Giants look to snap Kelowna curse
The last time the Vancouver Giants won a game in Kelowna, their smallish sniper wasn’t Ty Ronning. It was Brendan Gallagher.
The Giants haven’t won a road game against the Kelowna Rockets in 25 straight tries, dating to a 4-3 triumph at Prospera Place on March 19, 2011, when their lineup featured current Montreal Canadiens stalwart Gallagher, as well as the likes of Neil Manning, Wes Vannieuwenhuizen and James Henry.
This Giants group, led by 47-goalman Ronning, will look to change that tonight (7 p.m., TSN 1040), when they take on the Rockets again at Prospera.
Vancouver has taken steps this year. With 20 games left in the regular season, the Giants (28-165-3) have more points than they accumulated in any of the past three seasons and look destined for a playoff spot for the first time since the 2013-14 campaign.
Vancouver is four points in back of both the Rockets (32-16-3-1) and Victoria Royals (32-18-3-1) for first in the B.C. Division.
A win in Kelowna would be further evidence the Giants are moving in the right direction. Vancouver is there again March 7 and for their regular-season finale March 17 as part of a home-and-home weekend to end off league play.
The teams have met four times already this season, including three games at the Langley Events Centre, and Vancouver has a 2-11-0 standing, improving their five-year mark to a still dreadful 5-20-2-1.
“It would definitely be a positive step,” Giants captain Tyler Benson said of winning in Kelowna. “It could well be a team we play in the playoffs.
“We’re playing well. We’re playing with a lot of confidence. There are a couple of games we’d like to have back, but all and all we’ve had a good season so far.”
The Giants have won three in a row, including a 5-4 triumph over the Medicine Hat Tigers Saturday at the Langley Events Centre, which was their most entertaining home game in likely a month.
Vancouver is missing No. 1 centre Milos Roman (sprained ankle). He is now out of his walking boot, but there’s no timeline from the team on when he might return to the lineup. He missed nine games playing for Slovakia at the world juniors and was hurt in his return to the Vancouver lineup. That led to him missing the past nine Giants games as well. He was the WHL’s top scoring rookie when he left for the world juniors. He’s sitting on 29 points, including eight goals, in 34 games.
Roman spent much of the first half centring Ronning and Brad Morrison. Morrison was dealt to the Lethbridge Hurricanes at the Jan. 10 trade deadline. Ronning continues to score, though, with five goals in his last three games.
The diminutive New York Rangers prospect is one off the team record for goals in a season. Evander Kane produced 48 in 2008-09.
Going into Tuesday, Ronning was second in the WHL in goals. Moose Jaw Warriors forward Jayden Halbgewachs led with 51.
Kelowna is coming off losing both ends of a weekend home-andhome against the Everett Silvertips, but they had won four of five before that.
Vancouver Canucks prospect Kole Lind was held off the scoresheet in Kelowna’s Saturday loss to Everett, putting an end to a point streak that had lasted 20 games.
Lind has 72 points, including 27 goals, in 43 games this season. The 19-year-old winger, a Canucks second-rounder in last June’s draft, was tied for ninth in WHL scoring as of Tuesday morning. He had 87 points, including 30 goals, in 70 games last season for the Rockets.