Giants Strong Through 40, But Fade in 3rd in Road Loss to Portland
Published on December 7, 2025 under Western Hockey League (WHL)
Vancouver Giants News Release
Vancouver Giants goaltender Kelton Pyne vs. the Portland Winterhawks
(Vancouver Giants, Credit: Keith Dwiggins)
Portland, OR - A strong third period push from the Portland Winterhawks lifted them past the Vancouver Giants by a 4-2 score on Sunday at Veterans Memorial Coliseum.
Vancouver falls to 12-16-1-1 with the loss, while the Winterhawk improves to 17-12-0-0.
The game was tied 2-2 after 40 minutes, but Portland scored once early in the third period and once late to grab the two points. The Winterhawks drew three penalties in the final frame and out-shot Vancouver 20-6.
Jakob Oreskovic and Tobias Tomik each scored for the Giants.
Ryan Miller had two goals for Portland. Kyle McDonough and Alex Weirmair each found the back of the net once.
CLICK FOR THE OFFICIAL WHL BOXSCORE GAME SUMMARY
Vancouver started quick, generating chances early, including two posts, one from Tomik and one from Ty Halaburda.
After one period, the score was 0-0, but the Giants held Portland to just five shots on goal and could have been leading themselves.
Miller opened the scoring 40 seconds into the middle frame and McDonough tapped in a spin-o-rama pass from Reed Brown 12 minutes later to give the home side a 2-0 lead.
Oreskovic responded 2:16 after McDonough's goal to make it 2-1, when he tipped in a point shot off the stick of Lance McCloskey.
Tomik equalized just 1:26 after that when Halaburda spotted him open heading to the net, making it a 2-2 score on his sixth goal of the season.
The Giants were called for a holding infraction early in the third, resulting in Miller's second of the game on a Portland power play to make it 3-2.
Weiermair hammered in a rebound from the left circle with four minutes left to make the final score 4-2. STATISTICS
SOG: VAN - 7/17/6 = 30 | POR - 5/14/20 = 34
PP: VAN- 0/4 | POR - 1/5
Face-Offs: VAN - 26 | POR - 35 3 STARS
1st: POR - Ryan Miller - 2G, 1A, 4 SOG, +1
2nd: POR - Carter Sotheran - 3A, 3 SOG, +1
3rd: POR - Ondrej Štěbeták - 28 Saves on 30 Shots GOALTENDING BATTLE
Vancouver: LOSS - Kelton Pyne (35 saves / 39 shots)
Portland: WIN - Ondrej Štěbeták (28 saves / 30 shots)
THEY SAID IT
"It was a pretty good bounce back effort from last night in Everett. A lot of things happened between that game and now, so the boys responded well. The first 40 [minutes] was excellent. We ran into some penalty trouble in the third and we couldn't pull away with the win." - Giants Assistant Coach Gaelan Patterson
UPCOMING
The Giants have another busy upcoming weekend.
Date Opponent Time Location
Friday, December 12 Victoria Save on Foods Memorial Centre 7:05 PM
Saturday, December 13 Victoria Langley Events Centre 7:00 PM
Sunday, December 14 Spokane Langley Events Centre 4:00 PM
Stream all Giants games for free on Victory+.
The Giants next home game is their Teddy Bear Toss on Saturday, December 13 at 7 PM against the Victoria Royals! Grab your seats at VancouverGiants.com/tickets.
Images from this story
Western Hockey League Stories from December 7, 2025
- Chiefs Cap Three-In-Three with Third-Straight Win, Top Thunderbirds 4-1 - Spokane Chiefs
- Giants Strong Through 40, But Fade in 3rd in Road Loss to Portland - Vancouver Giants
- Tait, TVrznik Headline 3-2 Wenatchee Win at Calgary Sunday - Wenatchee Wild
- Hitmen Fans Toss 26,828 Plush Toys at 2025 Teddy Bear Toss - Calgary Hitmen
- Hawks' Big Third Period Takes Down the Giants 4-2 - Portland Winterhawks
- Iginla Sends Bears Flying, But Oil Kings Fall to Raiders in Overtime - Edmonton Oil Kings
- Carels Calls Game in OT as Cougars Down Royals - Prince George Cougars
- Pats Blank Blades 4-0 Behind Hutchison's First Career WHL Shutout - Regina Pats
- Bear-y Christmas: Tips Beat Giants on Teddy Bear Toss - Everett Silvertips
- Hurricanes Trade Wormald to Chiefs for Four Draft Picks - Lethbridge Hurricanes
- Chiefs Acquire 2005-Born Forward Wormald from Lethbridge in Exchange for Four Picks - Spokane Chiefs
- Oil Kings and Raiders Clash for 18th Annual Teddy Bear Toss - Edmonton Oil Kings
- Game Day Hub: December 7 vs Vancouver - Portland Winterhawks
- T-Birds Falter in Portland - Seattle Thunderbirds
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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