Giants Grind out 2-1 Win over Winterhawks
WHL Vancouver Giants

Giants Grind out 2-1 Win over Winterhawks

Published on February 22, 2026 under Western Hockey League (WHL)
Vancouver Giants News Release


Vancouver Giants' Ethan Mittelsteadt and Kelton Pyne battle Portland Winterhawks' Nathan Brown
Vancouver Giants' Ethan Mittelsteadt and Kelton Pyne battle Portland Winterhawks' Nathan Brown
(Vancouver Giants, Credit: Rob Wilton)

LANGLEY, B.C. - The Vancouver Giants defeated the Portland Winterhawks 2-1 on Saturday night after a stellar performance from goaltender Kelton Pyne, who made 27 saves on 28 shots at Langley Events Centre.

Vancouver opened the scoring late in the first period, before Portland tied the game with a power play goal at 6:15 of the third. The Giants got the game-winning goal from Colton Gerrior with less than seven minutes remaining in the final frame to win the contest.

Vancouver improves to 21-32-1-2 (45 points) following the win. Portland drops to 25-25-5-1 (56 points), currently sitting in seventh place in the Western Conference.

Lance McCloskey scored his second goal of the season to open the scoring for the Giants, while Gerrior's goal was his seventh of the season. Pyne was named the first star of the game, resulting in his third first-star selection in his last four games.

Alex Weiermair was the lone goal scorer for the Winterhawks.

GAME SUMMARY

McCloskey notched his second goal of the campaign at the 14:45 mark of the first period, executing a give-and-go with Gerrior to open the scoring.

After a scoreless second period, Vancouver entered the final frame with a 1-0 lead thanks to 17 saves from Pyne.

Portland tied the game at the 6:15 mark of the third period when Weiermair rifled a one-timer home from the left circle on the power play.

With less than seven minutes left in the third period, the Giants got the game-winning-goal from Gerrior, after he ripped a bad angle shot from the right side boards following an offensive zone face-off win from Brett Olson.

STATISTICS

SOG: VAN - 12/8/11 = 31 | POR - 10/7/11 = 28

PP: VAN - 0/2 | POR - 1/3

Face-Offs: VAN - 29 | POR - 24

3 STARS

1st: VAN - Kelton Pyne - 27 Saves on 28 Shots

2nd: VAN - Colton Gerrior - GWG, 1A, 3 SOG, +2

3rd: VAN - Lance McCloskey - 1G, 2 SOG, +1

GOALTENDING BATTLE

Vancouver: WIN - Kelton Pyne (27 saves / 28 shots)

Portland: LOSS - Cruz Chase (29 saves / 31 shots)

THEY SAID IT

"We had a good start. Just [liked] every shift, every period. Start of the second I thought Portland had a good push, but we hold them to the low 20s [in shots on goal] and we didn't give up a lot of odd-man rushes. Our checking, our defending and overall the resiliency of the group [was strong]. To have a tough one last night and with travel you get in at 5:30 in the morning and then you've got to turn around and play again - I thought we just did a great job. Give up a goal in the third to lose the lead, but then to stick with it and find a way to get the next one and then really play som heavy, hard hockey down the stretch in the third period. Just really proud of the group." - Giants Head Coach Parker Burgess.

"We just bounced back from last night's game. Stuck together and executed our game plan." - Giants 2nd Star Colton Gerrior

UPCOMING

The Giants' next game is at home against Seattle on Friday, before taking on Kamloops on the road.

Date Opponent Location Time

Friday, February 27 Seattle Langley Events Centre 7:00 PM

Saturday, February 28 Kamloops Sandman Centre 6:00 PM

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Images from this story

Vancouver Giants' Ethan Mittelsteadt and Kelton Pyne battle Portland Winterhawks' Nathan Brown
Vancouver Giants' Ethan Mittelsteadt and Kelton Pyne battle Portland Winterhawks' Nathan Brown
(Rob Wilton)		   



Western Hockey League Stories from February 22, 2026


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