The Vancouver Giants have a new home. At least temporarily.
With the Olympics evicting the Giants from their usual home, Pacific Coliseum, Vancouver has headed to the suburbs and the Langley Events Centre for six home games.
The Giants played their first game in Langley, approximately 25 miles east of downtown Vancouver, last Saturday when they entertained Prince George. That began a stretch of six games over 16 days in their new home.
That new home, the Langley Events Centre, is a brand new 4,200-seat facility that houses the Langley Chiefs of the British Columbia Hockey League. The Giants struck a deal with the Chiefs for the temporary use of the arena.
“It’s a really, really nice setup they have,” Giants general manager Scott Bonner told the Vancouver Sun. “It’s a nice building, nice suites, good sight lines, it’s going to be really good for us.”
The Giants are leading a nomadic life because the city of Vancouver is playing host to the 2010 Winter Olympics, which take place Feb. 12-28. Pacific Coliseum, home of the Giants, is one of the venues being used as it will feature figure skating and short track speed skating. That forced the Giants to get creative with their schedule.
The Giants played their last game at Pacific Coliseum on Jan. 3. They then played 10 straight games on the road before making their Langley Events Centre debut last Saturday. Vancouver plays six games total in Langley, including Friday against the Everett Silvertips.
The Giants’ final game in Langley is Feb. 14. Vancouver then hits the road again for another 10 straight before finally returning to Pacific Coliseum on March 12. That’s more than two full months away from home.
Meanwhile, they’ll set up camp in Langley, which will try to accommodate a team that averages about 7,000 fans for home games.
“They’re usually set up for about 2,500 people and we’re basically almost double that, so I’m sure there will be a few glitches along the way,” Bonner told the Sun.
Around the WHL
The Saskatoon Blades, who lead the Eastern Conference, suffered more injury setbacks. Forward Curtis Hamilton suffered his second broken collarbone of the season, and forward Curt Gogol suffered a broken hand. They join defenseman Teigan Zahn as players the Blades have lost for the remainder of the regular season and perhaps the playoffs. … Vancouver welcomed forward James Wright back to the lineup last Friday in Kamloops. Wright spent the first half of the season with the NHL’s Tampa Bay Lightning. … Edmonton snapped a 16-game losing streak when it beat Prince Albert 5-4 in overtime Sunday. … Kelowna’s Tyson Barrie was named the WHL Player of the Week. The 18-year-old defenseman had four goals and four assists as the Rockets went 4-0.
League leaders
(Through Sunday)
Points — Craig Cunningham (Vancouver) 79; goals — Cody Eakin (Swift Current) 37; assists — Brandon Kozun (Calgary) 52; penalty minutes — Kyle Beach (Spokane) 153; wins — Drew Owsley (Tri-City) 29; goals against average — Kent Simpson (Everett) 2.39; save percentage — Simpson .922.
Nick Patterson’s Silvertips blog: http://www.heraldnet.com/silvertipsblog
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