no passion seems like hes in daze maybe he is counting his money, I no I will not renew my tickets next yr if things dont change I have offered my 3 tickets to fellow workers and they dont want to go and now my family is feeling the same way.. yep we will change is what Rich said .. what your excuse this time Rich ?
ReplyDeleteK.T.
Yep I should have stayed home last night and watched the world series. Hell I'd rather watch the world series of poker than what I have had to see at home this season. But damm 5 years down the road we are going to be one hell of a team. I was sceptical of bringing back everybody from a young losing team filled with underacheivers. I am starting to see it is the same team as last year without Carter Banks. He was the only thing that made games last season watchable. It's nice to say that training camp is an open competition and no spots are guaranteed but we brought everybody back. At least the canes are making money on beer sales. It's the only thing that is getting me through the games. As an entertainment package a night out bowling looks like it would be a better value for my money, and less depressing even if I miss every pin. You are losing the fans Rich. There are not that many left. Not that you seem to care all that much.
ReplyDeletecompletely agree with the last point. ya i know preston is a calm man, who know maybe he is in a coma and none of us realize it..ive never seem a canes gm that sits back this long and does nothing to improove a team that has no structure...i mean none, look at any good team they have 2/3 good player that make the players around them better..hood reners the russian kid basically all of them need that....fyten's gone and there is no one on this team that can pull it off....and yet old sleepy seem to be more concerned with what for dinner than fixing the problem....
ReplyDeleteDo you think any Rich, or any member of the Canes board or team read this blog ?
ReplyDeletewhat would that matter either way..this is just fans speaking their minds on a game they spend 500 buck a year to watch and have all the right to do so.....if rich or brian read this forum or not i could careless, 5 years down the road they will be gone and we will still be here..........
ReplyDeleteKFC boycott until Brian gets something done here. It will be tough on us all, but what’s tougher right now? Watching a game at the enmax or eliminating the colonel and his delicious 11 herbs & spices from our diet. Both leave you feeling like you could have made a better choice when it came to how to spend your evening.
ReplyDeleteHow can you say that? The double down a caloriffic monument to taste, a veritable double rainbow for the mouth and a heart attack of delight! Sure, boycott the team, but at least drive to Calgary for a KFC Double Down!!!
ReplyDelete-- Dylan
why waste the gas..when all a person has to do is drive over to wendy's and pick up the whopping 36 grams of salt and 50000 calorie burger we know and lovingly call the baconator, aka the cardiologist's nightmare..that'l show'm ..
ReplyDeleteThere are always a few plays EVERY game that I immediately look to our bench for a coach reaction. In this Vancouver contest, the first was their first goal on the powerplay, where it seemed to me that Cunningham went straight into Tait's crease for a couple seconds, bump and grinded with him, then watched the red light go on! NO REACTION from the bench! WHY??!!
ReplyDeleteThe second is when a Giant was unchecked with speed through the slot, then yet slid right through Tait WITHOUT THE PUCK!!! ... UNCALLED. WTF???!!! Again, NOTHING from the bench?? How do you miss that opportunity to challenge the ref on that play??
Vancouver probably thought that Anderson was going to start that game, and wanted to throw him off. Just because he didn't play, doesn't mean the players weren't thinking "run the goalie."
I JUST watched Dorsett in the Edmonton-Columbus game sit for two minutes on a penalty for goaltender interference, and he was tripped and DRIVEN into the net...
There is enough talent on this team to compete, they just don't seem to have any obvious leadership or coaches!! - Richie.
give it some time why are all of you complaining. Ya it hasnt been all that fun at the enmax centre lately but we are 5-5-0-3 and in 6th or whatever in the conference. Ill agree its been boring games at the enmax this year, but give it time and for all you people that are already quiting on the team you are not true fans.look at the good things for once instead of the bad all the time we have an outstanding road trip and i barely here anyone getting excited. How about Kovacs he looked alright for his WHL debut last night and kuvaev had a great game. Give it some time are record is fine teams are gonna have an off night.
ReplyDeleteHaha some of you guys kill me. Why does Rich have to scream and yell on the bench? Didn't realize you were paying your money to watch a 58 year old man stand on a bench.
ReplyDeleteThe Canes are a .500 team right now. If I told you they would be 5th in the conference 13 games in, would you have believed me? Probably not.
Don't break your ankles jumping off the bandwagon 13 games in. Remember you're not a fan because you pay for season tickets. You're a fan when you back your team through thick and thin. GO Canes!
This team should be alot better than what they are. You are keeping players who did nothing last year. Camp had players who should have bumped those out. Tarnasky for example, why? Going after family members of NHL doesn't mean a thing to me. Hometown kids don't mean a thing to me. We want a winning team with the best of the best. Stop the favors and be competitive. Fans support good hockey.
ReplyDeleteafter 30 games we wont need to be going to the hospital with broken ankles we will talking about who we are going to select in the draft and Rich will be saying we have a lot of prospects
ReplyDeleteyou are right true fanatics blindly take thin year after thin year and treat the team like they are our grandchildren. the whole true fans thing is a stupid argument. it's like in the US those who did not support the government under Bush were told they were not patriots. Questioning the government is a sign that you care. Questioning the direction shows you care. Blindly saying we will eat this crap is an ignorant thing to say. Changes need to be made.
ReplyDeleteHockey fans in this city are never satisfied, rightly or wrongly. Fans complained about Maxwell not being able to control himself (year long suspension) and his players. They complained about him not dealing Mark Smith and Shane Willis the year following the run to the Mem Cup final. Then there were the complaints about Rocky Saginuik and Mikko Makela. Fans then complained about the hiring of Stocker as GM because he had no hockey experiences. Then they complained about his choice for coach Lindsay Hofford and his treatment of players (Kris Versteeg comes to mind). Then the complaints about GM Stasiuk and the deals he made. And if my memory serves me correctly, the same complaints about Michael Dyck not showing "emotion" on the bench and favouring certain players. Now it is Preston's turn. Common theme, fans are never satisfied. All of you who are complaining about the lack of trade action.....well think about this for a second. Of the 22 teams in the WHL 14 of them are at or near the .500 mark or below. 9 of those teams are in the East. Just how easy would it be for any GM to make a deal when so many teams are not sure which way they will be headed? Oh sure there have been some minor deals, but nothing of the earth shattering fashion. I would bet a great steak dinner, that Preston has looked for a deal that would bring him another fwd and defenseman, but the price is either too high or teams are unwilling to make a deal at this time. I agree with the other comments, had you told me that after 13 games the team would be at .500 without Fyten in the lineup, I would not have believed it.
ReplyDeleteOh well, you can't please everyone and in this city.....it is even harder.
RJS
The reason you are saying "would you take our record right now is yes" is because of the way we have played and been bailed out by Anderson. The concern about the team is that it is a long season and if this team continues to show the effort and skill that it has so far short term variance will go away. Normal terms, the cream rises. We are lucky to be 1% milk right now with this lineup and work ethic. We are lucky to be where we are. Look at the power play. Honestly can any team make the playoffs with a powerplay like this? Honestly. It is not a case of bad bounces, posts or anything. Special teams win games in the WHL. Our powerplay is just special right now. We have gotten to a .500 record with smoke and mirrors. I agree that there is too much nepotism and picking of local kids here. Fans have complained contunually in the past because frankly the past sucks. Since the Maxwell days we had 1 good season. The reason the fans are mad is because more than a decade of bad hockey gets frustrating. 2 years ago does not count due to the expectations. Getting a 7 seed and going out in the second round when you are the favorite in the league was like finishing in last. We want good hockey and players who play hard. The only way to get that in the bridge is to go the the university games and watch Wachturl play.
ReplyDeleteIf we are commenting on the Pronghorns, let us hope they pull off their first win of the season tonight!
ReplyDeleteIts always interesting that the most comments here are always about how Preston drives most fans nuts
ReplyDeleteIt has become obvious to many that we are keeping those that are not performing year after year. Time to let them go elsewhere. They are not WHL material. We have traded and released players who are better than what we have. Explain that. Selecting family of NHL players and locals is not cutting it. Don't get me wrong if they are performing than by all means but to have them just to expect the locals to come watch the game is the wrong reason. The players on this team are not happy, you can see it all over their faces. The team does have some talent but some don't belong. The boys have to be misreable to have ended up on the team that has had so much troubles. Therieu and Yadlowski are loving Everett and getting a lot of attention just like most of the trades we give away. Lethbridge has been misreable for the last three years and I don't see a change coming until the GM starts to think outside the box. Shake something up and get going. Will Reners be drafted this year? probably not because he is not being show cased to show what he can do. Some teams show case their talent, play them, get them exposed. He was a first round draft pick in the Bantam draft and he has nothing to show. Players elsewhere who were in the later rounds are doing better and being exposed. Free agents who were not drafted in bantam draft are being exposed. Looks to me like things will never change. Are the scouts scouting outside of the local area? Do we have US scouts? Do we have US players on the prospect list? From what I remember the team had a few who signed but we hardly saw them play and they were also eventually gone. Are we looking for another Sbisa? Why is it we are staying inside the box. We are starting to look like a Midget club team. It's time to change things. I thought this year was going to be a good year. Last year was a long season and the boys and fans will not last another season like that. CHANGE IT UP
ReplyDelete