Throwing Down the Welcome Mat in Vancouver
Published on January 27, 2016 under Western Hockey League (WHL)
Kelowna Rockets News Release
The BMO CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game is returning to the scene of what is likely its most successful event when it returns to the Pacific Coliseum.
The year was 2005 and the Giants and Gilbert Brule put on a show that has yet to be matched in two areas: record attendance and Brule's three-goal, four-point performance, which through two decades remains the lone hat trick scored by a player in BMO CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game history.
More than 16,000 crammed in to the Pacific Coliseum on January 19, 2005, a record for the annual draft class showcase. Brule earned player of the game honours for Team Cherry and Kenndal McArdle, who would later play for the Giants in their successful MasterCard Memorial Cup run two years later, did the same for the losing side.
"It was really something that year," recalls Don Cherry, who was behind the bench for the 8-4 win over Team Davidson. "We asked, I think it was (Plymouth Whalers) Dan Ryder, if we could give Gilbert Brule a shift of his and he said 'OK' and Brule went out and got his hat trick."
Though he has battled health issues this year, Giants captain Tyler Benson was looking to become the latest Giant to make a name for himself in the event. Like Brule before him, the Edmonton native is a former No. 1 overall pick in the WHL Bantam draft and Benson has earned considerable acclaim across the hockey world through his two seasons playing on a rebuilding team and battling through injury.
"I'm just trying to become a more responsible player and play a 200-feet game," said Benson, during a conference call to promote the BMO CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game. "But for sure (injuries) have been frustrating for me this year."
That frustration aside, Benson has shown the type of form typical of a future first-round NHL Draft choice. After a 45-point (14G, 31A) rookie campaign, he helped Canada win the gold medal at last summer's Ivan Hlinka tournament. Despite needing surgery to remove a cyst on his lower back soon after returning to Vancouver, Benson was averaging nearly a point-a-game before a lower-body injury sidelined him just after Christmas. Scouts have also noticed maturation in Benson's game, displaying more awareness in the defensive zone and on-ice leadership, incumbent in being the Giants captain.
"I have to give him full marks for coming back like that," said Red Line Report chief scout Kyle Woodlief, "it would have been easy to come back with a bad attitude."
Though Brule led the Giants to a WHL title in 2006 and a spot in the MasterCard Memorial Cup, his development was hurt by an injury suffered when he made the Columbus Blue Jackets as a 19-year-old. Though Brule played 299 NHL games, registering almost 100 points, there is a cautionary tale in his story.
Though not speaking about Brule directly, Benson pointed out that every player faces a litmus test when it comes to transforming into an elite major junior player and, ultimately, NHL player.
"Every player in the WHL is older, bigger and more experienced," said Benson, who came to Vancouver after breaking scoring records in bantam previously held by Ty Rattie, who went on to star for the Portland Winterhawks.
"Everybody in the WHL was a dominant player at one time."
This year's game will have another element that the 2005 event did not: remembering Pat Quinn by donating proceeds to his legacy fund that is designed to help players who are pursuing a career in law. Through his many accomplishments in the game as a player, coach and minority owner of the Giants, Quinn was also a law school graduate. Education was always very near and dear to the Big Irishman's heart and his family established the charity not long after his death in November, 2014.
"It's very fitting the event will serve as a tribute to the legacy of Pat Quinn," said WHL Commissioner Ron Robison, when the BMO CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game was announced last March. "(Mr. Quinn) made such an extraordinary contribution to the game at all levels and played integral roles with the success of both the Vancouver Canucks and Giants franchises."
HIGHEST ATTENDANCE:
BMO CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game
16,331 Pacific Coliseum, Vancouver (2005)
14,100 Canadian Airlines Saddledome, Calgary (1999)
13,735 Corel Centre, Ottawa (2006)
VANCOUVER SHOWCASE:
Eleven years ago marked the beginning of an impressive hat trick of hosting efforts by the city of Vancouver that led into the Winter Olympics in 2010:
- The 2005 BMO CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game is held at Pacific Coliseum to a record crowd showcasing that year's top prospects for the NHL Draft.
- The 2006 World Junior is held in Vancouver, with Kamloops and Kelowna serving as secondary hosts. Canada plays to sell-out crowds at the Pacific Coliseum during pool play, and later wins the gold medal over Russia at GM Place (now Rogers Arena).
- The 2007 MasterCard Memorial Cup comes to town in 2007 and the Giants thrill a sold-out crowd with a 3-1 victory on home ice at the Pacific Coliseum.
GIANT PRESENCE:
Since joining the WHL in 2001, the Vancouver Giants have had 10 players (including Benson) selected to play in the BMO CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game. Four of those players later went on to be selected in the first round of the NHL Draft:
2004 - Mark Fistric (28th overall, Dallas Stars)
2005 - Gilbert Brule (6th overall, Columbus Blue Jackets)
2007 - Jonathon Blum (23rd overall, Nashville Predators)
2009 - Evander Kane (4th overall, Atlanta Thrashers)
TICKETS:
Starting as low as $19, tickets can be purchased online at VancouverGiants.com or TicketLeader.ca. You can also buy tickets by calling the Vancouver Giants office (604-4-GIANTS) or at the Pacific Coliseum box office which is open Monday through Friday from 9:00am-5:00pm.
The 2016 BMO CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game is proudly supported by title partner BMO Bank of Montreal, and CHL associate sponsors Cooper Tire, autoTRADER.ca and Sherwin-Williams. The game will be broadcast live across Canada on Sportsnet, TVA Sports, and in the United States on NHL Network.
Western Hockey League Stories from January 27, 2016
- Off the Ice and into the Schools - Kelowna Rockets
- Throwing Down the Welcome Mat in Vancouver - Kelowna Rockets
- Americans Sign Prospect Riley Sawchuk - Tri-City Americans
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.
