Giants Bounce Back with a Commanding 6-0 Win Sunday against Kelowna
Published on March 29, 2021 under Western Hockey League (WHL)
Vancouver Giants News Release
Vancouver Giants goaltender Trent Miner vs. the Kelowna Rockets
(Vancouver Giants, Credit: Allen Douglas)
Kamloops, B.C. - The Vancouver Giants (1-1) have their first victory of the 2020-21 season and it came in convincing fashion. Sunday night in Kamloops the Vancouver Giants earned a 6-0 victory over the Kelowna Rockets (1-1). Tristen Nielsen paced the Giants attack with a three-goal first period while 15-year-old defenceman Mazden Leslie scored twice in his WHL debut. Trent Miner turned aside all 20 shots he faced in his first start of the season in goal. The final shots were 37-20 for Vancouver.
1st Period:
VAN - 3:56 into the first, Tristen Nielsen snagged his first of three consecutive goals. The first one came shorthanded off a shot from the left-wing circle off the rush. Alex Kannok Leipert and Justin Sourdif both earned assists.
VAN - Tristen Nielsen's second of the game came off a one-timer from the right-wing circle on a power play at 12:17. Alex Kannok Leipert and Eric Florchuk drew the helpers.
VAN - Nielsen's third consecutive goal came off an odd-man rush at 18:09. He took a drop pass from Dallon Wilton and wired his fourth of the season past the glove of Rockets starter Roman Basran to give the G-Men a 3-0 lead.
Shots: 14-8 Vancouver
2nd Period:
VAN - 3:45 into the second, under-age defenceman Mazden Leslie sent the Giants bench into a frenzy when he followed up a Justin Sourdif rebound and wired home his first career WHL goal.
VAN - At 17:45, Mazden Leslie struck again. Once again Justin Sourdif played the role of setup man, feeding a pass to Leslie at the point, and from there Leslie snuck a low shot past the left pad of Roman Basran to stake the Giants to a 5-0 lead.
Shots: 13-5 Vancouver
3rd Period:
VAN - The final goal of the game for Vancouver came courtesy of Adam Hall in close at 3:59 off a setup from Tristen Nielsen. Connor Horning grabbed the second assist on the goal.
Shots: 10-7 Vancouver
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GAME SUMMARY
Final Score: Vancouver 6 - Kelowna 0
Final Shots: 37-20 Vancouver
Vancouver Power Play: 1/4
Vancouver Penalty Kill: 4/4
3 Stars:
1) Tristen Nielsen (3G, 2A)
2) Mazden Leslie (2G)
3) Trent Miner (20 Saves)
Next Giants Game: Tuesday night at 7:00 PM against the Victoria Royals.
BOX SCORE
QUOTES:
"We were on our toes. We played a much more aggressive game. We took away time and space from a good team in Kelowna. A lot of things that gave us trouble in our opener, we were able to correct and play the game on the right side of the puck tonight." - Giants Associate Coach Keith McCambridge.
"I hit the net tonight. That was huge. I was able to capitalize on my opportunities, but most importantly my linemates tonight were awesome" - Tristen Nielsen after a three-goal, five point night.
"It was great. My D-partner Tanner Brown was a huge help. Living with Alex Kannok Leipert has helped so much. Obviously Nielsen with five points was huge. We played an all-around great game." - Mazden Leslie after a two-goal performance in his WHL debut.
NOTES:
- Tristen Nielsen becomes the first Giant to record five points in a game since Bowen Byram (2G, 3A) did so against Kamloops on January 12th, 2019.
- Mazden Leslie becomes the first under-ager to score a goal for the Vancouver Giants since March 20, 2015 against the Kelowna Rockets.
- Florida Panthers prospect Justin Sourdif finished with four assists giving him his third four-point game of his WHL career.
- Two of Trent Miner's five career WHL shutouts have now come against Kelowna. His other shutout against the Rockets came on October 3, 2018.
Images from this story
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The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.
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