Giants Fall 5-3 in the First of a Back-To-Back with Prince George
December 15, 2021 - Western Hockey League (WHL)
Vancouver Giants News Release
Vancouver Giants defenceman Tanner Brown vs. the Prince George Cougars
(Vancouver Giants, Credit: James Doyle)
Prince George, B.C. - Tuesday night at the CN Centre the Vancouver Giants (13-11-1-0) fell 5-3 to the Prince George Cougars (11-14-0-0). Alex Cotton (2A) and Ty Halaburda (1G, 1A) each had two points for the Giants while Blake Eastman responded with two goals for Prince George. Taylor Gauthier stopped 36 Vancouver shots at his end, while Giants netminder Will Gurski stopped 23 of the Cougars 28 shots. For the Cougars it marked their third straight win while the Giants have now dropped four straight.
1st Period:
PG - At 7:42 the Cougars opened the scoring when defenceman Hudson Thornton pinched from the left point and wired home his fifth goal of the season. Liekit Reichle and Fischer O'Brien both assisted.
VAN - Justin Lies answered just 54 seconds later off a one-timer from the slot. Ty Halaburda started the play when he won a puck free along the boards before finding Lies alone in front. For Lies it was his third of the season.
Shots: 9 - 6 Prince George
2nd Period:
PG - Jonny Hooker restored the Cougar lead on the waning seconds of a power play at 13:45. Hooker's initial wrap-around attempt hit the left post, but seconds later he found the loose puck and wired it home for his team-leading eighth.
PG - Blake Eastman (5) extended the Cougar lead to 3-1 at 17:38 when he pounced on a Bauer Dumanski point-shot rebound and tucked it home from in close.
Shots: 16-10 Vancouver
3rd Period:
VAN - 50 seconds into the final period, Cole Shepard moved the G-Men back within one when he slid a low shot past Taylor Gauthier from the right wing. Zack Ostapchuk and Alex Cotton both drew the helpers on Cole Shepard's first goal of the season.
PG - The two-goal lead for Prince George was restored at 7:07 when Koehn Ziemmer slid a forehand deke past the left pad of Will Gurski off a three-on-one rush. Craig Armstrong and Connor Bowie both factored in on his fifth of the season.
PG - Blake Eastman provided the eventual insurance goal for the Cougars off an unassisted backhand effort at 16:19. For Eastman it marked his sixth goal of the season and his second of the game.
VAN - The final Giants goal of the night came off a one-timer from Ty Halaburda (4). Kyle Bochek and Alex Cotton helped set up Halaburda's goal from the high slot.
Shots: 17-9
GAME SUMMARY
Final Score: Prince George 5 - Vancouver 3
Final Shots: 39 - 28 Vancouver
Will Gurski: 23/28 saves for Vancouver
Taylor Gauthier: 36/39 saves for Prince George
Vancouver Power Play: 0/1
Prince George Power Play: 1/1
3 Stars:
1) Taylor Gauthier (PG - 36 Saves)
2) Blake Eastman (PG - 2 Goals)
3) Justin Lies (VAN - 1 Goal)
Next Giants Game: A rematch with Prince George tomorrow night at 7:00 PM at the CN Centre.
NOTES
- Since returning to the Giants lineup three games ago, Justin Lies has recorded three points (2G, 1A) during a three-game point streak.
- Cole Shepard's goal tonight extended his point streak to two straight games, and marked his first goal since February of 2020.
- The Giants road record now sits at 7-6-1-0.
- The Giants are now 3-2 for the season against Prince George and are 1-2 against them on the road.
- With two points (1G, 1A) rookie forward Ty Halaburda notched his third multi-point game of the season.
Images from this story
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