(By Joey Kenward-Voice of the Giants)

The Vancouver Giants congratulate forward GARET HUNT (left) on signing his first professional hockey contract. Hunt has signed a contract with the Springfield Falcolns of the American Hockey League. The Falcolns are the AHL affiliate of the Edmonton Oilers.  

Hunt has just capped off his four-year Western Hockey League career with the Giants. The 5'8", 190lbs. native of Maple Ridge, B.C. appeared in 193 regular season games with Vancouver. In that span, he scored 16 goals, 25 assists, and collected 542 penalty minutes  

The 20 year-old LW also appeared in 29 career playoff games with Vancouver and was a member of their WHL Championship club in 2006 and Memorial Cup Championship team in 2007.  

After having his career nearly come to an end in the 2006/07 season with a fractured leg, Hunt returned to have his strongest season to date. In 62 games, Hunt had seven goals, 11 assists, and 239 penalty minutes. He also led the entire league in fighting majors with 27. For the second straight season, Hunt was named the Giants Most Inspirational Player of the Year.   

"Garet has come a long way as a player and as a person during his time with our organization," says Giants General Manager Scott Bonner. "While our team and our fans will certainly miss his energy and excitment level during every Giants game, we wish him nothing but the best as he begins his pro hockey career."