Vancouver Giants

Hockey team |CAN_eng=1
team=Vancouver Giants
logo=Vancouver.pngcity=Vancouver, British Columbia
league=Western Hockey League
conference=Western
division=B.C.
founded=2001-02
arena=Pacific Coliseum
colours=Black, Red and Silver
coach=Don Hay
GM=Scott BonnerThe Vancouver Giants are a major junior ice hockey team playing in the Western Hockey League (WHL). Inaugurated in 2000-01, the Giants have won one WHL title (2006) and one CHL title (2007) in their seven-season history. Their home rink is the Pacific Coliseum in Vancouver, British Columbia.

The ownership group consists of British Columbia-based business men Ron Toigo and Sultan Thiara, Hockey Hall of Fame member Gordie Howe and former National Hockey League coach and general manager Pat Quinn. [ [http://web.archive.org/web/20030517023754/http://chl.ca/WHLNews0102/sep20_whl.html 2001-02 Western Hockey League season begins Friday] ]

History

Led by majority owner and British Columbia-based businessman Ron Toigo, the city of Vancouver was granted a WHL franchise for the 2001-02 season. In their inaugural campaign, the Giants compiled 13 wins, 49 losses, and 6 ties. The first goal in franchise history was scored by Tyson Mulock in a loss to the Kamloops Blazers.

The following season, the Giants went 26-37-5-4 (fourth in the B.C. division) and made their first playoff appearance, but lost in the first round to the eventual Presidents Cup champions, the Kelowna Rockets, in four games. Second-year forward Adam Courchaine led the team in scoring with 85 points, tallying 43 goals which still stands as a single-season franchise record.

In the 2003-04 season, the Giants continued to improve, posting a 33-24-9-6, which marked their first winning season. After defeating the Kamloops Blazers in the first round, the Giants lost in the second round to the expansion team Everett Silvertips in six games. Adam Courchaine led the team again in scoring, finishing ninth overall in the league. Hometown rookie Gilbert Brule, the first overall pick in the 2002 WHL Bantam Draft, scored 60 points and earned the Jim Piggott Memorial Trophy as the league's best first-year player.

In the 2004-05 season, the Giants went 34-30-4-4 and Brule emerged as a WHL star, finishing third in league scoring with 87 points, a franchise record. Courchaine, tallied 78 points, and finish seventh in league scoring; marking the first and only time thus far that the top ten league scorers would feature two Giants players. In the playoffs, the Giants lost in the first round to Kelowna. Despite the early exit, the Giants drew many fans to the Coliseum that year, due to the NHL lockout; game six against the Rockets drew 16,183 fans.

The 2005-06 season featured the Giants most significant improvement in the standings, and became one of the WHL's top teams. They finished the season 47-19-0-6, first in the B.C. division and third in the league overall. In the first round of the playoffs, the Giants beat the Prince George Cougars in five games, then the Portland Winterhawks in the second round, also in five games. In the third and final round, they won win eight straight, sweeping both the Everett Silvertips and Moose Jaw Warriors en route to their first ever President's Cup. Gilbert Brule had returned to the team midway through the season after starting 2005-06 with the NHL's Columbus Blue Jackets, and was named the WHL Playoff MVP after scoring 16 goals and 30 points in 18 post-season games, including 5 goals and 12 points in the finals.

By winning the WHL league title, the Giants earned their first Memorial Cup appearance in Moncton, New Brunswick. The Giants finished the round-robin tied for third, then defeated the Peterborough Petes in a tie-breaker in order to move on to the playoffs, but lost to the Moncton Wildcats in the semifinal. Brule scored 12 points in 5 games, earning the Ed Chynoweth Trophy, as tournament leading scorer. He was also be named to the Memorial Cup All-star team with Giants defenceman Paul Albers.

The Giants were chosen by the CHL prior to the 2006 Memorial Cup, to host the 2007 Memorial Cup. They finished the season, once again atop their division, fourth in the league. The season featured a goaltending controversy, in which starter Dustin Slade would begin the season splitting time with emerging goalie Tyson Sexsmith. Slade, frustrated with having to give up his starts, would leave the team in November to pursue a pro-hockey career. [citeweb|last=Mackin|first=Bob|title=Four Giants face off against Russia's best|url=http://slam.canoe.ca/Slam/Hockey/Junior/2006/11/28/2530945-sun.html|publisher=CANOE Inc.|year=2006|accessdate=2008-03-28] With Sexsmith (who finished first in the league in GAA) as their starting goalie, and a balanced offence that included Milan Lucic, Michal Repik and mid-season acquisitions Wacey Rabbit and Kenndal McArdle, the Giants made their way once again to the WHL final. The series went the distance against the Medicine Hat Tigers, but the Giants lost the seventh game in double overtime, failing to win their second consecutive league title. However, because of their automatic by into the Memorial Cup as hosts, the Giants avenged their seventh game loss against the Tigers, defeating Medicine Hat 3-1 in the final, capturing their first Memorial Cup title. Lucic earned the Stafford Smythe Memorial Trophy as tournament MVP, while linemate Michal Repik led the tournament in scoring (edging Lucic by one goal) to capture the Ed Chynoweth Trophy. Defenceman Cody Franson also joined Lucic and Repik on the tournament All-star team.

As defending Memorial Cup champions the following season, the Giants won the B.C. division for the third consecutive year and posted a franchise record 106 points (49-15-2-6), third in the league. Third-year forward Spencer Machacek, named team captain after expected captain Lucic would stick with the Boston Bruins of the NHL, would lead the team in scoring with 78 points, fourteenth in the league. On defence, Jonathon Blum, also a returnee from the Memorial Cup winning team, finished second among league defencemen in scoring, tallying 63 points, a single-season franchise-record among defenseman. In goal, Sexsmith once again led the league with a stellar 1.89 goals against average. The Giants run for a third consecutive Memorial Cup appearance was cut short; after sweeping the Chilliwack Bruins in the first round, the Giants were stopped by the Spokane Chiefs in six games.

Championships

;Memorial Cup "Canadian Hockey League champion" * 2007 – Champions * 2006 – 3rd place ;Ed Chynoweth Cup "Western Hockey League playoff champion" * 2007 – Finalists * 2006 – Champions

;Western Conference Champions * 2005–06, 2006–07 ;B.C. Division Champions "First place in regular season" * 2005–06, 2006–07, 2007–08

Players

NHL alumni

*Gilbert Brulé *Triston Grant *Mark Fistric

*Andrew Ladd *Milan Lučić *Andrej Meszaros

*Marek Schwarz *Nick Tarnasky

NHL draftees

* Marek Schwarz (Drafted by St. Louis Blues in 2004; first round, 17th overall)
* Andrej Meszaros (Drafted by Ottawa Senators in 2004; first round, 23rd overall)
* Mark Fistric (Drafted by Dallas Stars in 2004; first round, 28th overall)
* Gilbert Brule (Drafted by Columbus Blue Jackets in 2005; first round, 6th overall)
* Brendan Mikkelson (Drafted by Mighty Ducks of Anaheim in 2005; second round, 31st overall)
* Cody Franson (Drafted by Nashville Predators in 2005; third round, 79th overall)
* J.D. Watt (Drafted by Calgary Flames in 2005; fourth round, 111nd overall)
* Mario Bliznak (Drafted by Vancouver Canucks in 2005; seventh round, 205th overall)
* Milan Lucic (Drafted by Boston Bruins in 2006; second round, 50th overall)
* Kenndal McArdle (Drafted by Florida Panthers in 2005; first round, 20th overall)
* A.J. Thelen (Drafted by Minnesota Wild in 2004; first round, 12th overall)
* Jonathon Blum (Drafted by Nashville Predators in 2007; first round, 23 overall)
* Tyson Sexsmith (Drafted by San Jose Sharks in 2007; third round, 91st overall)

Current roster

Updated November 7, 2007.

Team records

ee also

*List of ice hockey teams in British Columbia
*Vancouver Canucks

References

External links

* [http://www.vancouvergiants.com/ Vancouver Giants Official Web Site]
* [http://www.giantsbeat.com/ Vancouver Giants Fan Site & Message Board]
* [http://www.whl.ca/ WHL Official Web Site]
* [http://www.chl.ca/ CHL Official Web Site]
* [http://www.memorialcup2006.com/ 2006 MasterCard Memorial Cup Official Web Site]
* [http://www.2007memorialcup.ca/ 2007 MasterCard Memorial Cup Official Web Site]