dondo
09-20-2008, 11:57 PM
Giants Blank Tips
Vancouver 4 Everett 0
Don Robinson
With Tyson Sexsmith at the San Jose Sharks camp it was time for the back-up hopefuls to step it up and tonight rookie ‘tender, 17 year old Jamie Tucker, blanked the Tips with some sparkling saves in his first ever WHL game. Stopping 30 shots sent his way by the ‘Tips, Tucker had to be quick and mobile to keep his goose-egg intact. Kraymer Barnstable might be finding himself on the outside looking in by the time Tyson gets back to Vancouver, after stinking up the joint in Chilliwack with a very poor pre-season outing. For my money, Tucker looks to be the future goalie of the Vancouver Giants and has had two impressive camps the past couple of years to indicate just that.
The G-Men had one of their most middling pre-seasons in recent history, but it looks like their regular season might be a change of fortune. Dressing five defensemen, with newly acquired Curtis Kulchar still injured and notables like Blum and Regner at NHL camps, didn’t hurt them as the defensive corps being run by ex-Giant Chad Scharff acquitted themselves quite well with a very solid game throughout. Neil Manning and Craig Schira both earned star honours tonight with their excellent play at both ends of the ice and both showed up repeatedly on the score sheet with Manning notching the opening goal of the season. Special teams played a huge part in tonight’s convincing victory as the PP went 3 for 8 and held their opposition to 0 for 8. Reffing was suspect at times with a bunch of soft equalisations, but what do you expect from Matt Kirk.
The Giants opened the scoring 5:44 into the first on the PP. Manning scored on a back door play reminiscent of this years Captain Jonathon Blum. Sneaking behind the coverage and putting the puck past young ‘Tips ‘tender Shayne Barrie. James Wright and Andrej Kudrna assisted on the play with some dandy puck moving. Late in the first Todd Kennedy stood up for his team-mate when d-man Simon Witt was levelled from behind, not an uncommon hit in tonight’s game from the Everett contingent with a fraction of those infractions being called. Taking on a much smaller Cameron Abney, Kennedy got a bit excited and the fight was over quickly with both players going to the ice. Tucker was very good in the opening frame making a couple of point blank stops as the Tips out shot the Vancouver squad 10 - 7.
The Giants padded their lead at 8:45 in the second when it seemed as if the G-Men might come away empty handed on the PP with a few missed nets by CPZ and Kane, but just as I was thinking this Kane muscled the puck past Barrie for the Giants second PP tally of the game. Schira got the second assist. During the goal celebration, Graham Poteur decided to cross-check Kane in the scrum with a frustrated out-burst of poor-sportsmanship. The two teams traded penalties that period with the Tips coming out with bubkis and the Giants notching two PP tallies. Late in the middle frame, Mike Piluso rifled the puck almost through the top corner from the doorstep. Manning and Schira set-up the play getting the puck to the net and Piluso driving the net was first to the loose puck and made no mistake. The Giants out shot the Tips 19 – 8 in the second.
The G-Men salted away the game in the third at the 13:03 mark when Tips coach John Becanic bizarrely decided to pull his goalie with 8 mins left in the game. The Giants made a few good moves at their blue-line, the Tips made some bad moves and the stretch pass found its way onto Lance Bouma’s stick. Bouma tipped it into the empty net to put his team up by four. Adam Basford and Craig Cunningham got the helpers. The only story left undetermined was whether or not Tucker would get his shut out and as it turns out he had to earn it with a couple of great late game stops. His first game in the dub and his first shut out, a convincing one at that. Usually a goalie gets their shutout by default playing behind the Giants stifling D which often limits shots to low double digits, but tonight Tucker was full money for goose-egg and was required to man up and work for his saves to preserve his blank sheet. A shame that the star selectors in Everett awarded him only the third star. The other two being of course Manning and Schira who both had monster games.
The Giants went 3 for 8 on the PP, while holding their opponents to 0 for 8. Shots were 33 – 30 Giants, which would probably be the only stat the Giants weren’t too pleased with this evening. The Giants next game is on the road as they don’t open at home until September 26th. The G-Men will take on the new look Kamloops Blazers who should be a better squad with a lot of their young up and comers arriving. The game will be in Kamloops on Wednesday September 24th. Puck drops at 7:00pm PST.
Three Stars
1) Neil Manning
2) Craig Schira
3) Jamie Tucker
My Three Stars
1) Jamie Tucker
2) Craig Schira
3) Neil Manning
Vancouver 4 Everett 0
Don Robinson
With Tyson Sexsmith at the San Jose Sharks camp it was time for the back-up hopefuls to step it up and tonight rookie ‘tender, 17 year old Jamie Tucker, blanked the Tips with some sparkling saves in his first ever WHL game. Stopping 30 shots sent his way by the ‘Tips, Tucker had to be quick and mobile to keep his goose-egg intact. Kraymer Barnstable might be finding himself on the outside looking in by the time Tyson gets back to Vancouver, after stinking up the joint in Chilliwack with a very poor pre-season outing. For my money, Tucker looks to be the future goalie of the Vancouver Giants and has had two impressive camps the past couple of years to indicate just that.
The G-Men had one of their most middling pre-seasons in recent history, but it looks like their regular season might be a change of fortune. Dressing five defensemen, with newly acquired Curtis Kulchar still injured and notables like Blum and Regner at NHL camps, didn’t hurt them as the defensive corps being run by ex-Giant Chad Scharff acquitted themselves quite well with a very solid game throughout. Neil Manning and Craig Schira both earned star honours tonight with their excellent play at both ends of the ice and both showed up repeatedly on the score sheet with Manning notching the opening goal of the season. Special teams played a huge part in tonight’s convincing victory as the PP went 3 for 8 and held their opposition to 0 for 8. Reffing was suspect at times with a bunch of soft equalisations, but what do you expect from Matt Kirk.
The Giants opened the scoring 5:44 into the first on the PP. Manning scored on a back door play reminiscent of this years Captain Jonathon Blum. Sneaking behind the coverage and putting the puck past young ‘Tips ‘tender Shayne Barrie. James Wright and Andrej Kudrna assisted on the play with some dandy puck moving. Late in the first Todd Kennedy stood up for his team-mate when d-man Simon Witt was levelled from behind, not an uncommon hit in tonight’s game from the Everett contingent with a fraction of those infractions being called. Taking on a much smaller Cameron Abney, Kennedy got a bit excited and the fight was over quickly with both players going to the ice. Tucker was very good in the opening frame making a couple of point blank stops as the Tips out shot the Vancouver squad 10 - 7.
The Giants padded their lead at 8:45 in the second when it seemed as if the G-Men might come away empty handed on the PP with a few missed nets by CPZ and Kane, but just as I was thinking this Kane muscled the puck past Barrie for the Giants second PP tally of the game. Schira got the second assist. During the goal celebration, Graham Poteur decided to cross-check Kane in the scrum with a frustrated out-burst of poor-sportsmanship. The two teams traded penalties that period with the Tips coming out with bubkis and the Giants notching two PP tallies. Late in the middle frame, Mike Piluso rifled the puck almost through the top corner from the doorstep. Manning and Schira set-up the play getting the puck to the net and Piluso driving the net was first to the loose puck and made no mistake. The Giants out shot the Tips 19 – 8 in the second.
The G-Men salted away the game in the third at the 13:03 mark when Tips coach John Becanic bizarrely decided to pull his goalie with 8 mins left in the game. The Giants made a few good moves at their blue-line, the Tips made some bad moves and the stretch pass found its way onto Lance Bouma’s stick. Bouma tipped it into the empty net to put his team up by four. Adam Basford and Craig Cunningham got the helpers. The only story left undetermined was whether or not Tucker would get his shut out and as it turns out he had to earn it with a couple of great late game stops. His first game in the dub and his first shut out, a convincing one at that. Usually a goalie gets their shutout by default playing behind the Giants stifling D which often limits shots to low double digits, but tonight Tucker was full money for goose-egg and was required to man up and work for his saves to preserve his blank sheet. A shame that the star selectors in Everett awarded him only the third star. The other two being of course Manning and Schira who both had monster games.
The Giants went 3 for 8 on the PP, while holding their opponents to 0 for 8. Shots were 33 – 30 Giants, which would probably be the only stat the Giants weren’t too pleased with this evening. The Giants next game is on the road as they don’t open at home until September 26th. The G-Men will take on the new look Kamloops Blazers who should be a better squad with a lot of their young up and comers arriving. The game will be in Kamloops on Wednesday September 24th. Puck drops at 7:00pm PST.
Three Stars
1) Neil Manning
2) Craig Schira
3) Jamie Tucker
My Three Stars
1) Jamie Tucker
2) Craig Schira
3) Neil Manning