Game Notes - September 20, 2008

Game 1 | Vancouver @ Everett Silvertips, 7:05pm

The Vancouver Giants begin their 8th season in the WHL with a game this Saturday against the Everett Silvertips. In their past season openers, the Giants are 3-2-1-1. Last Season, Michal Repik scored twice and added an assist as the Giants steamrolled the Portland Winter Hawks 6-2, outshooting the Hawks 44-19

At press time, the Vancouver Giants still had three players away at NHL training camps...Jonathon Blum (Nashville), Tyson Sexsmith (San Jose) and Brent Regner (Columbus).  Early indications have Sexsmith back by Wednesday, perhaps early enough to be ready for the game @ Kamloops.  Regner’s timetable is unknown, with Columbus possibly returning him next week while Jonathon Blum is scheduled back in Vancouver for September 28th.  It is unknown if Blum will be available for the Giants on the 28th @ Chilliwack.  Players returning from NHL training camps include Lance Bouma (Calgary), James Wright (Tampa Bay) and Casey Pierro-Zabotel (Pittsburgh). 

New Captain...upon his return from Nashville, Jonathon Blum will assume his role as Captain of the Giants.  Blum succeeds Spencer Machacek, who is now in Atlanta Thrashers camp and will not be returning to the Giants.  Blum, from Rancho Santa Margarita, California, becomes the first American Captain in Giants history.

Goalie update... Jamie Tucker and Kraymer Barnstable remain in camp for the Giants while Sexsmith is away at camp.  According to Giants GM Scott Bonner in a radio interview yesterday, he sees Tucker as having the inside track to the backup job.  Tucker is expected to start against Everett this evening.

Defence update with Blum and Regner away, expect to see a lot of Craig Schira and Mike Berube. The two twenty year old d-men will anchor the d-line tonight alongside Neil Manning, Mitch Spooner, Simon Witt and Bronson Maschmeyer.  Maschmeyer is day to day with an ankle injury and will be a game time decision will newest Giant Curtis Kulchar (pronounced Culture) will be unavailable for 4-6 weeks as he suffered a knee injury in the Giants 8-3 pre-season loss to Chilliwack on September 13th. 

Forward update... With the return of Pierro-Zabotel, Wright and Bouma, the Giants now have their full complement of forwards back on the team.  Depending on the health of Maschmeyer, you will see either 12 or 13 forwards dressed.  The Giants currently sit with 27 players on their roster, (15 forwards, 9 defence, 3 goalies) and have indicated that they would like to be no more than 23 players once everyone is back.

The Russian is coming...Mikhail (Misha) Fisenko (fi-SENK-o) becomes the first Russian to play for the Giants.  Fisenko and Slovakian forward Andrej Kudrna (KOO-dur-na) take the place of Michal Repik and Mario Bliznak as the two European imports on the club.  Repik (Florida) and Bliznak (Vancouver) are looking to catch on with their NHL organizations.  It has been confirmed this afternoon that Repik will play for the Rochester Americans of the AHL.

Don Hay enters his tenth season as a WHL head coach and his fifth with the Giants.  Hay has 3 Memorial Cup Championships in 9 seasons and also has amassed 384 regular season victories.  Don will be joined on the bench by Yogi Shejkovsky (SHEV-kov-ski) and Chad Scharff (SCARF).  Scharff takes over from Craig Bonner, who left the Giants in the off season to become the new General Manager of the Kamloops Blazers.

History – the Giants and Tips have met in the playoffs on two occasions.  In 2003-04, Everett prevailed on six games in the WHL semi-finals en route to a Western Conference Championship and a berth in the WHL finals in their first year of play.  In 2005-06, Vancouver swept the Tips to win the WHL Western Conference Championship.  The Giants would win the WHL but would fall in the Memorial Cup semi finals in Moncton, NB.

Join 'Voice of the Giants' Dave Sheldon and Bill Wilms for all of the action on SUPERHITS 650 CISL.  Pregame show will be at 6:30 pm, with the opening faceoff at 7:05.