Giants Lose 5-2 in Spokane

Collin Valcourt had a 3rd period hat-trick to break open a 2-1 game, as the Spokane Chiefs handed the Giants their third straight loss, 5-2, in front of a boisterous crowd of 5,957 at the Spokane Veterans Memorial Arena.

The game was scoreless until the final minute of the first period, when Brenden Kichton opened the scoring on a power play to give Spokane a 1-0 lead through 20 minutes.

The teams exchanged 2nd period goals, first another Spokane power play goal from Todd Fiddler, before Jackson Houck got one back for Vancouver to cut the deficit to 2-1 through 40 minutes.

Third period, cue Collin Valcourt.

First at 1:53, then at 10:05, both times assisted by Mitch Holmberg and Dylan Walchuk, and the Chiefs were in control up 4-1. As they’ve done all season, the Giants didn’t give up. They fought back to make it 4-2 when Tanner Moar banged in his first of the season, and first as a Giant (Moar played parts of this game as a defenseman).

But that set the scene for Valcourt’s dramatic finale, as he flipped the puck from inside his own blueline and found the back of the net for the 3rd time with just 1.4 seconds left on the clock, wrapping up a 5-2 victory for the home team.

Spokane outshot Vancouver 34-24, marking the first time this season that the Giants were outshot and the first time they surrendered more than 28 shots. Eric Williams was the 3rd star making 22 saves for the Chiefs, while Liam Liston made 29 saves in the loss.

Special teams played a big factor once again. The Giants failed to score on any of their 6 power play opportunities, while the Chiefs were 50%, finishing the night 2 for 4.

This loss drops Vancouver to 2-7-0-0 on the season, while the Chiefs improve to 6-2-0-0. The teams split the season series 1-1.

The Giants now head home for a full practice week in Ladner before the first of another 3 game home stand, beginning Saturday vs Calgary at the Pacific Coliseum (7pm).

Article courtesy of vancouvergiants.com.